A Straw-Bale Seat

Landscape designer Andrea Taylor designed a simple flagstone pathway leading up the hill to a perch where she built a seat using straw bales, chicken wire, stucco and broken tiles. She says that straw bales have been used as a construction material for more than 100 years for walls, homes, and other structures. These earth-friendly materials are easy to use for creating custom shapes and designs.

Taylor estimates that a professional would charge about $6,000 for materials and construction, but do-it-yourselfers could cut their costs to only $400. The project can be completed in two weekends, with the help of a friend for lifting the straw bales and chicken wire. Taylor rates this project a 2 on a difficulty scale of 1 (easy) to 5 (difficult).

Step One: Placing the Straw Bales

Place a straw bale where you want the seat to be, angling it toward the best view. Set aside the bale, and dig a foundation, slightly larger than the bale and about ten inches deep. Fill five burlap bags with the dirt from the hole, to about two-thirds full.

Dig another hole for the back of the seat. The bale will sit on its side, so this hole doesn't need to be as wide as the first hole. Place two burlap bags of dirt in the hole, end to end. Wrap waterproof plastic around one side of the second bale, and place the bale on the two bags, against the first bale (figure D). Use five-inch irrigation hooks to secure the plastic to the bales and the bales to each other.

Step Two: Shaping with Chicken Wire

Lay chicken wire across the back, top, and seat of the straw bales, pressing it down to conform to the shape. Use wire cutters to carefully trim the edges. Secure the wire to the bales with irrigation hooks. Cut chicken wire for each side of the seat, and secure the pieces with irrigation hooks.

Cut two 2.5-square-foot pieces of chicken wire, and bend each one to form a tube. Fasten it in place with hooks to form arms for the seat. Stuff the wire tubes with hay, packed firmly. Fold over the ends of the wire to close the openings of the arm rests.

Step Three: Creating the Path

Walk along the path, and mark the placement for flagstones. For each stone, dig out a flat, level spot, and set the flagstone in place. Fill in with dirt and small rocks to level the stones.

Step Four: Applying the Stucco

Apply a second coat of stucco, filling in the nooks and crannies, and smoothing out any lumps. Let dry.

Step Five: Inlaying the Mosaic

The final coat of stucco and the mosaic tiles are applied at the same time.For this coat, use a fine-grained, smooth stucco, dyed slate blue.

Fill in the areas around the mosaic sections with stucco, smoothing it out level with the mosaic sections. Brush the surface with a crumpled piece of paper to give it a rough, natural-looking finish. Now you have the completed straw-bale seat (figure H).

Planting: Blowing in the Wind

Taylor chose tall grasses near the sitting area and colorful plants and long-lasting ground covers along the pathway. The tall grasses provide privacy and sway in the wind for gentle, soothing motion. Together these elements create a feel of playfulness and relaxation to accentuate the artistry of the straw-bale seat.

The hillside plants include: