Sprouting “straw” - Ask Extension
I purchased a bale of straw, not hay, from a reputable lawn and garden outfit. On 4/26, I put the straw on thick black plastic on paths in my communit...
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Sprouting “straw” #868900
Asked May 17, 2024, 1:44 PM EDT
I purchased a bale of straw, not hay, from a reputable lawn and garden outfit. On 4/26, I put the straw on thick black plastic on paths in my community garden. About ten days/two weeks ago, I noticed it is sprouting and looks like a grass. I’ve never seen hay at this stage, so I don’t know that it is or isn’t hay. I took this photo and showed the lawn and garden manager. He took a photo of it and identified it as long grass. He told me that seeds dropped in my garden. As there is nothing like this growing in my garden, I doubt this. The only other time I’ve seen this was many years ago, when I bought “straw” from the same place.
The photo shows the “straw” laid down, the grass pulled up, with roots and the seeds. What is this and how did it get into the bale of straw I purchased? Should this be reasonably expected to have straw sprout? Thank you! I am a Master Gardener.
Anne Arundel County Maryland
Expert Response
It's not uncommon for cereal grasses to be a component of straw, which is harvested drier than hay. More specifically, straw tends to be comprised of small grain plants (wheat, rye, barley) that are cut and baled after the grain (seed) is harvested. There should be relatively few weed seeds, given that the seed heads were cut removed by the harvester, though a few probably escape. Hay is sometimes sold as “straw,” but hay is often loaded with weed seed because the harvest includes the whole plant, including seed heads.
Perhaps the retailer where you bought the straw unintentionally stocked hay instead, if the supplier they used either substituted an order or had poor quality control. We can't really say what happened, but given the amount of germination you're finding, at the very least, it doesn't seem to be high-quality straw. Fortunately, when this sort of issue arises in straw spread over lawn seed, the cereal grasses don't persist for long because they are not very tolerant of mowing (repeated cutting-down, even if you use something other than a mower depending on how accessible they are).
Miri
Perhaps the retailer where you bought the straw unintentionally stocked hay instead, if the supplier they used either substituted an order or had poor quality control. We can't really say what happened, but given the amount of germination you're finding, at the very least, it doesn't seem to be high-quality straw. Fortunately, when this sort of issue arises in straw spread over lawn seed, the cereal grasses don't persist for long because they are not very tolerant of mowing (repeated cutting-down, even if you use something other than a mower depending on how accessible they are).
Miri
