Straw bales as a planting medium

The childhood obesity epidemic in America is a national health crisis (Let's Move, 2008). Areas across the nation exist with low access to healthy food by either being low income or more than a mile from a supermarket. Gardening has become a popular route to provide access to healthy foods. However, arid conditions and poor soils in the Southwest contribute to an on-going and challenging effort to grow fresh food supplies. To alleviate these problems, Extension agents teach that straw bale gardens offer an easy planting medium with multiple advantages.