Sheet Mulching

This week, after having planted most, if not all, of our seeds in our beds, we began taking care of other jobs around the farm. In addition to our management jobs, where we work on composting, watering, farm infrastructure maintenance, and managing companions, we also began taking care of smaller jobs that were equally as important, such as "sheet mulching." Sheet mulching is laying down long pieces of cardboard in areas of the farm and covering them in a layer of wood chips, and this serves several effective purposes on our farm. It smothers weeds by preventing them from growing upwards or reaching sunlight, making it easier to get rid of them later, or allowing us to leave them alone entirely. It also helps create more obvious pathways so no one walks in the beds. We mainly used sheet mulch on the pathways, but it can also be used in the actual beds themselves to trap moisture in the soil in order to save water. This is especially helpful as it allows us to be more efficient in our irrigation systems. The cardboard is stiff at first, but as it starts to get wet and softens up, it blends into the farm and is hardly noticeable. The process only takes a couple of minutes, and is very easy, considering the several helpful effects it has on the farm.

- Chloe Holder

Other sources used:
https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=https%3a%2f%2fmodernfarmer.com%2f2016%2f05%2fsheet-mulching%2f&c=E,1,aSb7jQqpEZ7zZ2_H6tqefz7hmX_dTDVb0vNuSOIL3SAYhN9894yJCwurQzGfHeB04FCuWduxvu7tsH5_FY4JgXGFXao3YXTTM1FhwuW_P_EMhg,,&typo=1
https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=http%3a%2f%2fwww.marinwater.org%2f158%2fSheet-Mulching-Guide&c=E,1,lSoUzOsxO1W0z_G56UVQD43FYFvQP7aCSipJRPg3xlBrPBjUehoOaetkl8OIwijSyAG-4YKYs6vQxBSu8jl6dwxIN79tuDFSYmYecT3f984,&typo=1