One of the best natural garden mulches is straw.
Straw is a by-product of grain growing and is made up of dead stems and leaves that are left over after grain is harvested. It can be obtained from any grain such as oats, barley, wheat or other similar crops.
However, corn does not produce straw because the stalk of corn is much larger and thicker. Dead corn stalks and leaves are called "stalks" and are not used as garden mulch.
Inexperienced gardeners sometimes mistakenly refer to straw as hay. Hay is made from living parts of growing plants that are cut and dried in the field. It is usually green in color and the same size and shape as straw bales. To confuse things even more, straw is the stuff that hay is rolled with!
Wheat straw is the most common type of straw we harvest as it is the most common crop in the region.
Most gardeners who use straw mulch have used it to control weeds. A sufficiently deep cover of straw can prevent the growth of most weeds. If you plan on using straw as your sole weed control, use loose straw that is at least 6 inches thick. This is enough to destroy most of the weeds found in the garden. Anything else is counterproductive and may even encourage weed growth and make weeding or weeding much more difficult.
An exception to the 15 cm recommendation is that some form of weed control is first placed on the ground before the straw is spread. Newspapers used to be the traditional material, but as they are becoming rarer, paperboard is now being used.
If you choose to use cardboard, be sure to remove all tape from the packing boxes before storing them, or you'll find tape in your garden soil for years to come.
Three inches of straw on a layer of cardboard works great. It holds the cardboard in place and makes the mulched area much more attractive than a pile of broken boxes in the yard.
Always loosen or clean them well before laying the straw, otherwise some weeds will have enough strength to grow through the layer of straw.
Perennial weeds such as wheatgrass easily grow through straw. If your garden has problems with perennial weeds, you will need to install a weed barrier for a thatched roof to be effective.
I like to mulch the entire garden with straw, even around plants and between rows. This way you get a good walking and working surface.
Mulching with straw prevents the spread of garden plant diseases. Many of these diseases appear as spores in the soil. When it rains, the raindrops fall to the ground and spray the spores on the leaves of the plant, which then infect the plant. The use of a layer of straw insulates the soil so the spores cannot be sprayed.
Straw makes a good mulch in the garden, but it looks out of place in landscapes and flower beds in my opinion.
A standard sized bale of straw covers an area of about ten feet by ten.
The best wheat straw has a uniform bright golden color. Areas with brown stems indicate the presence of weed stalks, which may contain weed seeds. If you have a choice, choose another ball.
Old, rotten straw loses its golden color over time. Areas exposed to moisture during storage may also be damaged. In most cases this is not a problem and straw still works well as mulch. However, in the garden, it is exposed to moisture and begins to decompose immediately after application.
Some gardeners prefer to use rotten straw in certain parts of their garden because it releases plant nutrients faster.
Straw is especially good as mulch for potatoes. Usually the soil around the potato plants is rolled in so that the tubers are not exposed to the sun and do not turn green. A good layer of straw serves the same purpose and also makes harvesting the potatoes easier.
One of the disadvantages of straw is that when it is first spread, it can be caught in the wind and fall onto the lawn. This quickly stops when the rain falls on the straw and settles. This way you can dampen the straw after application to keep it in place.
An added benefit of using straw is that it prevents the soil from evaporating, reducing the need for watering.
With constant use and storage throughout the year, the bottom layer of rotted straw will turn into garden soil, introducing valuable humus. Beneficial soil microorganisms and earthworms thrive in this environment, which is a win-win situation for you. They have very few weeds while retaining garden soil—everything a gardener could wish for.
