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A few months ago my family & I received a verbal gift from someone who passed our market stall to observe for one moment the electroculture devices I was selling there.

When he noticed I didn't have any shoes on he smiled and told me I should google "Le jardin du Graal".

I did this when I returned home that evening and what I found was a man by the name of Philip Forrer (who doesn't wear shoes) with a system of growing which utilises principles of permaculture and electroculture, both of which I will describe in this post.

In a word MULCH is his secret and I do believe this is the simplest system I have ever seen which will lead me to a very different kind of life in which I can enjoy organic home-grown food along with plenty of free time for other pursuits. Watering and weeding take a huge amount of effort in the hottest months of the year and if I can eliminate these two things completely that would be such a blessing!

I will therefore be converting my land to test out these ideas this winter and I look forward to some very low maintenance gardening next year.

Mulch mounds

The images and information in this post are taken from this video:

It is in French but not to worry. I will cover the main points here.

Forrer first mentions an American lady by the name of Ruth Stout as his inspiration.

Naturally I checked her out too and yesterday posted her second book Gardening Without Work in my @survival-archive account.

The book is amazing and I highly recommend you download it from the links I have provided and add it to your digital collection. In a nutshell Stout highlights the multiple benefits of mulching in her first chapter "God invented mulching", going on to explain how to deal with individual plants in later chapters.

The title of this post indicates there are only two things to do with this type of gardening (planting & harvesting) but there is in fact a third.

Add mulch regularly.

God invented mulching?

Forrer invites us to consider the trees of a forest and the way in which branches and leaves will fall every year to the ground.

Compacting down year after year with new decaying plant matter the forest is effectively a composting machine, providing the perfect soil and growing conditions for the smaller plants below.

Such is the way with a mulch bed being consistently added to.

How to create a mulch bed

Forrer goes on to demonstrate the basic principle of how his beds are prepared using handy diagrams.

Initially a trench is dug, into which logs are placed. These will hold air pockets and moisture for many years at the base of your bed.

Next we fill the spaces with sticks & plant matter, compressing it as much as possible.

Cover this with 20cms of earth.

Finally a layer of mulch is placed on top, 20-30cms thick.

The mulch is pulled back to plant seeds.

And pushed back into place once the plants are developed enough. This prevents unwanted plants from getting through.

Any weeds which are able to make it through the mulch are dealt with simply by adding more mulch.

What is mulch composed of?

Imagine the forest once more and all the different plants which fall down and decompose on the floor. Nature is not particular about what type of plant decides to die there so to answer the question, it is any plant you can imagine. Dead or alive.

An effective mulch, much like a compost, is layered with green and brown.

Brown dead plant matter (sticks, dry leaves, cardboard, paper) is layered next to green living plant matter (weeds, grass clippings, kitchen waste).

The decomposing mulch will create a slight heat in the winter, aiding the survival of the plants, while in the summer the mulch will prevent the soil from drying out and retain that crucial moisture which will prevent us from ever having to pick up a watering can again.

He says his plants survive -15°C every winter.

Going on to mention that his coldest winter ever was -26°C and nothing died, exclusively thanks to his system which enables him to harvest all year round with minimum effort no matter the weather.

He also tells us that due to his system of simply letting all his plants complete their lifecycle and fall over into the mulch, almost everything appears the following year as the upper layer of the mulch will quickly become a part of the soil iself, due to the mulch which is continuously added on top. He doesn't mention it but presumably one has some selective weeding to do at this point if they would like to see the plants thrive.

Carrots he says he must re-plant every year.

Forrer makes a comparison in his garden between these artichokes growing normally in the soil.

And these ones growing in his "buttes" (mulch mounds).

Indeed, the difference is remarkable.

Optimising with electroculture antenna

Philip Forrer has a more up-to-date knowledge than Ruth Stout. This is demonstrated by his multiple electrlculture antenna which are being used to enhance the natural energies on his land.

The antenna are placed every 7m, made with copper tubes and zinc wire at the top.

He believes this is the best system. And he may well be right! The copper and the zinc will create an energy differential along with their conductive qualities.

Though I personally reserve the right for a little more creativity than that.

It amazes me (as always) that a barefoot man on the other side of France from us who is on the forefront of merging permaculture with electroculture was introduced to me by a passing stranger who felt inclined to tell me about him.

He describes his feet as batteries which recharge when in contact with the earth.

And certainly I know what he is talking about.

Thank you Philipe Forrer for your great work 🙏

I will of course post an update once I begin converting our land and report back on how things change for us next year.

In the meantime I am focused on this hole I have been digging for the last week.

During one of my many meditations inside this hole I realised why I was digging it.

It will be the most effective greenhouse we've ever had!

Our plants will be kept warm through even the most extreme of winters in an eco friendly zero budget way, utilising the clear plastic film from last year's failed greenhouse.

Powered by sunlight (heating the stones) and compost (heating the floor).

Am pretty confident that I should be able to create a balmy tropical environment in here no matter how cold it gets outside and will write a post to describe this intuitive greenhouse in more detail once it is finished.

In ten days we will be hitting zero at night so my timing is good and the first test will be arriving shortly after its creation.

Love & Light everyone 🌱