Straw Bale Gardening

Straw bale gardening offers opportunities to garden wherever there is sunlight and water available – on a concrete or asphalt driveway, on top of packed clay soil, etc. The bales are approximately 4’ in length, 2’ tall and 18” wide. Bales can be found at farm stores and feed and tack stores. The bales are heavy and should be placed where you want them before starting to work with them. Bales must be conditioned before planting can take place. Conditioning allows the straw to compost internally to a stage that supports root growth. The conditioning process takes from 12 to 18 days. Each day an application of fertilizer and water or only water must be soaked into the bales. The fertilizer used can be either organic or inorganic. Organic fertilizer will take a bit longer. Between 12 and 18 days the bales should be ready to plant. A soaker hose is place down the middle of the bales before planting. If seeds are to be planted, a 2” layer of potting soil is laid over the top of the bale. Transplants are placed directly into the bale. Vegetables and flowers grow well in the bales. Because you are not facing any problems that might exist in your soil, you should have fewer pests and have less need for using pesticides. Maintenance is easy. If you have clean bales, you can give up weeding – as there will be no weeds. Straw bales absorb and hold water and stay moist. Water when the top feels dry. When the growing season is over, your straw bale is ready for the compost heap. Use fresh bales each season. A great reference to get you started with straw bale gardening is listed below. Karsten, Joel. Straw Bale Gardens: The Breakthrough Method for Growing Vegetables Anywhere, Earlier and with No Weeding. Minneapolis, MN: Cool Springs Press, 2013.