The complete guide to straw bale gardening without using weeding and chemicals. The hay bale garden everything you need to get started. Growing your own food at home is not only a great way to commune with nature, but it can also save you a great deal of money on your grocery bills. Straw bale gardens complete contains all of the original information that has set the gardening world on fire. Like with mulches, it important to either find square straw bales, which are intrinsically without seeds, or seedless hay bales as the base. Ever since the publication of his book, straw bale gardens cool springs press, joel karsten has become something of a gardening celebrity, making television and youtube appearances, being interviewed by major papers, and gathering a facebook following that counts over.
Straw bale gardening university of wisconsinmadison. Container gardening without the container advantages of straw bales height 2 foot raised bed no digging, cultivation soil type doesnt matter inexpensive raised bed used bales can be used as mulch, compost mobile at least. Unfortunately, many gardening methods require special containers, tools, and equipment which can be quite costly. The bale is first conditioned and then vegetable plants are planted and grown inside the bale. Feb 01, 2015 take your straw bale gardening to the next levelin more places, with new products, and even sometimes skipping the straw entirelywith straw bale gardens complete. Straw bale gardening ultimate 5chapter beginners guide. See more ideas about straw bale gardening, straw bales and hay bale gardening. Straw bale gardening, is a most informative and detailed book for the avid vegetable gardener. Day 1 the bales laid out in roughly the configuration we decided on for the back yard, with a long section for tall, vining vegetables like tomatoes, cucumbers and zucchini, and larger rectangular areas for everything else. Jun 04, 2014 straw bale gardening is an engaging and productive way for home gardeners to add a fun, new dimension to their gardening experience. I like to use blood meal as an organic nitrogen source for conditioning the bales. You can toss the dice like i did and purchase straw bales from your local garden center, but its best to source them direct from the farm. The hidden dangers of straw bale gardening the grow.
Straw bale gardening is an engaging and productive way for home gardeners to add a fun, new dimension to their gardening experience. His latest book on the subject, straw bale solutions cool springs press, 2018, covers all the ways that straw bale gardening has solved gardeners problems from. A pioneer and an entrepreneur, karsten has been featured in the new york times, national television and radio. What is the best organic source of nitrogen to condition my bales. If you like tomatoes, then youll want to seriously consider growing them in straw bales. See more ideas about straw bale gardening, straw bales, baling. Nichols annual plant day is saturday, may 16, 2009. It is worth a trip to the library to check out his book. If you skip this part your plant roots will be affected by the heat created from the compositing process and it will kill the plants. If you are keen to start your own straw bale garden, you will want to know which vegetables work best with this unique gardening technique. The straw bales in the pic below are placed on three layers of decomposing bales or about 9 of decomposing straw. Learn more about straw bale gardening how did cambodian rice farmers react to a 64.
Why your garden needs a straw bale preparednessmama. Craig lehoulliers stepbystep instructions show you how to do everything from sourcing the straw and setting up your bale to planting, dealing with weeds and pests, and harvesting. And if youre interested in growing 10 foot tall tomato plants, then look no further this is your new growing method. Straw bale gardening features a great way to grow vegetables even when space is limited. Straw bale gardening is simply a different type of container gardening. To me there is nothing easier as far as gardening goes. Straw bale gardening is just that, planting your seedlings into bales of straw. The breakthrough method for growing vegetables anywhere, earlier and with no weeding paperback mar 15 20. There are quite a lot that works well, but a few to avoid, and some to leave for when you are more experienced with straw bale gardening. Straw bale gardening is a gardening technique where the bales acts as natural containers for your plants. Are you looking for a way to start growing vegetables in just a few weeks quick and easy. For technical questions or comments about wprs website, streaming or other digital media products, please use our website feedback form. Youll find a bumper crop of vegetable gardening books on the shelves today, but it is a very rare title that actually contains new information. The straw is then conditioned to form the perfect environment for roots to take hold and for plants to flourish.
Jan 11, 2016 straw bale gardening can destroy your garden. The hidden danger of straw bale gardening no one is. Gardening with straw bales alan windham professor, plant pathology what is straw bale gardening. Health benefits of gardening and recipes to use your fresh produce. But it also goes much deeper, with nearly 50 pages of allnew advice and photos on subjects such as growing in a tight urban setting, making your straw bale garden completely organic, and using new fertilizers and conditioning products. They function essentially as a raised bed each bale is 1416 inches high and a container garden in one. Straw bale gardens complete contains all of the original information that has set. As interest grew, he became one of the most indemand garden lecturers in the country. Make sure its level water carefully so it doesnt wash away or cut the bottom out of a plastic flat, pin it. Joel karsten, author of straw bale gardens, straw bale solutions, and straw bale gardens complete, developed the straw bale gardening method more than 10 years ago. The main difference is that the container is the straw bale itself and is held together with two or three strings. Growing vegetables in straw bales storey publishing. Straw bale gardening grow more food, in less space, with.
This booklet is a guide to growing a successful straw bale garden written by the pioneer of this method of gardening. Straw bale gardening, vegetable gardening, gardening techniques. The guide to straw bale gardening by annika walker nook. A beginners guide to straw bale gardening by craig lehoullier. The hidden dangers of straw bale gardening the grow network. Thanks kent for putting me on to the straw bale thing. Once the straw inside the bale begins to decay the straw becomes conditioned compost that creates an extraordinary plant rooting environment. A far less laborious gardening experience, eliminating digging and weeding. Then, once weve made it through the growing season, the straw bales are nicely broken down as a great mulchcompost mix.
Straw bale gardening book by joel karsten thriftbooks. Hay bales are grasses that have been dried and baled together. Information on container, raised beds, square foot, organic and straw bale gardens. Once a straw bale has been prepared for planting, it can be transformed into a beautiful threedimensional annual garden, or host a fresh vegetable garden. Straw bale planters are an easy solution for people lacking clean soil or extra space for gardening. Hear the incredible story of straw bale gardens by the man who literally wrote the book on this technique, mr. If you want to garden organically, the person at the garden center wont likely know how the straw was grown. He routinely challenges old gardening dogma and pioneers exciting new techniques to grow vegetables in the darndest places. So, hay bale gardening differentiates from straw bale gardening in several ways. Gardening with straw bales university of tennessee system. Growing vegetables in straw bales, strawbale gardening.
Using straw rather than hay will help keep weeds at a minimum, since hay generally has seeds attached, while straw has most of the seeds removed. It solves every impediment todays home gardeners face. Straw bale gardens teaches gardening in a way that isnt only new but is thoroughly innovative and revolutionary to home gardening. Straw bale gardens complete by joel karsten overdrive. Straw bale gardening is basically using a straw bale to create a raised plant bed. Jul 12, 2018 the current straw bale gardening expert is joel karsten who wrote straw bale gardens by joel karsten fyi, joel will be speaking at this years free home grown food summit april 612, 2015. Maybe you have rocky or poor soil and the prospect of carting in new soil just seems too costly and time consuming. There are a few things i have learned about the process as i was experimenting with how to condition straw bales. An indepth guide to straw bale gardening for beginners.
On a weird note they dont have straw bales in my part of texas something about the wheat not getting high enough for a second cutting so im using a hay bale. Think of the straw bale as a large container with a volume of 40 gallons. Heres the method that has made karsten the goto guru for straw bale gardening. Straw bale gardens have taken off over the last decade or so. The good guide to extreme composting may be wondering why in the world id state that straw bale gardening can destroy your garden. Straw bale gardening provides many advantages over traditional soil gardening, some of which have already been alluded to. Take your straw bale gardening to the next levelin more places, with new products, and even sometimes skipping the straw entirelywith straw bale gardens complete. Karsten recommends erecting sevenfoottall posts at the end of each row of bales, and running wire between them at intervals of 10 inches from the tops of the bales. The science of straw bale gardening with joel karsten. The reception and enthusiasm for straw bale gardening, introduced in 20, has proved revolutionary in vegetable growing. Growing 10 foot tall tomato plants in straw bales straw. Straw bale gardens by joel karsten overdrive rakuten. Straw bale gardening coast to coast trials and tribulations of using bales to grow vegetables and herbs.
Ive seen some really pretty and clever methods of straw bale gardening. Combining container gardening with vegetable gardening, straw bale gardening breaks the notion that plants can only grow in soil as these dirtless gardens plans will cause your plants to explode. Last year i tried a few offthewall types of gardens, including a straw bale garden. Straw bale gardening is a great alternative for building raised garden beds, and the. In the next part of this growing experiment, i will let you know how the transplants are doing, and perhaps try the other side of straw bale gardening, starting seeds in the bale. Our newest demonstration garden is a living example of food gardens from the bountiful containera complete guide to growing veegtabels, herbs, fruits and edible flower in containers. I would also love to sign a copy of my book straw bale gardens for you as well. Ever since the publication of his book, straw bale gardens cool springs press, joel karsten has become something of a gardening celebrity, making television and youtube appearances, being interviewed by major papers, and gathering a facebook following that counts over 27,000 likes. A straw bale garden bed starts with a bale of straw. Dec, 2019 straw bale gardening can destroy your garden. It requires less maintenance than most other gardening varieties and is an excellent way for everyone to be able to enjoy gardening regardless of their situation. Read what brought karsten to the innovative and efficient idea of straw bale gardening and find the.
A variety of crops can be grown in bales, including tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, squash, melons, and herbs. Hundreds of helpful, stepbystep color photographs illustrate how to arrange, prepare, and successfully grow a straw bale garden. Divyoull find a bumper crop of vegetable gardening books on the shelves today, but it is a very rare title that actually contains new information. Jul 16, 20 one of the coolest things about straw bale gardening is that it combines the best of container gardening with vertical gardening. Mar 20, 2011 the straw bales in the pic below are placed on three layers of decomposing bales or about 9 of decomposing straw. Make sure its level water carefully so it doesnt wash away or cut the bottom out of a plastic flat, pin it down onto top of bale, fill with soil and plant. From this point it was basically just watering it like i would the other veggies in the garden. Straw bale gardening is a modern method of cultivation where you compost straw bales and plant vegetables within them. Straw bales are stalks of plants, typically corn that are dried and baled together in various shapes and sizes. Setting them up is the hardest part but there are many benefits to this type of garden. If weve positioned the straw bale garden atop a potential garden space, then weve hopefully put it on a weed barrier of cardboard or newspaper, snuffing out weed problems early on. May 05, 2017 lets begin with the basics of gardening in straw bales. Just letting you know, i will be speaking at the portland build, remodel and landscape show this coming saturday, jan 3rd at 1 p.
All you need is a bale of straw, some fertilizer, and your favorite vegetable seeds. Buy a cheap copy of straw bale gardening book by joel karsten. Unlike a planter filled with potting soil, the bale begins life as an essentially sterile medium. These can often be purchased more readily and cheaply during the fall, when grain harvests are at the high point, and theyll wait patiently for.
You are going to use conditioning to quickly speed the decomposition of your bale. Oct 15, 20 by fitting straw bale gardening into your garden plans, you can overcome these obstacles. A beginners guide to straw bale gardening raleigh news. In just the short amount of time that has passed, the gardening world and joel karsten himself have learned even more about how to apply this method in just about any environment. Youll find a bumper crop of vegetable gardening books on the shelves today, but it is a very rare. The guide below provides an easy, stepbystep approach to. Straw bale gardening is an inexpensive, lowmaintenance way to grow a bounty of food in a small space.
This makes it a great choice for anyone with hard soil or no soil at all, as all the magic takes place above the surface of the ground. Jul 05, 2018 straw bale gardening works off that same idea and the processes that creates compost. Remove a chunk of straw and fill the hole with potting soil small seeds or to plant in rows put a couple inches of potting soil on top of the bales. Straw bale gardening is a gardening method created and championed by minnesota horticulturist and writer joel karsten. Mar 15, 20 straw bale gardens teaches gardening in a way that isnt only new but is thoroughly innovative and revolutionary to home gardening. The straw bale process is for the person who is tired of tilling, trying to improve soil condition, weeding, constant watering, etc. As the straw breaks down over the course of the summer, it turns into compost that feeds your plants. Straw bale gardening is a great technique to have in the gardeners tool kit. Theyre like growbags at a fraction of the cost and without the plastic waste.
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