Straw Directory
Be cautious of scams. There have been numerous attempts by fraudulent straw buyers.
Visit Maine Attorney General’s site for notices.
- To edit a listing: email us with updates or when sold out.
- To submit a new listing: complete the Maine Straw Directory Form.
Need Hay? Visit the Maine Hay Directory.
Maine Straw Directory information is available in two formats: interactive map and spreadsheet.
- To navigate, click on the +/− to zoom in/out, and click and drag to move the map.
- Click on the map markers for directory information. The map is easier to navigate in full screen mode or in the Google Maps app. Click on the view larger map icon in the upper right corner of the map or click here to access.
- The map is searchable in full screen mode by clicking on the search icon and typing a word or phrase such as a farm, contact or town name.
- Directory information can also be accessed by expanding the county list in the map legend and selecting a location. Click on the arrow in the upper left corner of the map to display the map legend.
Straw is usually a by-product of small grain production. After the grains (oats, barley, wheat, rye, triticale, spelt) are harvested, growers may harvest the residual plant material from the grains as straw. Straw is often desired as a mulch (as opposed to hay) as it usually contains few weed seeds, has wide leaves and hollow stems to provide a good insulating and weed suppressing mulch. Oat straw is usually the most desirable as it has some of the widest leaves and dries to a nice golden color. When buying straw, you should be aware that some of the grain may come in the bale and germinate when you use it as mulch.
Most small grains in Maine and the Northeast are harvested in late July or August. That is probably the best time to source straw, even if you don’t plan to use it until the spring garden season. High prices and low availability in the spring make sourcing good quality straw difficult.
Since a large amount of straw now comes from either Aroostook County or Canada, many growers consider buying in bulk and splitting a tractor trailer load of straw with numerous other growers as a means to reduce cost.
Information in this website is provided purely for educational purposes. No responsibility is assumed for any problems associated with the use of products or services mentioned in this website. No endorsement of products or companies is intended, nor is criticism of unnamed products or companies implied.
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