Strawbale gardening....Its workin.... - Page 4

GIZZARDFARM · June 2, 2008

YEAAAAAAAAA glad to hear it. I hope anyone else trying this for the first time (if they have problems) will keep tryin because Im tellin ya'll it works great...If your homade tea doesnt bring em around nothing else will you have perked my interest in "tea" so i found me a plastic 55 gallon drum put in a faucet and filled it with rabbit,bat and horse manure (harvested fresh from the farm and cave behind pasture) and added water Im gonna let it perk for a few days and give it a spin... Kelley what is your set up and ingrediants on your concoction???? Gene

dice · June 3, 2008

[leaves]
PS: Watch out for poison ivy out there collecting leaf mold.

kelleyville · June 3, 2008

I use a five gallon bucket at present, fill it up with water, add about a quart pot packed full of bagged manure into a paint strainer bag or an old tshirt, and an ounce of molasses. Then I would normally run a one inch air tube into the bucket and hook it up to a pump and let it run. With the air from the pond pump there is no need to stir and you got a decent tea in 24 hours!

Right now I am doing the let it sit in the sun method which can take up to a week to get done!

I also add other stuff to the manure, depending on what is handy or I think it needs. Right now I am using a cup of alfalfa grain feed to this mess, and after two or three days with the alfalfa you need more molasses cause it stinks to high heaven. I rotate the alfalfa with kelp when I can find the kelp!

When the tea is done if I think we need more nitrogen I add some fish emulsion to it.

I strain it if it needs straining then mix it half and half with water and pour it on the soil or foliar feed.

Love this stuff! I know it is just cow poop but it seems to work like liquid gold!

I would recomend using a larger pump for a 55 gallon barrel with more than one air tube connected to a gang thingie on the side of the barrel, also with the compost in a paint strainer you can hang it from a board or something so it dangles in the water. Last year I used panty hose to filter my pond pump, other wise it was all clogged up. The best tea bag I made was part of an old cotton t-shirt tied up with a rubber band...didnt have any clogs or any straining to do! If you don't run air into it then make sure to stir it every day!

dice I hate poison ivy! I have those little wipe things that you clean with when you touch it, but I never know I actually touched it until way later! hehehe!

Kelley

GIZZARDFARM · June 3, 2008

Thanks Kelley ill give your method a whirl also...my squash are full of blooms and have began to set fruit, the cucumbers are starting to run, and the maters are looking strong (all but 1 who a little puny) Im gonna replace her with a standby today. I put out several new to me varities this year in my garden and have been impressed with the strong healthy plants. I put out my heirlooms and old standbys but added some goliath, parks whoppers, and pink girls which are all doing great and have set fruit. in fact they have set fruit and my old standbys havent yet( celeberty and Betterboys) I have learned alot through this web site..not bad for a guy who thought he knew knew everything about growing a garden. ha ha....Ive however noticed the following yall see if this is normal..all varities are strong and healthy but my cherokee purples, black cherry and Aunt Ginnys purple seem to be lagging behind. Is this normal I also noticed that they were behind when i germinated them. My seeds came from several sources so I know its not the seed, maybe thes kinds dont jump up like KBX,Boxcar Willie and Brandywine...Oh well they are healthy and cant wait to eat em up....Gizzard

kelleyville · June 3, 2008

I am not growing all of those varieties, but I am growing Cherokee Purple and at six weeks old they are keeping pace with my Big Zacs! The cherokee chocolate not doing bad either but the cherokee green bit the dust

Black Brandywines came from a friend and are doing as well as the Rainbow Mix and Pineapple in growth so I guess I am no help to you at all!

GIZZARDFARM · June 6, 2008

Thanks anyway Kelley...Ive added some new pics on the blog and ive harvested my first few squash from the bales...Gene

dice · June 6, 2008

[vigor]

I think Black Cherry is usually quite a vigorous plant, though
perhaps not as much as Box Car Willie, which again is
outgrowing most other cultivars for me. Last year I thought
it was just in a lucky spot for sun and fertilizer, but this year
they are in a different bed, near plants of several other
cultivars in the same soil with the same fertilizer, and they are
leaving almost everything else in the dust again for growth rate.

GIZZARDFARM · June 6, 2008

Thanks Dice ive noticed my Brandywines,Brandyboys,Goliths,Parks whoppers and Boxcar Willies are outgrowing everything. Kbx are also growing faster than my purples....Gene oh yeah guys my pics somehow didnt make it to the blog i will attempt it again...

dice · June 7, 2008

Gary'O Sena is a fast grower for a pink-purple. I noticed when
I took some cuttings from plants a little more than a foot tall
that it was a fast rooter, and an untrimmed seedling
transplanted out into the garden is right behind the
Box Car Willie plants.

Anther standout for sheer vegetative growth: Hungarian Heart
(HH is droopy-leaved, but the leaves are long with a lot of big
leaflets, and the overall plant is growing big and sturdy).

kelleyville · June 7, 2008

Black Kow says 5 lbs of manure per 4 gallons of water in a five gallon bucket...its on the back! they recomened a fish pump too and say it will be done in 8 hours! I say you still need the molasses and 24!

bate181 · June 7, 2008

this is an interesting concept. anyone in socal know of places that sell bales for cheap?

kelleyville · June 7, 2008

I just checked out your pics! Wow what a beautiful place you have there! I need to remember to put batteries in the camera and take some update shots myself!

I got a small strip of my yard plowed up a bit so have been busy hoeing it into short rows and planting whilst also preparing the rest of it for things that need more nutrients than peas and beans!

Dice been out getting leaves and leaf mold by the wheelbarrow. Half to the rows half to the compost bin for next year!

It is hotter than hades here so these bales are even more interesting. Once you get them soaked they really do stay wet until the next days watering! Oh and I have tons of mushrooms coming up every day, is that a good sign? I knew to expect some just did not expect this many!

Kelley

bate181 · June 7, 2008

does growing from a straw bale alter the taste of tomatoes in any noticeable way?

GIZZARDFARM · June 9, 2008

Ill let you know in a few weeks how the taste is Bate....The squash sure taste fine and the bannana peppers are great also..I suspect they will taste the same..Gizz

bate181 · June 10, 2008

for people that have done this, does it matter which side of the bale you grow from? these are my bales, should i grow them from the top of the bale as shown in the picture, or lay the bale flat on its largest surface area side? if i grow the way theyre pictured im assuming the roots will be able to grow deeper. what do you guys think?

June 3, 2008	#47
dice Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: PNW Posts: 4,743	[leaves] PS: Watch out for poison ivy out there collecting leaf mold. __________________ -- alias

June 6, 2008	#52
dice Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: PNW Posts: 4,743	[vigor] I think Black Cherry is usually quite a vigorous plant, though perhaps not as much as Box Car Willie, which again is outgrowing most other cultivars for me. Last year I thought it was just in a lucky spot for sun and fertilizer, but this year they are in a different bed, near plants of several other cultivars in the same soil with the same fertilizer, and they are leaving almost everything else in the dust again for growth rate. __________________ -- alias

June 7, 2008	#54
dice Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: PNW Posts: 4,743	Gary'O Sena is a fast grower for a pink-purple. I noticed when I took some cuttings from plants a little more than a foot tall that it was a fast rooter, and an untrimmed seedling transplanted out into the garden is right behind the Box Car Willie plants. Anther standout for sheer vegetative growth: Hungarian Heart (HH is droopy-leaved, but the leaves are long with a lot of big leaflets, and the overall plant is growing big and sturdy). __________________ -- alias

June 2, 2008	#46
GIZZARDFARM Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: COMFORT TENNESSEE Posts: 300	YEAAAAAAAAA glad to hear it. I hope anyone else trying this for the first time (if they have problems) will keep tryin because Im tellin ya'll it works great...If your homade tea doesnt bring em around nothing else will you have perked my interest in "tea" so i found me a plastic 55 gallon drum put in a faucet and filled it with rabbit,bat and horse manure (harvested fresh from the farm and cave behind pasture) and added water Im gonna let it perk for a few days and give it a spin... Kelley what is your set up and ingrediants on your concoction???? Gene

June 3, 2008	#48
kelleyville Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Covington, GA 30016 7b? Posts: 321	I use a five gallon bucket at present, fill it up with water, add about a quart pot packed full of bagged manure into a paint strainer bag or an old tshirt, and an ounce of molasses. Then I would normally run a one inch air tube into the bucket and hook it up to a pump and let it run. With the air from the pond pump there is no need to stir and you got a decent tea in 24 hours! Right now I am doing the let it sit in the sun method which can take up to a week to get done! I also add other stuff to the manure, depending on what is handy or I think it needs. Right now I am using a cup of alfalfa grain feed to this mess, and after two or three days with the alfalfa you need more molasses cause it stinks to high heaven. I rotate the alfalfa with kelp when I can find the kelp! When the tea is done if I think we need more nitrogen I add some fish emulsion to it. I strain it if it needs straining then mix it half and half with water and pour it on the soil or foliar feed. Love this stuff! I know it is just cow poop but it seems to work like liquid gold! I would recomend using a larger pump for a 55 gallon barrel with more than one air tube connected to a gang thingie on the side of the barrel, also with the compost in a paint strainer you can hang it from a board or something so it dangles in the water. Last year I used panty hose to filter my pond pump, other wise it was all clogged up. The best tea bag I made was part of an old cotton t-shirt tied up with a rubber band...didnt have any clogs or any straining to do! If you don't run air into it then make sure to stir it every day! dice I hate poison ivy! I have those little wipe things that you clean with when you touch it, but I never know I actually touched it until way later! hehehe! Kelley

June 7, 2008	#56
bate181 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Southern California Posts: 74	this is an interesting concept. anyone in socal know of places that sell bales for cheap?

June 9, 2008	#59
GIZZARDFARM Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: COMFORT TENNESSEE Posts: 300	Ill let you know in a few weeks how the taste is Bate....The squash sure taste fine and the bannana peppers are great also..I suspect they will taste the same..Gizz

June 10, 2008	#60
bate181 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Southern California Posts: 74	for people that have done this, does it matter which side of the bale you grow from? these are my bales, should i grow them from the top of the bale as shown in the picture, or lay the bale flat on its largest surface area side? if i grow the way theyre pictured im assuming the roots will be able to grow deeper. what do you guys think?