Wondering if anyone has used barley straw to mulch their garden for winter. I’m interested in the pros and cons
We have been using it for years and put it on the garden right after we plant the garlic, my husband grinds it up with the leaf shredder first. It keeps the garlic really clean over the winter.
I also put it all over the empty garden bed to keep the weeds down; then nice and deep around the blueberries and raspberry beds.
I also use it around the strawberries which are in the VegePod and it keeps them super clean.
In the spring there will be a minimal number of sprouted kernels, but they pull out easily and look great in flower arrangements if you let them go to seed! The barley straw doesn’t really break down over the winter, but once you dig over the garden it goes quite quickly.
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Thanks for the info. I don’t have a leaf shredder so I’m thinking of applying as is. Wonder if that will make a difference? Can you tell me where you got your barley straw from?