Does Straw Bale Gardening Really Work?

Dan330
by Dan330
In late June we did an article on Straw Bale Gardening. We published it on Hometalk and it generated a lot of comments and quite a bit of skepticism. I have to confess this is NOT my garden but it is a close neighbor of mine so I have been watching the progress all Summer. I was on a walk today and stopped by to check on the progress. My neighbor has done quite a bit more planting since I took the original pictures but you get the idea. For more go to: http://livedan330.com/2013/08/08/201388following-up-on-straw-bale-gardening/ and don't forget to follow us on Hometalk. What do you think? Is this method of Gardening worth it?
Peppers planted in late June
Peppers {on the right) in August.
Planting tomatoes in June
Tomatoes in August. Looks like they did very well
I noticed that some of the bales had really decomposed since I took the original pictures. I wonder if the plants will last through September or the first snow?
More shots of the garden in August.
Tomatoes and strawberries.
Bean TeePee. Looks like we need to start sooner or hope for a longer growing season for this to work.
Dan330
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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  • Bobbie Sherman Bobbie Sherman on Apr 14, 2020

    I really want to try this method of gardening! We have a lot of COPPERHEAD SNAKES in my area! My question is how do you keep snakes from getting in & under the bales? I had been using logs around my garden, then I found a copperhead under 1 of the logs!! I don’t have any logs around my garden anymore!!!

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  • Helen Helen on May 05, 2016
    Great idea! The straw works great, used for potato plants and made a large upright. Adding flowers where space is blank is beautiful.
  • Herrington Herrington on Aug 26, 2016
    One thing you can do with straw bales is get wood pallets usually free from garden centers or pluming supply centers. They usually have more than they know what to do with and are glad to get rid of them. Wood is mostly oak. Use pallets as a base, place bales on pallets, can stack to give diff heights. Other pallets can be attached to base to create box. Can plant flowers or herbs in opening to create hanging garden effect. Looks beautiful, contains straw, gives a more finished look.
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