When the Acteens at Indian Creek Memorial Baptist Church chose "gardening" as one of their activities under the Missions Quest of Creativity, their leader Ms. Sue Puckett felt that they did not know enough about gardening to do this as individuals. She had seen the "Straw Bale Gardening" book by Joel Karsten in a catalog, ordered the book and presented this idea to the girls to do as a group. The Acteens had earlier talked about having a Prayer Garden at church, and they decided they could combine the two.

Since straw bale gardens are a breakthrough vegetable gardening method and a new phenomenon, they embarked upon this project. First, the straw bales had to be obtained, which became a little difficult since the bales are becoming more compacted and heavier and are held together with metal bands rather than the traditional twine. The traditional bales are more ideal for this project. A church member was kind enough to pick up the eight bales and deliver them to the church.

Next came the conditioning of the bales, and they looked to the book for directions. The bales were conditioned for 10 days with fertilizer and water. Then the girls and their leader purchased all the plants for the bed except for the cucumbers. To meet the requirements for the activity, at least six different kinds of seeds/plants were needed. They purchased zucchini, yellow squash, yellow and cherry tomatoes, sweet, jalapeno and Cheyenne peppers, eggplant, herbs of sage, oregano and chives, and marigolds. They then set out the plants. The white cucumber plants were grown from heirloom seeds. A soaker hose was purchased and installed on the bales making watering much simpler.

The Acteens transplanted all of the plants by simply separating the conditioned straw and placing the plants in the holes. At least 90-95 percent of the plants survived and the plants have thrived. They are greener, larger and healthier than in regular soil. They are now reaping fruition for their work, which has been much less than the soil gardens and are sharing their harvest with shut-ins and others.

One of the biggies advantages of straw bale gardening is that the gardener doesn’t need soil and doesn’t need to purchase a container, because the bale provides the media for growing and it also serves as its own container. A great benefit is that the bales provide a raised-height garden. Also, there are fewer insects, no weeds and easy care. This is the ideal way to garden for those who have limited space, time and need.