[Cob] alfalfa and weeds

[Mary Lou McFarland]

What a great topic!!!  I haven't seen this many people jump on board for 
awhile now.  I have to bring in another vote for the weeds.  I'm familiar 
with alfalfa and when it dries then it REALLY flakes, so I'd vote "no" on it 
for that reason.  The weeds on the other hand are very tough.  My good ol' 
prairie weeds can slice your hands up when you try to pull them especially 
when they start to dry  Which takes me back to another persons insight that 
the original bale structures were hay not straw.  Good point and I have to 
add that it wasn't cultured hay but tough prairie hay that was just the 
grass the settlers found growing when they arrived, like big and little 
bluestem and prairie peas and kansas gayfeathers.  What some of us now would 
call weeds.  I had thought that the reason for using straw was that it was 
hollow and therefore held air, and it was the entrapped air that gave the 
insulative properties.  (Sorry, I can't remember who made what statement so 
bear with me, I'm not trying to be rude)  Someone else thought that using 
the weeds as a lightclay medium would work well.  I like that idea because I 
have about four acres of tough grass that needs cut right now and if used 
that way , I could store it as a hay mound instead of fussing with a baler 
at all.   I also liked the reminder that we might be getting into a little 
overkill with worrying about heat transfer through walls when 80% goes 
through the roof.  Maybe we should shift our focus a little?  Let's hear 
some great roofing ideas!!!    Honey, I say give those weeds a try and let 
us all know how it worked out.  In five years we might all be looking for 
some weeds just because of your input.  Good luck!

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