Thanks for your question! We’re guessing here. But it sounds like a form of raised bed gardens without the wood or stone sides. Elevated soil warms more quickly in the spring than the surrounding garden soil. This is a practice for cooler or wetter climates. In drier areas, hilling is not a great idea though, as much needed water can drain away. When you hill, you don’t just mound up dirt. You bury healthy amount of compost and well rotted manure underneath the mound first, and then some shovels of garden soil until each hill is 3 to 6 inches tall. It works well for snow peas and can provide an earlier start for beans and corn and also potatoes.
Also, we use the term 鈥渉illing鈥 for vining plants including squash, melons and cucumbers. However, the word 鈥渉ill鈥 is deceptive. It isn’t meant to be a raised mound as this would dry out quickly in many climates. It means that several seeds are grouped together in one spot and then thinned. Hills are used to space out the plants which vine and need room to spread.
Finally, there are some plants which require 鈥渉illing鈥 as they grow; with potatoes, gardeners gently mound soil around the growing plant.
Thanks for your question! We’re guessing here. But it sounds like a form of raised bed gardens without the wood or stone sides. Elevated soil warms more quickly in the spring than the surrounding garden soil. This is a practice for cooler or wetter climates. In drier areas, hilling is not a great idea though, as much needed water can drain away. When you hill, you don’t just mound up dirt. You bury healthy amount of compost and well rotted manure underneath the mound first, and then some shovels of garden soil until each hill is 3 to 6 inches tall. It works well for snow peas and can provide an earlier start for beans and corn and also potatoes.
Also, we use the term 鈥渉illing鈥 for vining plants including squash, melons and cucumbers. However, the word 鈥渉ill鈥 is deceptive. It isn’t meant to be a raised mound as this would dry out quickly in many climates. It means that several seeds are grouped together in one spot and then thinned. Hills are used to space out the plants which vine and need room to spread.
Finally, there are some plants which require 鈥渉illing鈥 as they grow; with potatoes, gardeners gently mound soil around the growing plant.