What is hugelkultur?

Pronounced hoo-gul-culture, and means hill culture or hill mound. A type of garden bed style that utilizes collected natural materials such as logs, branches, leaves, pinecones, or other organic matter to provide bulk below a layer of soil. As the bulky materials break down, they release nutrients and become a part of the soil too. In a raised garden bed setting, filling the lower portion of the bed with bulk natural materials and then adding soil on top is considered hugelkultur.