By Eugene Gessler Master Gardener After attending the Green County Master Gardeners Symposium on March 10 with speaker/author Joel Karsten of Straw Bale Gardens, I am writing this article to share some basic information about straw bale gardening and what it can do for you. Straw bale gardening has been taking the country by storm, which is no wonder, when a person considers all it has to offer. In its simplest terms, straw bale gardening is merely planning and raising vegetables, fruits, herbs and flowers on bales of straw - the straw bales are the growing medium.