I'm glad you posted pics of your first straw bale garden. I set up a 20-bale garden this year after a farmer friend said that you could grow potatoes in a bale. Hadn't heard of that before so I found a book that explained the process and decided to give it a try. My yard has good sun only in the part that has a rock terrace and poor clay soil so previous gardens weren't much to brag about. The bales took a loooong time to condition because the spring weather was very cool with a late frost in May. The starter plants survived that stretch, but I had to replant the seed beds. Things are finally starting to take off in a big way. Thanks for sharing your garden pics!