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Hometalk is where people share and help with everything home & garden

Joel K

Saint Paul, MN http://www.strawbalegardens.com
21 Followers 130Likes 1160 Shares
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About Me:

Author, speaker, gardener, entrepreneur and do-it-yourself tinkerer. I love to read historical novels, bake bread, play golf, drink scotch and smoke cigars! Sometimes I like to do several of these at once.

Favorite area of home improvement:

I am a Landscaping and gardening junkie, and always have been. I've done a number of indoor projects as well, but I've learned to stick with what I know, so usually end up in the garden.


Recent Activity


  • No weeding, raised beds make access easier, tomato plants love this method of gardening. Great for potatoes also, no digging!  Anything that grows in the soil will do well in the bales also. 9
  • Early in the season, make the straw bales into a greenhouse, the "conditioning" of the bale below emits lots of heat during the process which warms the root zone and protects plants on the surface from frost.  They love this up in the Arctic Circle in AK and Canada.  See more at www.strawbalegardens.com 1
  • Planting annuals in the sides also makes the garden look attractive as well as productive. 6
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Straw Bale Gardening, great in all climates from the Arctic to the Caribbean islands!

Straw Bale Gardening is essentially container gardening, without the cost of a container or the planting mix to fill it. Just buy a bale of straw, go through the "conditioning" process ...»
Joel K
Joel K Saint Paul, MN
83 Comments | Post Comment | 20031 Views
  • Joel K
    Commented on Mar 08, 2013
    It is true that you should be careful about what you buy, clean wheat, oat, or barley straw ...»
    works best, BUT many people do use hay bales as well, and they will work, but you should expect more weeds and a bit more "stinky" smell as they decompose. The hay actually will have more nitrogen content as it is higher in protein which breaks down into nitrogen as it conditions.


    • I stopped by my local Barnes & Noble yesterday and to my surprise I found "Straw Bale Gardens" on the spring table just inside the door.  It is now available nationwide, or from my website strawbalegardens.com if you want it signed!
    • I was very honored that B & N selected my book as only one of two from the Home and Hobby section to get premium placement on the spring table, but the book is also in the gardening section as well.  Makes a great gift!
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    Followed 8 people on Feb 13, 2013
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