Haylage... dug into the ground...

peds

Evening all, how are you?

I'm digging through this plot of land I've just taken on, and found all sorts of buried treasure.

Quick question... what is the completely-buried, flattened, and slightly ripped apart bale of haylage doing to my soil? The nettles and brambles didn't seem to mind it one bit... but is it going to mess around with my garden in the future?

I'm doing my best to dig it out and dispose of it properly, as it is right under where I plan to have 2 out of the 6 raised beds I'm building... but it's a bit of a chore.

macraignil

I have seen old bales left in fields and I have heard that gone off haylage can be toxic and no good to feed to animals so my best guess is that it was just dumped there and maybe being buried has helped preserve it in the ground. Saw a program on BBC recently and some very degradable items can remain in the ground preserved for much longer than would normally be expected.

Brambles and nettles are very vigorous plants that are difficult to kill unlike some vegetables that can be much more likely to give up or fail to produce a useful crop. Unless its very well spread out and on its way to breaking down in the ground I'd be reluctant to leave it there under my vegetables.

You could just plant something there you would not be too worried about if it did fail. Is there space to put the raised beds somewhere else?

gozunda

Haylege is just preserved grass. If you like pile it up to compost it or dig it in to the soil and it will help add organic matter. It wont do the soil fertility any harm whatsover.

Not the worst thing you could find OP

Edit: if you like it and compost it with some FYM- it will make a perfect spot for Courgette or pumpkin plants to grow on next year. These type of plants love that kind of medium.

peds

gozunda wrote: »

Not the worst thing you could find OP

No, the worst thing I’ve found so far is the four car batteries scattered about the place... I was thinking about having a themed corner of the garden with all of the most exciting bits of crap arranged nicely in it. The old radiator would probably be the centerpiece.
Also the digger bucket... not even sure if I’d be able to move it even if I do dig it all out... but it’s right in the way of where I want my pond.

Good to know the haylage isn’t doing any damage! I’d just read a lot about haylage effluent being a major pollutant, but I suppose that’s more of an issue with greater quantities, and stuff that hasn’t already been in the ground a good few years.
The hassle is just going to be dealing with all the plastic wrap, but I’ve dug enough of it out of the ground over the last week that I’ve got my technique down pat now.

magicbastarder

how long were the car batteries there, can you guess? maybe worth doing a soil acidity test...

gozunda

peds wrote: »

No, the worst thing I’ve found so far is the four car batteries scattered about the place... I was thinking about having a themed corner of the garden with all of the most exciting bits of crap arranged nicely in it. The old radiator would probably be the centerpiece.
Also the digger bucket... not even sure if I’d be able to move it even if I do dig it all out... but it’s right in the way of where I want my pond.

Good to know the haylage isn’t doing any damage! I’d just read a lot about haylage effluent being a major pollutant, but I suppose that’s more of an issue with greater quantities, and stuff that hasn’t already been in the ground a good few years.
The hassle is just going to be dealing with all the plastic wrap, but I’ve dug enough of it out of the ground over the last week that I’ve got my technique down pat now.

Sounds great. There is a whole area of gardening devoted to reusing junk

See:
https://www.google.com/search?q=junk+gardening&client=ms-android-samsung-gs-rev1&prmd=imnv&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjFxLSLgJzdAhUGYVAKHUEGCvUQ_AUICSgB&biw=360&bih=716

As for the digger bucket- I would suggest mounding soil around it and using it as a pond for wildlife or even some ducks which interestingly are the best anti-slug force in the known universe! The bonus being that they produce eggs ...