I started planting in the hugelkultur bed today, and it was a little strange. Add a little water and you create an avalanche. So I tried a few things that seemed to work ok.

I took out a handful of soil, replaced it with compost, and planted okra in the compost.

For the cowpeas, I poked holes with my finger and filled them with compost, the dropped the seed in, added more compost, packed down, then watered.

For other plants, I put a bottomless cardboard box filled with compost and planted in that. The compost holds water better and doesn’t erode as the soil does.

compost pile supplies new compost for gardening use

cardboard box filled with compost, planted with squash and cucumber

cardboard box filled with compost, planted with squash and cucumber

UCONN squash, spacemaker cucumber, and marketmore 76 cucumber seed

holes for seeds on side of hugelkultur bed covered with compost

holes made for seeds on side of hugelkultur bed

pinkeye purple hull cowpea seed

Clemson spineless okra seed

hole made in soil on side of hugelkultur bed

Kajari and Ice Cream Melon seed

cardboard box filled with compost, planted with melon

cardboard box filled with compost, planted with melon

hales best seed

desert king watermelon seed

cardboard box filled with compost, planted with watermelon

inspire watermelon seed (old packet)

sangria watermelon seed (old packet)

carboard box filled with compost on hugelkultur bed

hales best cantaloupe seed

sugar baby watermelon seed