This is a full sized farmer’s organic barley straw bale tied with twine. This entire bale could be staked to the shore just under the water line of a large natural bottomed pond. Or it can be broken down into smaller portions and put into our mesh barley bags for easier application and more effective decay. We will often insert rocks into the mesh bags to help them sink just below the surface of the water. One bale will fill approximately 6 mesh bags. If you’d rather have biodegradable bags, try our large burlap bags.  Not as large as our mesh bags, but completely biodegradable. If left float on the surface of the pond, this bale will eventually sink over time and decay.
The barley straw does not begin to affect algae growth until it begins to decay, so apply your barley early in the year for best results. More water circulation and aeration will help with the effectiveness of barley straw.

These Barley Bales are pretty big, so we usually only use them in larger farm ponds.  Like any barley bale, you will want it to be in some moving water if possible, and submerged just below the surface.  You don’t want it to sink over three feet deep, or it just won’t get enough oxygen to decompose properly.  They can be buried directly in the rocks and gravel at the bottom of your pond if you have a shallow area, or the bags can be stuffed with some rocks so that they sink to the bottom on their own.  You can also stake these bags to the bottom in naturally bottomed ponds. The more water that flows through the bales, the better.

Barley is all natural, so you can never add too much barley.

These Barley Bales are larger and should be used on slightly larger ponds.  These bales will not fit into a waterfall box unless you ‘ve got a really big box like the Aquascape Grande.  You can use these in a wetland filter, but we would usually install multiple 16oz bales instead, simply because they are easier to bury and they can be spread out more.  Like any barley bale, these can be placed under your waterfall, or near the side of your pond.  You want them to be submerged, so that you don’t see them, but the more water and oxygen that flows through them, the better.  You don’t want them to sink any deeper than three feet down in a large pond. Without sufficient oxygen, they will not decompose properly.  They can also be buried directly in the rocks and gravel at the bottom of your pond, or the bags can be stuffed with some rocks so that they sink to the bottom on their own.  The more water that flows through the bales, the better.

Barley is all natural, so you can never add too much barley.

These Barley Bales fit perfectly in most Waterfall boxes.  Put one or two in the very bottom of your waterfall box and let them decay.  If you have a waterfall box that is very big, such as the Aquascape Grande falls, you will need four bags.  If you have a wetland filter, these bags can be buried directly in the gravel of the wetland.  They can also be buried directly in the rocks and gravel at the bottom of your pond, or the bags can be stuffed with some rocks so that they sink to the bottom on their own.  The more water that flows through the bales, the better.

Barley is all natural, so you can never add too much barley.