STRAW BALE GARDENING – A different way to garden that is versatile and eco-friendly. This year’s garden can be next year’s compost. You can keep the hay bales bundled and use just like they are, build a platform to create a decorative piece to hold your plants, or do what my husband did and repurpose used wooden crates from work to hold the straw. There is not a lot of work needed to do straw bale gardening but you do need to condition the straw for two weeks in order for plants to grow in it. The benefits include fewer weeds, faster growth, larger plants, waist-high gardening, and free mulch after one or two seasons! https://bonnieplants.com/library/how-to-condition-and-plant-a-bale-of-straw/