How to Plant Tomatoes in Wheat Straw Bales
Straw bales can add to the landscape of your yard without having to actually dig or harm the ground. Growing gardens in straw bales provides many luxuries such as not having to bend over to pick produce, adding color and life to a pathway and allowing you to grow a garden on your porch if you do not have much of a yard. Planting tomatoes in wheat bales requires proper maintenance of the bales themselves because they need constant attention since you will be mimicking the soil. The bales need constant water due to their adequate drainage and inability to store much water, and plenty of fertilizer to feed the tomato plants to keep them healthy during the growing season. Does this Spark an idea?
Other People Are Reading
Things You'll Need
- Wheat straw bales
- Watering can
- Measuring cup
- Ammonium nitrate
- Compost
- Tomato seedlings
- Tomato transplants
- Trowel
- Fertilizer
Instructions
-
-
1
Place the wheat straw bales in a sunny location. Choose a location in your yard where they will not be in the way, and where they will receive plenty of direct sunlight.
-
2
Water the straw bales with a watering can. Pour water over the bales and soak them thoroughly. Let the straw bales cool down for four days. The wheat bales will become extremely hot in the sun due to the reaction of the water re-hydrating the bales causing them to begin composting.
-
-
3
Sprinkle ammonium nitrate over the bales. After four days, you will need to add ½ cup of ammonium nitrate to each bale and then soak them thoroughly with water for three days. Then apply ¼ cup of ammonium nitrate every day for three more days. Allow the bales to cool down for two days, and continue to soak them with water before adding the tomato plants.
-
4
Sit the wheat bales on their sides. The twine will need to run horizontally to make sure that the straws stay vertical.
-
5
Remove weeds from the bales. Add enough compost on top of the wheat bales until the compost is 3 inches thick.
-
6
Plant the tomatoes in the wheat bales. If you plan to sow seeds, you will need to trim the seedlings down once they grow 3 to 4 inches in height. Separate the seedlings into two separate seedlings and place them 18 inches apart on each bale. When planting transplants, you will need to make create two spaces with a sharp trowel. These spaces need to be 18 inches apart, and you will need to use the trowel to make room for each plant by moving it back and forth.
-
7
Apply water to the straw bales every day. You do not want them to ever dry out completely.
-
8
Add fertilizer to the tomato plants every two weeks. You will only need to do this during the growing season to ensure that the tomato plants stay healthy.
-
1
References
- Photo Credit Digital Vision./Digital Vision/Getty Images
