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Old June 4, 2006   #11
MsCowpea
Tomatovillian™
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: S. FLorida / Zone 10
Posts: 369
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T.- Those must have set you back a pretty penny--hoped the neighbors did not see you set up that shot or any possibility that they would ever view you as "normal" seems unlikely.

Back to growing in straw bales: There is a long thread on Dave's Garden under Vegetables if anyone is a member and cares to look.

I also find this method very interesting and am giving it a whirl. On the other site there are people having problems but it does work-- even an old book I have mentions the possibility of herbicide tainted bales so if problems persists maybe that is the culprit.

The book I have is published in Great Britain in 1967 entitled "Tomatoes for Everyone-Including Ring Culture and Growing on Straw Bales". It was written by Frank Allerton. It shows 2 pictures of tomatoes growing in straw bales in a commercial greenhouse and the plant is LOADED with tomatoes.

One of the additional benefits he mentions is that in a greenhouse as the straw breaks down carbon dioxide gas is given off and that also benefits the plants.

Here is how he prepares the bales.

Water for 10 to 12 days with 1 gallon of water. Cover with plastic to prevent loss by evaporation in sunny weather. (Ignore mold, not harmful.) He also has them sitting on a two inch deep trough of plastic but this is in a green house, not necessary outside.

Now this is where you have to improvise with products available nowadays or just follow tried and true methods outlined on the internet.

Here is what my 1967 English book says:

Spread 1 lb. nitrochalk, 1 lb. superphosphate, 1 lb. nitrate of potash, 4 oz. epsom salts, and 3 oz. sulphate of iron on top of bale. Water in with 1 gallon of water. Repeat in 1/2 hour with another gallon of water. Cover for a few days keeping bales moist by sprinkling with water. Before planting make sure the composting process has cooled down as too much heat could hurt transplants.

He then puts 2 bottomless shallow container on top and fills with soilless mix and plants BUT THE COMMERCIAL PICTURES IN THE BOOK just show the plants right in the straw where I presume just enough potting mix has been added to plant in. (I believe the containers are used so the plants are not going into coldish straw and will produce earlier.) If growing outside skip the containers as they dry out too quickly though he does say you can encircle the bales with plastic if this a problem.

He recommends starting to feed 2 weeks later. (1/4 # nitrochalk every 2 weeks for a total of 3 or 4 times) ALTERNATE with liquid feeding (use a high potash tomato liquid fertilizer).

The interesting thing is he says that almost as spectacular results can be achieved by using 'straw wads' of 6 to 8 inches rather than the whole bale.

Unfortunately, as mentioned above weedkillers can be a problem in some bales. Bummer.
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