I've built a small raised Hugelkultur bed over 2 feet in height, and I'm going to test the bamboo stake.

I'll use three types of stake:

1. An empty stake with holes (about 1/8" diameter) cut to 1" depth. (Holes buried to 1", stake somewhere between 7" and 15")

2. A stake with same holes cut to 1" depth, and smallest possible holes at 2" depth. Stake filled with compost.

3. Stake as #2, no compost, with additional small holes cut to 3" or more depth, with heavy paper (i.e., toilet paper roll cardboard) on inside wall of bamboo. (This seems the least likely to work if only due to practicality, and I may just do a few.)

Stakes will be placed 12"-16" apart, maybe closer depending on what I encounter under the sand layer.

After placing stakes, I'll spread a seeded mixture of rich soil. I combine store bought potting mix, store bought cheap soil, mulch from our property, and some soil sourced on property. I mix all that, add organic fertilizer, then throw in a bunch of seeds, a variety. Greens mostly, but maybe tomato, whatever I have on hand. I mix all that very well. I can through some white sand in to see how well it's mixed.

I then spread that in about a 1"-1.5" layer over the bed. Works great!

Some ideas: One could go crazy with all the possibilities. For example, you could combine 2 and 3, putting paper (or other material) on the inside wall of the bamboo, them compacting compost inside that.

Also, solutions will vary greatly depending on soil type. With Taiwan's red clay, for example, you might be able to simply use bamboo stake with small holes. The problem would be getting the bamboo into the ground without it splitting. I can almost push it in here. In Taiwan, you'd probably have to create a hole first using something very hard. If you try to pound bamboo into the hard Taiwan soil, it could easily split.