Straw bale gardens by joel karsten goodreads share book. I have a large raised garden that was overcome by bermuda over the last year, beginning. This gardening technique has been around for centuries but thanks to joel karstens book straw bale gardens it has gained new popularity. His lastest book for release in march 20, published by quayside publishings local imprint cool springs press, is titled. Keep reading to find outhow it can make your gardening dreams come true below.
Starting a straw bale garden is an inexpensive and viable option to working up the soil in a regular garden. How to use hay bale gardening to increase your harvest. You could consider straw bale gardening a form of composting and gardening simultaneously. Hay bale square garden technique the gardeners rake. Straw bale gardening, is a most informative and detailed book for the avid vegetable gardener. Just be prepared to answer some questions from your neighbors. It solves every impediment todays home gardeners face. As well as bales that contain little to no weed or bale seeds. The reception and enthusiasm for straw bale gardening, introduced in 20, has proved revolutionary in vegetable growing. What youll soon learn there is that a strawbale garden is a garden. Growing plants in a straw bale garden can be further elevated by locating the bales in a raised bed.
When my publisher asked me to write about straw bale gardening, i tested the techniques in my own gardens and was quite impressed with the results. Ive seen some really pretty and clever methods of straw bale gardening. Whatever you call it, its a great way to grow herbs and vegetables. Straw bale gardening gets a lot of pressand for a good reason. The technique has been around since the sixties, if not earlier.
Joel karsten joins us today to share his new book straw bale gardening isbn. An introduction to straw bale gardening stepbystep instructions for starting and maintaining your own straw bale garden tips for selecting plants and for harvesting your crops answers to common questions about straw bale gardening if you are ready to give this simple but effective gardening method. Straw and hay bale gardening explained flowerpotman. As interest grew, he became one of the most indemand garden lecturers in the country. Garden guides how to grow tomatoes in bales of hay. He has detailed his research into the technique into a very popular book, straw bale gardening.
Straw bale gardening is simply a different type of container gardening. First get bales that still have the string tightly around the bale. Straw bale gardening organically grow great vegetables. Storey publishing liked the way epic tomatoes came out, and they said theyd really like to have a book in their portfolio about strawbale gardening, and i said, great.
Jul 22, 2016 shows our design for our future hay bale garden design. I make raised beds with straw, hay, leaves, twigs, or cardboard bales. Straw bale gardening is very simple system to set up, and there are many benefits to growing this type of garden. In fact, he uses hay bales in a simple notill raised garden bed. Its economical, easier on your back, and is great for people with mobility issues. Consider the pros and cons to determine if straw bale gardening is right for you. The technique allows you to put a substantial but temporary garden almost anywhere, even if your yards sunniest spot happens to be the middle of your driveway. The breakthrough method for growing vegetables anywhere, earlier and with no weeding paperback mar 15 20 by joel karsten author 4. Using straw and compost rather than soil as beds for plants, straw. Copy and use this gardening channel coupon code 4g8z2hfv31lg to receive a discount on your purchase of the book. One of the coolest things about straw bale gardening is that it combines the best of container gardening with vertical gardening. Maintenance of garden beds made from straw and hay is easy, keep the bale garden watered during hot dry weather, a little bit of weeding and nature will do the rest.
Straw bale gardens have taken off over the last decade or so. This book is truly a straw bale garden sbg for dummies guide. Although the practice of gardening in straw bales dates back to ancient times, i learned of it only a decade ago during a chance encounter with a local straw bale guru, kent rogers. Enjoy your organic harvest and please share your straw bale gardening experiences and hay bale gardening tips with the rest of us.
The hay bale garden everything you need to get started. Oct 15, 20 if you follow the relatively simple instructions in this book, i can assure you that you will be successful in straw bale gardening. Once the straw inside the bale begins to decay the straw becomes conditioned compost that creates an extraordinary plant rooting environment. Keep reading to find out how it can make your gardening dreams come true below. Shows our design for our future hay bale garden design. This is especially useful if you do not have space for a huge garden, or if you have difficult soil, or gravel, to work with. While i like growing melons and gourds in the bales both are heavy feeder so i created a hay bale straw bale square garden technique to use with these crops. As your raised bed decomposes, you can add the rich humus to your garden soil. We tried it this year for ourselves and our 81yearold mothermotherinlaw whos thrilled to have easier access to tending garden plants. There is no need to rotate crops, since each season you start with new hay bales. Straw bale gardening is not something ive tried before, but it is on the cards for this year. Or cut the bottom out of a plastic flat, pin it down onto top of bale, fill with soil and plant.
He also details a system for using wire and fenceposts over the bales to create a greenhouse effect. The soil beneath a pile of rotten hay or straw improves marvelously after a year or so, leaving a patch of humusrich earthwormpopulated earth. In this article, youll find the whys, hows and wherefores. Ive never made the mistake of using hay, or straw makes great mulch or, for that matter, a great addition to your compost pile. Purchased the book, best investment in a book ever. The book has many beautiful photos of straw bale gardens. Search the internet for information on using hay vs. Straw bale gardens teaches gardening in a way that isnt only new but is thoroughly innovative and revolutionary to home gardening. Sep 21, 2017 planting tomatoes in a bale of hay may seem like a strange gardening technique, but its actually a very effective and practical way to grow a healthy crop of tomatoes. Raised bed gardening can be used with all types of garden plants.
For gardeners without a plot of tillable land, hay bale gardening is a way to garden in a relatively small space. Hay bales create an environment similar to gardening hills in soil. Straw bale gardening is also called bale gardening or mistakenly, hay bale gardening. Straw bale gardens are a growing fad among urban gardeners and others looking for a challenging way to raise plants away from natural soil. The best part of hay bale gardening is how easy it is so if you have a brown thumb or are just looking for a really simple, low maintenance way to start a garden, then hay bale gardening might be for you. The hidden dangers of straw bale gardening the grow network. The hidden dangers of straw bale gardening the grow. His book has various suggested layouts for a straw bale garden. Hay bale gardening is a book that will haunt you with this one thought, why.
The straw bale process is for the person who is tired of tilling, trying to. And if you know where you want your garden position the bales. In his book youll find the answers to why he no longer uses a rototiller or a composter. He presents his revolutionary new gardening methods with an engaging style using humor, life lessons and stories that will get every member of the audience excited to try his revolutionary straw bale gardening system. Take your straw bale gardening to the next levelin more places, with new products, and even sometimes skipping the straw entirelywith straw bale gardens complete. In straw bale solutions, the next book in the straw bale gardening series, you will find over two dozen stories of straw bale gardens that inspire. If you follow the relatively simple instructions in this book, i can assure you that you will be successful in straw bale gardening. You can also learn more about me, joel karsten, or send questions you might have about straw bale gardening. Enjoy trying and sharing this revolutionary method and all the crops it will yield.
Organic soilfree potting media will help hold nutrients and water more efficiently for faster growth. All that is needed are a few straw bales, fertilizer, a bit of compost and time to condition, plant and water the garden. Buy the straw bale gardens book 20 by joel karsten straw bale gardening expert author and speaker. Very few weeds grow in straw bale gardens, and because they are elevated, weeding is easier than in a conventional garden. May 01, 2017 straw bale gardening has been around for centuries, but thanks to joel karstens book straw bale gardens it has gained new popularity. Dec, 2019 straw bale gardening can destroy your garden. Straw bale gardening grow more food, in less space, with. Growing vegetables in straw bales, strawbale gardening. Hay bale gardening uses bales of hay in place of soil. Written by joel karsten, the originator of straw bale gardening, this exciting update contains detailed, starttofinish instructions for growing vegetables in straw anywhere, plus many new ideas and projects to help you enjoy your straw bale experience even more.
Mar 02, 2017 heres a really great book on amazon that shows you tools for hay bale gardening. A garden in a bale of the many benefits of straw bale gardening, one of the most popular is the backsaving easier access. Joel karsten, author of straw bale gardens, straw bale solutions, and straw bale gardens complete, developed the straw bale gardening method more than 10 years ago. Enjoy organic home grown vegetables in a space as little as 4 ft x 2ft. Learning how to plant straw bale garden beds, on the ground or in a raised bed offers easy access to those who should not bend. Feb 01, 2015 take your straw bale gardening to the next levelin more places, with new products, and even sometimes skipping the straw entirelywith straw bale gardens complete. Does your garden need wind protection, mulch, or a habitat for earthworms. In my garden adventures with hay bale ad straw bale gardening i have tried several different gardening techniques. So, if your soil is poor or you want to use the raised bed method but are short on soil, you may want to consider growing your crops in hay. Some plants prefer a raised bed than any other system of growing.
The main difference is that the container is the straw bale itself and is held together with two or three strings. This new edition of straw bale gardens complete is the only book you need to get started with the revolutionary gardening method that has taken the world by storm. Jul 16, 20 one of the coolest things about straw bale gardening is that it combines the best of container gardening with vertical gardening. Karsten recommends erecting sevenfoottall posts at the end of each row of bales, and running wire between them at intervals of 10 inches from the tops of the bales.
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