Wow, great idea! I currently straw bale garden and use the old bales to fill my new raised beds. This would be even better. Please do a follow up ASAP! Blessings!
I did several years of straw bale gardening, with various results. The bale dried out pretty quickly but after conditioning the bales, they did grow vegetables and I could only get 1 season outta each bale, but did use the broken down straw to fill by beds. However, it was difficult to find straw bales which had not been sprayed with roundup.
Good to hear! We plant directly in bales as well but this is the first time filling a raised bed on the bottom with conditioned straw. Happy gardening to you!
@@TheGardenFamily Well if you have a lot of time who cares. Though the more time you have the more lawn clippings you can put in with the straw so thats great.
Something to keep in mind too is how much nitrogen is in the soil to start with. A soil test from your local university extension can give you a starting point on npk.
Definitely a good idea. In our case we are building our soil mix from scratch so we have a good idea what’s in it but if you’re adding to existing soil a soil test is definitely going to guide you well!
You are the first one on RUclips that I found to do this correctly and I don’t know if this is just from your own personal experiments but I can tell you from being a permit culture design instructor. You are in fact doing it correctly. My method would be any lawn debris, any bio debris. Add some biochar spray and soak thoroughly with liquid fish then bury with your topsoil. This will initiate the growth of mycelium. Happy gardening for 2024!
Yeah, that's becoming a bigger and bigger problem these days. I buy mine directly from a wheat farmer who does not spray but you definitely have to be careful!
How'd it go? I think we're gonna use the bedding and waste hay from our cows....naturally inoculated and starting to break down. We formed a rough raised bed from pallets this spring and filled it with that and planted potatoes and they've grown beautifully.
It went great! We only did one per raised bed so they were mostly traditional soil / raised bed mix, but we had a great first year in the garden. You can see some of the results in our garden tour videos =)
Unless you are using organic STRAW bales, they have been sprayed HEAVILY with glyphosate right before harvest. It acts as a drying agent. Then, it gets into your family’s food.
great point. we get our straw from a farm down the street that does not do a desiccating spray but many non organic bales will have it as you pointed out!
This is definitely a good question. The main thing you will want to make sure of is there were no persistent broad leaf herbicides used. We source our straw from a local farm so we know what is being sprayed on it. Our farmer uses an organic anti fungal spray but no herbicides so ours is safe but you should definitely ask!
@@TheGardenFamilyThat's what I was thinking. Thanks for the heads up. Great idea btw. I just recently quit market farming (got a good real job) and now I just want to do raised beds. Thanks for the idea.
I do not agree with it. The staw is mostly carbon, green mass is nitrogen. You need to add to soil on top, which contains minerals. Then you will have a jungle in the garden. Good luck.
You definitely could but that process could take a long time and the breakdown of the straw would still tie up nitrogen. I wanted the composting process to be well on its way before I buried them
Hate to brake this to you, but, hay, and straw, have pesticides and weed killer sprayed on the field, I come from an area that produces both! You will either kill or have very poor crop! As you said, you've never done it before. 😂
Hi Karen, this straw comes from a local wheat field and was bought directly from the owner. This wheat field only sprays an organic fungicide on their wheat, no pesticides or herbicides. If you want to see the results you can see our summer garden walkthrough video, let me know if you think it was a poor crop 😉. But that does bring up a good point to be picky where your straw comes from!
![Skilla Baby - Misfits (Feat. Polo G) [Official Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/IjsylSnNMyw/mqdefault.jpg)
![[ GUILTY GEAR STRIVE: DUAL RULERS ] Teaser Trailer](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/e4TDqaE3XAg/mqdefault.jpg)
And I've never actually seen someone smile while carrying bales of straw...😂😅😊
Wow, great idea! I currently straw bale garden and use the old bales to fill my new raised beds.
This would be even better.
Please do a follow up ASAP!
Blessings!
I definitely will! If the bales are partially composted I think it should work great without disturbing your carbon-nitrogen balance much!
I did several years of straw bale gardening, with various results. The bale dried out pretty quickly but after conditioning the bales, they did grow vegetables and I could only get 1 season outta each bale, but did use the broken down straw to fill by beds. However, it was difficult to find straw bales which had not been sprayed with roundup.
Hi Tammy what zone r u in? I would love to follow u as u too try this.
We did this! Okra, lettuce, tomatoes, peppers zinnias….so far it all grew very well and vigorously a lush
Good to hear! We plant directly in bales as well but this is the first time filling a raised bed on the bottom with conditioned straw. Happy gardening to you!
@@TheGardenFamilydid it work well?
I want more information on this.
Place the straw as you want it then sprinkle some granular ammonia sulfate on top. Bury with soil and get the garden going
That’s similar to what we are doing but we are letting the strawbale condition prior to burying it. Happy gardening!
@@TheGardenFamily Well if you have a lot of time who cares. Though the more time you have the more lawn clippings you can put in with the straw so thats great.
@@TheGardenFamilythis is exactly what I'm starting this year. How did it go for you
?
I love the idea 😍 i think i will try to do it in my garden 😍
Best of luck!
Something to keep in mind too is how much nitrogen is in the soil to start with. A soil test from your local university extension can give you a starting point on npk.
Definitely a good idea. In our case we are building our soil mix from scratch so we have a good idea what’s in it but if you’re adding to existing soil a soil test is definitely going to guide you well!
You are the first one on RUclips that I found to do this correctly and I don’t know if this is just from your own personal experiments but I can tell you from being a permit culture design instructor. You are in fact doing it correctly. My method would be any lawn debris, any bio debris. Add some biochar spray and soak thoroughly with liquid fish then bury with your topsoil. This will initiate the growth of mycelium. Happy gardening for 2024!
Thanks Jimmy! Your recipe sounds great 👍 happy gardening to you too!
If nitrogen getting tied up is a problem....add nitrogen....naturally...plant green beans.
I was just talking about this yesterday with my wife
Just finished our first season and the beds worked out great!
Yum. The worms are going to love that! Crushed rock dust (aka basalt) is also an amazing energiser for any garden bed 🗝
That 😁
Bro I have thrown 1000,s of bales and I have never seen an adult carrying one like that
🤣
Now you have! 😆
I cant find straw bales without them being sprayed with Grazon poison.
Yeah, that's becoming a bigger and bigger problem these days. I buy mine directly from a wheat farmer who does not spray but you definitely have to be careful!
My very concern as well!
Where may i find the links my boi?
Nice one. ❤️😊
Thanks! :)
How'd it go? I think we're gonna use the bedding and waste hay from our cows....naturally inoculated and starting to break down. We formed a rough raised bed from pallets this spring and filled it with that and planted potatoes and they've grown beautifully.
It went great! We only did one per raised bed so they were mostly traditional soil / raised bed mix, but we had a great first year in the garden. You can see some of the results in our garden tour videos =)
Unless you are using organic STRAW bales, they have been sprayed HEAVILY with glyphosate right before harvest. It acts as a drying agent. Then, it gets into your family’s food.
great point. we get our straw from a farm down the street that does not do a desiccating spray but many non organic bales will have it as you pointed out!
@@TheGardenFamily Yes. I wanted your viewer family here to be aware of that. It’s something that is eadily overlooked or unknown. 🙏🏼
Mega interested, subbed. Update soon 🎉
Will do! Garden worked great, the straw bales finished composting =) Thanks for the sub!
Next time put a layer of worm castings on top of it then a layer of soil then another layer of compost and worm castings.
always a good addition!
@@TheGardenFamilyjust think lasagna layers 😊
Isn't most straw like covered with chemicals that will kill your plants? Legit question.
This is definitely a good question. The main thing you will want to make sure of is there were no persistent broad leaf herbicides used. We source our straw from a local farm so we know what is being sprayed on it. Our farmer uses an organic anti fungal spray but no herbicides so ours is safe but you should definitely ask!
@@TheGardenFamilyThat's what I was thinking. Thanks for the heads up. Great idea btw. I just recently quit market farming (got a good real job) and now I just want to do raised beds. Thanks for the idea.
I was sold straw with seed in it. Ruined my garden this year with grass.
I do not agree with it. The staw is mostly carbon, green mass is nitrogen. You need to add to soil on top, which contains minerals. Then you will have a jungle in the garden. Good luck.
He literally says to condition the hay bales with nitrogen and he will put soil on top.
Couldnt you just mix them with 50 percent live grass clippings for the nitrogen.
You definitely could but that process could take a long time and the breakdown of the straw would still tie up nitrogen. I wanted the composting process to be well on its way before I buried them
uuugh the breathing of the camera man is.....😳💀
I know right?! So weird that someone would be breathing while carrying straw bales
camera man was carrying straw bales too whiile shooting? hmmm@@TheGardenFamily
They s, I too want to do this experiment. Go to have ur example.
Hate to brake this to you, but, hay, and straw, have pesticides and weed killer sprayed on the field, I come from an area that produces both! You will either kill or have very poor crop! As you said, you've never done it before. 😂
Hi Karen, this straw comes from a local wheat field and was bought directly from the owner. This wheat field only sprays an organic fungicide on their wheat, no pesticides or herbicides. If you want to see the results you can see our summer garden walkthrough video, let me know if you think it was a poor crop 😉. But that does bring up a good point to be picky where your straw comes from!