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02-11-2013, 12:00 PM | #1 |
Rose Garden
The Lion Cub
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Northern Arizona
Posts: 10,798
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has anyone tried straw bale gardening?
Do you think it would work in the desert? I can keep it wet easily enough, but I'm worried about all the fertilizer leaching out during the monsoons.
I've seen a lot of websites telling you how to set it up and condition the bales, but not much on yields vs. Traditional gardening etc. It looks like a fantastic way to grow potatoes with no digging at the end.
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The Imaginative Adventurer (4.5 yo) "I'm going to rescue you!" and The Lion Cub (1 yo)- Smart, cute, strong, and unstoppable! Sister to BlessedBlue forever Co-Founder and Lead Writer at Food Allergies On Ice |
02-11-2013, 12:07 PM | #2 |
Rose Garden
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Rainy Oregon
Posts: 8,997
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Re: has anyone tried straw bale gardening?
I saw the idea on Pinterst. I am going to try it, its worth a shot.
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02-11-2013, 12:08 PM | #3 |
Rose Garden
Srsly?
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: DFW
Posts: 24,442
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Re: has anyone tried straw bale gardening?
My hs science teacher did here in Michigan. It worked great for her but she is a conventional gardener. When I asked her about nutrients and such, she said she fed them a lot of miracle gro.
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Heather (ISTJ) working full time, wife to Jason since '02, mom to C 12 years old, J 9 years old , and T 6 years old , mouse catching, Izzy, and rabbit chasing, Ellie. |
02-11-2013, 02:12 PM | #4 |
Deactivated
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Rural Saskatchewan
Posts: 4,449
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Re: has anyone tried straw bale gardening?
If the nutrients in your food come from the sun and soil, why would you want to grow anything in straw with synthetic fertilizers? Straw has no significant nutritional value for livestock; some ranchers feed it only to provide roughage when extra calories aren't needed. The plant put everything into the head of grain; there's nothing left in the dry stalk. You'd be better off using a good weed-free hay bale. Yes, it decomposes and supports the root system of the plant, but a potato grown in real soil is going to be more nutritious than one grown in a non-soil medium. Plus, wet straw is gross. And really, are potatoes really that much trouble to dig? We've never found so.
So yeah, all that means no... we haven't tried it. |
02-11-2013, 03:33 PM | #5 |
Deactivated
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Central WA
Posts: 17,196
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Re: has anyone tried straw bale gardening?
I don't mind using straw as a mulch (I do that frequently, and then dig it in the following spring), but I wouldn't do it as I'm a big believer in the health of the soil and the soil web.
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02-11-2013, 05:18 PM | #6 | |
Rose Garden
The Lion Cub
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Northern Arizona
Posts: 10,798
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Re: has anyone tried straw bale gardening?
Quote:
---------- Post added at 05:18 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:16 PM ---------- FWIW, I totally believe in the health of the soil, too, but my soil doesn't even support weeds. The straw bales might actually have more nutrients! And the decomposing straw might eventually help heal the soil, right?
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Mama to The Engineer (7 yo) "When I grow up, I'm going to build Highway 100!"
The Imaginative Adventurer (4.5 yo) "I'm going to rescue you!" and The Lion Cub (1 yo)- Smart, cute, strong, and unstoppable! Sister to BlessedBlue forever Co-Founder and Lead Writer at Food Allergies On Ice |
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02-11-2013, 05:38 PM | #7 |
Deactivated
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Rural Saskatchewan
Posts: 4,449
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Re: has anyone tried straw bale gardening?
Really? It couldn't support anything? My SIL's neighbour gardens in soil that looks a lot like the gravel in the adjacent ally. He even manages to grow carrots there somehow! Some veggies can be quite tenacious if given a chance.
ETA: Decomposing "browns" cause a temporary nitrogen deficiency in the soil when there's too much of it in proportion. I can imagine you really have to pile on the nitrogen fertilizers along with everything else. It just seems like you're going to be spending that money anyway, but on temporary fertilizers instead of soil improvements, no? Last edited by Macky; 02-11-2013 at 05:41 PM. |
02-11-2013, 09:35 PM | #8 | |
Rose Garden
The Lion Cub
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Northern Arizona
Posts: 10,798
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Re: has anyone tried straw bale gardening?
Quote:
I've never heard of anyone having a backyard garden in my town who didn't use raised beds of some kind. I'm not even sure how I would begin to amend the soil here. I can't even dig it up past the first inch or so. Someday I'll live somewhere where it makes sense to improve the soil and all that, but for now, I'm stuck here.
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Mama to The Engineer (7 yo) "When I grow up, I'm going to build Highway 100!"
The Imaginative Adventurer (4.5 yo) "I'm going to rescue you!" and The Lion Cub (1 yo)- Smart, cute, strong, and unstoppable! Sister to BlessedBlue forever Co-Founder and Lead Writer at Food Allergies On Ice |
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