Hügelkultur

Hügelkultur is a German term for raised-bed gardening using buried woody material covered in compost and topsoil. As the wood decomposes within the bed, it retains more and more moisture over time. However, a good crop can be planted in it in the first year.

I would like to try this at The Wooly Crow Farm. I just pruned a mountain of branches from an enormous wild rose and some kind of flowering shrub that threatened to eat us.

For more information see Paul Wheaton's blog Richsoil
or check out Permies.com