Straw Bales for raised beds, and coping with twitch grass...

[farmerdrea]

Hi, all -- we've got a major problem with twitch grass in the vege patch area. In one area, where we could afford to leave the space fallow for a year, we covered it with 2 layers of old wool carpet and underlay, and left it. THAT killed the twitch. However, the other half of the vege patch area has been planted with a lot of permanent things (herbs, fruit shrubs, trees, etc) and we can't leave it fallow for that long (or if we do, we go a year w/o homegrown vege, perish the thought!).

So, I was thinking about using barley straw to make a large area of raised beds, and REALLY knock out the twitch with it at the same time. We'd use screened topsoil, brought in, for planting in (and use our screened compost to enrich it).

Has anyone had any experience with this? Will the breakdown of the straw interfere with the fertility of the soil? Over time, will the twitch STAY dead, or can it go dormant and then reactivate under the right conditions? The area that had been under carpet for a year shows no signs of twitch, yet, but it's only been uncovered since spring (last September).

After the eventual breakdown of the straw, we would just turn it back into the soil, but are worried about the "revenge of the twitch." For example, in one area, our potato area, we have dug and dug and dug, and removed more and more of the twitch rhizomes and the green grass bits as well. Over the last 3 years, the green above-ground bits have gotten more and more spindly and yellow as they come up, but the underground bits have become like a mat, severely hampering the potato tuber growth. This year, when I thought it was going to be a good potato year, when I went to dig the potatoes, I found few tubers and mats of rhizomes from the grass, many of which went right through the potatoes. We have put a couple of pigs in the area to eat all the roots (worked really well in another area a couple of years ago, and no sign of the return of the grass!), but this not feasible for the entire vege patch because of the permanent plants...

Any thoughts, experiences, musings, etc, appreciated!

Cheers
Andrea
NZ

[Jack]

Gidday

Well you gotta problem there. The straw bale gardening is really great but if it has a weakness it's your damned weed. If the grass gets into it, it will go right through quick pronto.

And the broken down straw will effect your soil, but all to the better as it will enrich your soil with extra beautiful organic matter.

If the carpet worked then thats the best way to go.

I have been lead to believe that the twitch or couch or whatever it's call where you are really hates cultivation and the best way to get rid of it is continuos cultivation.

[baldowrie]

Were I used to live we had a real problem with it and the only way it could be dealt with was to cultivate and manually pull the roots and burn them. Carpet only worked where the carpet was and once removed the roots grow like crazy

[Flingdizz]

I am currently in a war with twitch and the only way I am winning is to dig it all out, roots and all. I can see exactly where I have failed to putt all the root out as it is growing straight back. The twitch that I mulched with cardboard for 8 months went yellow and dried up nicely until I took the carboard up and it has come back to life. So I am not sure how long you need to keep it covered for it to truly die off.
Once I have dug it out I am putting an underground barrier around the veg patch so that the roots cant get back in again.

[baldowrie]

that's the problem with it and why we used to burn it...I dared it to come back to life after that!!!!

No amount of chemical weed killer would stop it either

[Flingdizz]

that's the problem with it and why we used to burn it...I dared it to come back to life after that!!!!

Waah, I'm going to have nightmares about zombie twitch now
(Yes , it is getting to me)

[Thomzo]

How about doing both? Cover the stuff with carpet and put the straw bales on top. That way you could leave it for a year or two. The carpet will stop the grass growing into the bales. The straw will still break down and you will have to spread it around by hand but at least you can use the area while you're killing the grass.

[farmerdrea]

Thanks everyone, for the experiences and comments! Since we left the carpet down in the other area for a year and 6 months on the couch/twitch hasn't come back, we're going to give the raised beds with straw bales a go, but put down a heavy grade of black plastic under the beds and all pathways between them. Any area that can't be covered as above will be dug, dug and dug again (areas around the permanent plantings), and when we get our annual pigs for the freezer again, they'll go in some of the harder areas to deal with, to work over and eat the roots (which they LOVE!).

Cheers
Andrea
NZ