Wintering My Garden

[Jane23]

So, I covered put of a bed with straw that I hoped to break down into the soil. It appears as if some of the straw still has seeds attached to it. They are currently spouting in the bed. I know some types of growth of straw seeds can benefit the garden, but others do not. SHould I leave it or pull them all individually? There is not a lot, but they may spread as they grow.

 

[flowerbug]

So, I covered put of a bed with straw that I hoped to break down into the soil. It appears as if some of the straw still has seeds attached to it. They are currently spouting in the bed. I know some types of growth of straw seeds can benefit the garden, but others do not. SHould I leave it or pull them all individually? There is not a lot, but they may spread as they grow.

if you have the time to weed it's good to get them out of there before they can spread or drop further seeds.

 

[Jane23]

if you have the time to weed it's good to get them out of there before they can spread or drop further seeds.

I posted this in another place and was told it dies when it gets seriously cold, so don't bother removing them. I found mixed messages online.

 

[flowerbug]

I posted this in another place and was told it dies when it gets seriously cold, so don't bother removing them. I found mixed messages online.

it really depends upon the species/variety of weed as to if it can survive the cold or not. some things around here have no trouble at all surviving the winter. i even have some grasses that will flower and drop seeds in the middle of the winter if the weather is above freezing long enough.

 

[ducks4you]

if you have the time to weed it's good to get them out of there before they can spread or drop further seeds.

I wrote that I have used oats as a cover crop. They Will die back. Even if some seeds survive and over winter and sprout next Spring, oats are VERY easy to pull. Then you drop them where they are, they dry out and fertilize.
I have used oats as a cover crop in my big garden. They died back and created a beige mat that I worked back into the garden.
Oats provide quick, weed-suppressing biomass, take up excess soil nutrients and can improve the productivity of legumes when planted in mixtures. The cover's fibrous root system also holds soil during cool-weather gaps in rotations, and the ground cover provides a mellow mulch before low-till or no-till crops.

Oats Cover Crops - SARE

Oats (Avena sativa) Also called: spring oats Type: cool season annual cereal Roles: suppress weeds, prevent erosion, scavenge excess nutrients, add biomass, nurse crop Mix with: clover, pea, vetch, other legumes or other small grains See charts for ranking and management summary. If you need a...

www.sare.org

I mowed this summer over where I planted a patch of oats and killed some of them, others grew back. Oats are a cultivated crop and do not send down deep roots.
Not really an issue.
These are wild oats which spread by "walking."

 

[Jane23]

I wrote that I have used oats as a cover crop. They Will die back. Even if they over winter and sprout next Spring, oats are VERY easy to pull. I mowed this summer over where I planted a patch of oats and killed some of them, others grew back. Oats area a cultivated crop and do not send down deep roots.
Not really an issue.
These are wild oats which spread by "walking."

I wrote that I have used oats as a cover crop. They Will die back. Even if they over winter and sprout next Spring, oats are VERY easy to pull. I mowed this summer over where I planted a patch of oats and killed some of them, others grew back. Oats area a cultivated crop and do not send down deep roots.
Not really an issue.
These are wild oats which spread by "walking."

Our temperatures hit -40 and stay around -15 degrees. That should kill it, but I still will see if I can get some of it up.

 

[ducks4you]

Oats are a LOT cheaper for a 50 lb bag than grass seed. Dunno what the weather is doing at your place. I planted oats a couple of years ago in my big garden, ~35 x 12 ft, in September, and I am further south than you.
You Could plant now and cover with a tarp when you are getting frosted. Might work.
Here, oats are $12/50 lbs
I would suggest that you mow and add grass clippings and leaves and used your spade and rake to work them in.
You could also cover your garden with cardboard and put down bricks or wood or weights. When the soil is "buried" the worms and microbes and fungi will be able to work better. Use your hose and wet down the cardboard.
EVERYBODY and his brother and DOG has extra cardboard, or get it from grocery/box stores. They stock 1x/week and have to dispose of it.
Also, call city dumps, who COLLECT it from city pickups.
Still you live in a HUGE rural state, you may have to do some legwork.

Cardboard Garden Ideas – Tips On Reusing Cardboard For The Garden

If you have recently moved, there is something fun you can do with all those cardboard boxes besides fill up your recycle bin. Reusing cardboard for the garden provides compostable material, kills pesky weeds and help you get a new bed ready quickly. Learn more here.

www.gardeningknowhow.com

 

[Jane23]

Oats are a LOT cheaper for a 50 lb bag than grass seed. Dunno what the weather is doing at your place. In September, I planted oats a couple of years ago in my big garden, ~35 x 12 ft, and I am further south than you.
You Could plant now and cover with a tarp when you are getting frosted. Might work.
Here, oats are $12/50 lbs
I would suggest that you mow and add grass clippings and leaves and used your spade and rake to work them in.
You could also cover your garden with cardboard and put down bricks or wood or weights. When the soil is "buried" the worms and microbes and fungi will be able to work better. Use your hose and wet down the cardboard.
EVERYBODY and his brother and DOG has extra cardboard, or get it from grocery/box stores. They stock 1x/week and have to dispose of it.
Also, call city dumps, who COLLECT it from city pickups.
Still you live in a HUGE rural state, you may have to do some legwork.

Cardboard Garden Ideas – Tips On Reusing Cardboard For The Garden

If you have recently moved, there is something fun you can do with all those cardboard boxes besides fill up your recycle bin. Reusing cardboard for the garden provides compostable material, kills pesky weeds and help you get a new bed ready quickly. Learn more here.

www.gardeningknowhow.com

I will do something. I just don't know what that is yet. I am trying to find out if any of this can help my soil to break up more or add nutrients. So far, it looks as if it will do little besides preventing erosion, which is not an issue as I use raised beds.

 

[ducks4you]

Learn by doing. YOU are the most important ingredient in YOUR garden.
YOU maintain it, so something that works for somebody else may not work for you,.

 

[Jane23]

Learn by doing. YOU are the most important ingredient in YOUR garden.
YOU maintain it, so something that works for somebody else may not work for you,.

Very supportive and true. There are not many sprouts and I am curious to see what it does.