Just wanted to say thank you for getting me gardening, Charles! I did your garlic course back in November 2021 -- literally just chucked down some boxes, stuck a small wooden frame around some compost - and everything developed from there. Now I have turned half my garden into a veg patch! The transformation has been amazing and I've been so happy out there all year (there's a video on my channel if you want to see what you helped create.) You've honestly changed my life! I hope you have a lovely Christmas ☺
Thank you for being so authentic. I always feel like it's a tug a war in gardening world. Do this, don't do that. You make it real with your trials and comparisons. I built new compost bins with your example and having so much fun playing with it. You are a gift. Thanks for making the world a better place and using your time to make all of us that found you better humans! Have a healthy and happy holiday season.
As a gardener in a northern continental climate this video was very insightful on how to deal with cold weather. The garden here is currently buried under snow... I am still attempting to overwinter a few things though. Your books and videos help me get through the long winter season. Thank you so much for all you do!
Whenever I feel a little down on gardening all I have to do is watch one of your videos. I immediately feel calm and remember why I started gardening in the first place. Much love to you Charles!!!
Love all your videos! Maybe we could see a pretty unstructured video of a normal day in the running of your garden, to see the weeding, harvesting and other jobs you do on any given day.
@@CharlesDowding1nodig Yeah, but you get everything free right? like all the students from the agri college. I'm sure there are plenty of students with the requisite skills...
Thanks for all your video's! So much information. I bought your sewing calendar for 2023 and I am looking forward to starting a new (better organised) vegetable garden at my new home. Merry Christmas and best wishes for 2023..
Charles I giggled with the tomatoes. I pulled up my peppers because our season is so short and oh my goodness we have beautiful fresh peppers in the house in the depths of winter! 🙂
Nice winter garden, growing amongst the death season…. I can’t believe the southern UK has similar temperatures to Toronto ON, we’ve generally been getting warmer over the recent years, which is unusual. Good idea on the winter shed storage for cold crops, cheers!
I started Winter gardening about 12 years ago. Our climate here on Whidbey island is similar to yours. What inspired me was your book I found at the library and then bought How To Grow Winter Vegetables and a pamphlet on the same topic from West Coast Seeds in BC Canada. I've been Winter gardening every since and in some ways prefer it. Very satisfying getting fresh vegetables without going to the store. Thank you
A big virtual hug and season greetings Sir Charles. With your infectuos (?Genglish) enthusiasm I have managed first time this year to get fully compost independant with almost 4 full cubicmeters that I can happily spread on to the beds now. Your no dig cook book arrived eventually in Germany and I tried the pumpkin beet root feta roast first. So simple and yet so delicious. The left overs were mashed and serve as a spread on home made bread. You are my inspiration, all the best!
Good morning Charles! You are gardening like a Canadian this year. My greenhouse is still producing lettuce but will have to shut it down soon cold and snow is coming before X-mas. Thank you for all you do on your channel. South West Ontario.
Wow! That's incredible! You make me want to build a green house, im from Québec I thought it was a little bit a waste of time to do so. Definitely worth it as I can see.
As always, so informative. It is simply delightful to see so much happening in what might otherwise seem like ‘the dead’ of winter. To all of your team a happy and blessed Christmas from Vancouver Island.
Thank you so much Charles and your team for sharing your knowledge with the gardening world! I have never been so excited to stop digging and start no dig this Spring. All the way from Canada, take good care!
The Coastal area of Northern Maine is very Brutal in the winter months especially near the opening to the Bay of Fundy where i operated my 23 acre farm. I could barely grow any field crops and mostly produced in Greenhouses with Thermal ground based heating until i sold the farm in 2021 after my wife's passing and moved to Central Virginia where i can year around crop almost anything in Greenhouses and outside due to it's classification of being a sub-tropical zone. I'm building three new greenhouse, one i just completed this past week and i'm starting the next identical Gothic style 20'ft. by 45' Foot GH, And the third GH will be a new self cooling design referred to as a NVAC overlapping roof venting style Greenhouse. Thanks for the most relaxing stress relieving videos on RU-vid Charles.
What an amazing history and how interesting. That does sound like a difficult climate, and it's so good you've managed to upgrade! Not to mention the exciting greenhouse designs. I'm really pleased you like my videos and wish you a good year ahead.
U nas w Polsce ciemno, dni krótkie, dużo śniegu. Mam jarmuż, brukselkę, sałatę, kapustę pekińską zasypane śniegiem. Siedzę przy kominku , oglądam i planuję warzywnik na nowy rok. Życzę Wesołych Świąt i Szczęśliwego Nowego Roku.
Thanks Charles for this beautiful winter NoDig gardening video. Winter is a period when soil life moves deeper into the soil. To go back to the topsoil with warmer temperatures. A nice time of year for warm winter meals.
Hi Charles, So much information shared out with a passion that naturally oozes towards your audience during the tours around "Homeacres". Truelly grateful, as you have transformed my gardening outlook. Having a tour around our plot - the moles have ploughed up the woodchip pathways, easily raising the surfaces by 5 - 7 cm in places. Pricisely following the paths with 20 cm high "hills" dotted along. I suspect a hidden worm slaughter has taken place during the last freeze! Merry Christmas to you and all your supporting team. Will be unwrapping your "No Dig" book on Christmas day - Peter
Thank you, Peter, I'm glad to be helping and sorry about your moles! Interesting how they are following the pathways, suggesting that wood chips are encouraging a higher worm population! Enjoy No Dig 🎄
As always, very interesting and so informative video. Thank you Charles! There is strong winter in Poland this december. For week snowing and now there is 30 cm of snow and still freezing (last weekend -14C). So now I watching your videos and planning my no dig veggie garden for next season. Happy Christmas for you and all your team.
Oh wow! I think, though the snow is better for your plants, I was looking at mine this morning and after -9 C, with no snow and therefore no protection, some of them look so sad! I shall do a follow-up video, maybe after Christmas about how plants have survived or not
@@CharlesDowding1nodig Currently, the garden is covered with snow, which I'm very happy about. In the coming days there will be strong frosts again. I'm most worried about my roses, which I haven't had time to cover. 🙆♂At least now they have a chance to survive this time. In addition, snow will help in the fight against drought, because we have a huge problem with hydrological drought. I'm waiting for the video. Thank you again and best regards.
A very good non hybrid brussel sprouts variety I grow is called "Auslese Sativa", it is a variety cultivated by Sativa, a Swiss-German organic seeds company. I can highly recommend it. The brussel sprouts are smaller but they are very regular and the plants are beautiful, not messy at all, and VERY frost hardy. Unfortunately the deer think they are excellent as well....
Dear Sir. Firstly I wish you a very happy Christmas and a happy new year. I have been a forester for 40 years and I have been watching this channel for the last few years and I have to say that it has jogged my memory on a few of the things that I have learned 40 years ago… thank you sir
Espero que tengas buen Invierno.En mi zona baja sólo a 6 grados en la noche y se puede plantar muchas hortalizas .He visto muchos vídeos tuyos y así me atrevo a plantar muchas cosas 😂😂😂 Saludos desde Tenerife !! Buenas Navidades para ti y tu familia !! 👏🏻🌸🥕🐞🥦🌿
I have been watching your videos for the last 2 years now, and my garden has been completely changed because of you. I have been able to keep cold tolerant plants going from early March (with covers,) saved days of work not tilling the soil, and have been starting seeds in a similar manner to you. I am in Southern Maine so the climate is a bit different, but it was worked out well. I would love to see a video focusing on growing during drought, as the last few summers have wiped out the gardens here (among other things.) You have changed my gardening for the better, thank you so much! I hope you continue to make these videos and share your knowledge.
This is nice to see Julie and I'm happy things are working well for you, except for the dry summers. It's less intense here, not so hot as for you, but we were pretty dry last year and in July, I made this video about selective watering and I hope it helps. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE--RoqR6VyiJo.html
Morning Charles, I’m always jealous when I see your garden. Ha. I love all the winter veggies. Brussel sprouts looked great. Take care my friend. God blessings to y’all. (Old guy from Arkansas)🇺🇸
Charles your book is just magic & I am half way through as I like to absorb knowledge from your writings. Wow it looks cold over there- we are having 35c days but I am loving it- Garden not so much - but still surviving. Merry Christmas to you & all of your Family, I hope it is a beautiful time for you. Love your Friend Denise- Australia.
That's lovely feedback Denise, and happy Christmas to you as well. I'm pleased you have the warmth because I've heard a lot from other parts of Australia and New Zealand where it's been cold and wet, even in mid-summer.
Glad to hear you mention Eliot Coleman, such a classy move. He really did a great work at turning a lot of people on to good growing practices. Interesting to see you incorporate a bit of technique that was important to them, but modified to your particular climate and situation. Well done, Charles, and well explained, made perfect sense to me. Thanks!
I added a couple of beds to my backyard garden. I put them in right around no-dig day, with turnips, cauliflower and spinach. They are growing slow but have roots in the ground. Thank you for all your guidance and encouragement. Happy holidays!
I come to you under 30cm of snow today! 😁 A nice warm blanket for all my plants. It is a heavy snow though and many of the trees are kissing the ground with the load. All will be well, nature takes care of itself. However you all celebrate the season, I wish it a joyful and restful time for you, your family and your team. It has been a lovely gardening season and everyone has done such a great job. Looking forward to see what 2023 has in store. I can image the team doing a little wassail amongst the beds. Old apple tree we wassail thee And hope that thou shalt bear For the Lord doth know Where we shall be Come apples another year. For to bloom well And to bear well so merry let us be Let every man take off his hat And shout out to the old apple tree. For to bloom well And to bear well so merry let us be Let every man take off his hat And shout out to the old apple tree. Old Apple tree, we worship thee, And hope that thou will bare Hatfuls, capfuls, and three bushel bagfuls A little heap under the stairs. Three cheers for the apple tree: Hip hip horray! Hip hip horray! Hip hip horray! Merry Christmas and a blessed Happy New Year! 😊🍻
It was very interesting to see how much frost some things can survive. I live in Cornwall and don’t remember having frost that doesn’t thaw by lunchtime before , it’s been frozen for a week or more, fortunately I put a thick mulch on my Dahlias, so fingers crossed they will survive. But I was worried my Broad beans won’t survive this much frost. I’m hopeful now they may come through it, I thought I may sow more indoors in January to boost the crop. Thanks again Charles without you I would never have been able to continue gardening I’m 74 but no dig means so much less work .Happy Christmas and a healthy Prosperous new year to you and your family xx
Great tour, certainly gave me ideas for this coming season. I think it's been at least 35 yrs ago maybe 40, Eliot and Barbra had a garden show on public tv, I loved watching them. I remember one winter segment, they trudged thru 8 - 10 inches of snow to their poly tunnel where they were growing root veg, he commented they lived in zone 5, but it was zone 7 inside the tunnel. I'm 64 and remember so much from those shows, as with your videos, I remember so much from you too. Thank you again for sharing all your knowledge as well, really do appreciate it. Charles, I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.
Thank you so much Charles and team. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed all your videos this year and I’ve learnt so much!!! Which I have put into practice and have produced some great crops of salad,potatoes and a few more. I got my timings wrong this year and I’ve learnt that timing is very important from seed to planting, so that’s my goal for next year and not forgetting to work on the composting. I’m hoping Santa will be bringing me your new books 🤗. I’d like to wish you all a very Blessed Christmas and New year. Thank you for all you do, God bless.
We are still under several inches of snow. The netted cage suffered a major collapse but the plants underneath are all OK but a bit frozen! Great to see how well the no dig plot did re the dug bed. My experience of fleece used on the East facing bit of the garden was disastrous- no plants surviving due to loss of light I think. Seasons greeting to you. I can't wait for the new season to start. No dig is so exciting!
It's lovely to hear your excitement, and also that's interesting about fleece on the east side. It's true that it keeps light off and I'm looking forward to rolling it up on Sunday when is going to be warmer
Le Manoir ? I am very envious. You willl be certain to enjoy, Chef Blanc is passionate about his beloved gardens and nobody could be more enthusiastic & adventurous than him and his team. I hope you get to meet him and you might be lucky enough to experience some of their renowned food ? Hope you might let us know how it went . 😉
Can't wait! However, they need a minimum of 30 attendees and it's quite expensive so I'm not convinced it will happen. If it does, yes it will be quite the experience. I know Raymond, lovely man
@@CharlesDowding1nodig 30 is quite an ask at the moment .,but hope it comes off. I always had a feeling that Chef Blanc is a lovely man, I'm glad you confirmed it !
What an amazing amount of (free!) information. Thank you, again, Mr Dowding. I also want recommend to everyone your books. I just finished my 5th of yours and have learned so much. I look forward to the next one!
Seasons greetings from the west of Ireland! Thank you Charles for all your videos and generosity in 2022. I am already looking forward to my 3rd year of no dig.. I wish you and yours all the best for 2023 !!
Hi Charles, thanks for sharing! Wireworms seem to really dislike Buckwheat and Brown Mustard, Agriculture and AgriFood Canada recommend a rotation with BW and BM to reduce damage in potatoes. I can't seem to source BM for myself, but BW is surprisingly the better option anyways luckily it was already my favorite cover crop, one more reason to plant it now especially since I'm reclaiming some lawn myself
My son mentioned that he didn't see many weeds in the garden this past season which was my first no dig year. I told him I hardly had any weeding and began to explain how no dig works and he immediately put it together. It just makes sense, you're not tilling the seeds back up to the surface to start growing. Composting on top and not digging has been the easiest garden I've ever had. Thank you Charles.
Made me laugh that it has reached the point of sheer confusion for Charles now why people dig 😂 Thank you so much there is so much to learn from listening to you walk around and chat about everything.
It amazes me how you remember all of the dates that you planted something... I'm a huge planner- I don't ever just throw seeds in a bed without a prior plan, & I make videos as well, but I still have to check my notes or videos to remember when I planted something!
Thank you so much. I am going to miss it, being with you in the garden for the next weeks. It has become my great pleasure since I started watching your channel this late summer. Have a wonderful time yourself!
Popped over early from the newsletter, thank you! This was a very special tour to end the year, thank you. I’m encouraged and look forward to seeing the fruits of all of our labours next year! I’m looking forward to Monday here (Thursday now) as I’m finished work and the temperature is hopefully warm enough to spread more compost. Take care Charles and team. The merriest of Christmasses! Tracy 💚
The radishes look fantastic, and I hope your Mammoths are doing just as well. I was totally amused by the thought of you having a haunted Poly Tunnel too 🤣
@@CharlesDowding1nodig I really like them, and yes they don't have the traditional Radish pep to them. I find they taste like the part closest to the skin on a water melon. Also great for me in place of potatoes in stews/soups.
👏👏 well done . I took your advice and planted carrots 🥕 for our fall crop and even tho the hole spacing was wide using landscape fabric we had a bountiful harvest
I am in zone 9 in the US. On cold dry nights, the areas of my lawn that have tree cover don't accumulate frost, while areas that have an unobstructed view of the cold vacuum of space, do.
That's a very good point. If only trees and tree roots worked better with vegetables! This summer near to my cherry tree, plants were small, because it was so good at pulling out the moisture!
I can't believe you haven't hit one million subscribers yet ! If anyone deserves it, it's you. But I'm sure it will happen sooner than later. I can't wait for next spring ! Do you think you can do some winter composting videos ? And some info on soil amendments such as organic fertilizers. IE: Espoma organic vegetable and herb fertilizer, Bone meal, Blood meal, kelp, fish emulsion, etc. 🤔 I value your opinions and expertise. Just spit balling...😁 Stay safe Sir Charles ! 🕊️🙏💟
Thanks so much Robert. Actually I feel like I'm going out of fashion because subscriber numbers are not rising anymore or only slowly. I think the algorithms promote regular short videos. Those ideas ... would be short videos! Because I don't advocate much compost making in winter, nor do I suggest using those organic fertilisers, an interesting topic though!
It's starting to get a little chilly here now, in comparison to the tropical temps of summer (14 degrees C at night and about 27 in the day). My friend came to see my no dig raised beds and he was gobsmacked as to how healthy my plants looked. My 2 year old bed is just outstanding, it is producing some great Swiss chard, Chinese radish and also fairly big cauliflowers (they seem to start bolting around fist size) with very little pest damage :) I think I now know why my tomato plants died so rapidly, I had them planted in between a lot of Cauliflowers, radish and kale, I have been told that tomatoes don't companion well with brassicas so I think this, as well as the heat, did for them. I am constantly learning. Great video Charles, thanks. P.S. I am really enjoying your new book, I just love the cover :)
Thanks for all your content Charles, getting our new (previously abandoned) allotment ready for the new year, your videos are always very inspirational
I love your videos! My garden is a mess right now. Oh well, it's winter. I didn't plant a fall garden this year. My spring and summer garden were so successful that I really didn't need more! Oh yes, no dig is the BEST! I grow potatoes in leaf compost and wow, easy and productive. Thanks for making it all make sense. I was doing no dig before it was cool :D
Lovely walk around your amazing plot Charles. Re: wood pigeon, yes they are a real menace here and will destroy every brassica plant unless netted 😡 Best wishes Woody 👍
Thank you Charles for all of your help throughout the year. So glad I found you here and on Instagram. A very Happy Christmas to you and yours from me and mine. Stay safe ☺️
I want to thank you for all your video's they are so informative. I planned earlier this year to re do my back garden and have decided to do all no dig. The size I am working with is outdoor space about the size of your small garden and the same area in greenhouse space.. This video has inspired me to have the same winter food crops and storage you have (just on a smaller scale). Over the past 5 years I have got up to 90% of our fruit needs and you have helped show me it is possible to get up way higher than 15% of our veg needs. which I currently do There is only 2 of us.
Thank you for the December tour Charles. I'm intrigued to see what has survived in our garden come the thaw today and tomorrow as the salad in our polytunnel looks very sorry for itself as do the beetroot outside. Merry Christmas to you and yours!
+24% yield for less work. It really is a no brainer... Or rather, it should be. I have not dug my vegetable garden since discovering your channel 3 years ago, and this past summer I found myself almost kind of bored because there was barely any maintenance needed! I just picked food and ate it, and turnover is so fast and easy. The only time I'll be digging will be to plant trees... Thank you for the continual development and sharing!
Thank you for this lovely tour Charles I always enjoy these videos of yours. I've never grown any kind of radish that colour or size. The Brussels sprouts look tasty... I enjoy a plate of all kinds of fresh veg from the garden with some Irish butter melting through. Our garden is 55north here in Limavady Northern Ireland and we don't have extremes of climate but wood pigeons and slugs cause a lot of destruction. I've always loved gardening and my brother William and I love it all the more since we found you and learned about no dig..... pity we can't get back some of the energy we misused over the years digging! I hope you have a lovely Christmas with your loved ones and look forward to more videos in the coming year. Love from Vera in Northern Ireland
Thanks Vera, so nice to hear this. I am teaching at the Organics Centre in Leitrim, first weekend of April. I've been there before I know how wet it is, and dark! Good luck with the slugs…
Thank you for sharing anything and everything Charles. I have learned a lot from you since I started my allotment now into my third year. Im not fully no-dig but I’m converting each bed I took over on the plot as I can. Getting the right compost and the compost right is big step 1. My surrounding traditional allotmenteers think I’m a bit of a nut following some bloke on RU-vid! But they have looked covetously at some of my results, with less weeding I might add! Minus their rotovators. I gave up Christmas several years ago and I’m not going to wish you a good rest because I doubt you do much of that! But thank you very very much for sharing all you have learned. 26:05
A great big thank you for all the great video’s throughout the year,we too have spread our compost on our beds & you have converted us to no dig,happy Christmas to you all from a very cold Wolverhampton.
Since your new ground was grassland for so many years, the wireworms will exist in huge numbers. I think you should try the natural nematode for getting rid of them. You may need to treat for 2 or 3 years, once a year treatment. I've read that the wireworms typically lives very deep in the soil, around 2ft, and comes up to feed about 3 times in the year. I wouldn't use the potato traps, as it's been shown to merely encourage them to reproduce.
