Bed 1 was cleared earlier in January (when it was clear I wasn't going to get any carrots from the second planting either!)
Some home grown chicken manure/bedding, that had been standing for a couple of months, was added and mixed in
A light dusting of dolomite and crushed rock minerals added
The bed was kept moist (with the help of 151mm of rain in February!!!!!)
It has now been thickly planted with Broad Beans - 4 packets and some are already up!
This will be a Green Manure crop...cut down before it flowers...to provide some compost greens and mulch/worm food in the Wicking Bed.
Hopefully to leave behind pink root nodules full of nitrogen like these from last years planting in Bed 2.
To help this process I will 'inoculate' the bed with soil from Bed 2 where these grew so well last year.
This involves mixing a couple of handfuls of bed 2 soil with rainwater, I'll include some worm tea and molasses to encourage the microbial growth!