Nice article.
Around here hay costs a bit too much for us to use it as compost but I have been reading more and more about composting hay.
Just saw another article where you can grow right in a conditioned hay bale. Interesting.
Nice article.
Around here hay costs a bit too much for us to use it as compost but I have been reading more and more about composting hay.
Just saw another article where you can grow right in a conditioned hay bale. Interesting.
If hay is too pricey, maybe consider leaf mulch or wood chips. To increase the nitrogen and carbon in the soil in one go, we house our chickens and quail over these mulching materials, let them get really manured, then add to the garden as needed. I'm even planning on winterizing the garden with these materials.
All the best with your future endeavors!
I hauled about 6 truck loads of tree mulch into our garden this spring. We put the mulch on the pathways and then around the plants. Worked well and kept the weeds down.
Chickens are providing fertilizer for us too.
We are trying to get the Back to Eden no till garden method going.
I want to try planting directly in straw or hay bales though. Looks cool.
Great work! Looks like you've got yourself set when it comes to mulching. If I remember correctly, some homesteaders condition their bales of hay by just leaving them inside their poultry coops, still baled. The chickens roost over them and manure the bales overtime. Others add nitrogen to them, spray their bales down, and even add minerals to help the hay be a little more plant friendly.
Lumnah Acres did the former method, letting the bales compost naturally over time, and then planted squash transplants straight into the bales. I would suggest watching his "How to Grow Food in Straw Bales". It's the same video I drew inspiration on for this post!
Thanks for the info. Chickens are great multi purpose animals.
p.s. please ignore the trolls who followed me. Sorry about that. I am on YouTube.
@thediyworld You don’t have trolls because you’re on youtube. You have trolls (critics) because you are a lying, ebegging con artist who deserves to be exposed.
@toastyrabbits, Unfortunately, what thediyworld failed to mention was he added that questionable "mulch" or yard waste to his already highly acidic soil, he didn't irrigate,
then sprinkled fertilizer directly on top of the plants,
which killed everything.
He likes to blame mother nature for his ineptness.
Claims it "freezes all summer" in Michigan.
He actually planted, had some sort of failure, and replanted 3 times this year.
He harvested some beans, some peas, and tomatoes.
Everything else died except the sunflowers and one squash that grew out of a compost pile on its own.
Oh, and he has yet to actually do a "Back to Eden" garden.
He likes to use that term for click bait.
I am not trying to dissuade you, just letting you know he has a habit of omitting important information, most times intentionally, for the last five years.
Best wishes to you.