20 bales of alfalfa hay = 20 self-composting raised beds!

That’s the plan, at least. We are hoping that when we revisit these bales in early spring they will be soft and composted in the middle, so we can plant right into them.  We’ll probably get one good season out of them, and then we’ll pull them apart and use them to create a large bed in the space they’re currently placed.

Katrin, Amanda and Nicole worked on the layout of the beds, moving all the bales in the middle of a downpour.

Juliet filled wheelbarrow after wheelbarrow with compost from our own compost corral, we used that as the filler in our bale frames.

Collin, Dekker and Forest made all the frames with the lumber Krystal helped pick up the day before.

Also, FOX 12 came by to get some footage for their High School Spotlight section – I was told it should air at 7 on Friday November 26, 2010.