Straw is the dry stalk of a cereal plant, after the nutrient grain or seed has been removed. Straw makes up about half of the yield of a cereal crop such as wheat, oats, rye or barley.

In times gone by, it was regarded as a useful by-product of the harvest, but with the advent of the combine harvester, straw has become more of a burden, almost a nuisance to farmers. Chemically straw is composed mostly of cellulose and lignin, the same major components of wood. A wall built with straw bales can have a R- value somewhere between 40 to 50.

Digging your trenches for your cob structure by hand allows you to get to know the soil beneath you.
You sees all the creatures and their little homes. The content of the soil can differ greatly from spot to spot. It’s a good meditative kind of work; rhythmic, and slow. When there is a trench to be dung - you have plenty to do! There is a great sense of accomplishment when finished. You gain valuable building material ( clay and or sand ) and a sense of what you structure sits on.
dig. dig. dig.

CANARY GRASS Phalaris arundinacea L.
Canary Grass (Variety Reed most popular) is a cool season perennial that grows best on wet land. It is a sod forming grass that produces a coarse leafy grass of 2 to 8 feet in height. Spreads from roots and seeds and provides a dense root mat in soil.
I wonder if this would work in cob or straw bale buildings. The reason I’ve been wondering is because a neighbor / farmer has a bunch of tightly compressed bales. It sounds like it is fairly rot resistant and plentiful.
Would it be suitable for use in a straw bale house? I guess it would be a canary-reed-bale house wouldn’t it.
More About Canary Grass »
wiki »

Seriously! A saw-z-all, or resipricating saw, with a long pruning blade is my new favorite tool for carving cob. It’s fantastic for creating flush surfaces, rounding out corners and cutting niches into the wall. You can cut a pretty straight line with it too. Need a window? Carve it out. It gives you much more control then chiseling or hacking at the cob. Cob sure dulls the metal blade quickly though, but what do you expect.
The dust that it creates is pre-made cob mix, just add water.
I don’t think i’m going to spend as much time sculpting wet cob after using this tool for an afternoon. Not to say that chopping and smoothing while wet isn’t a good idea. Do as much as you can while it’s wet. After it is dry you can go in and sculpt it in moments. While building with cob there’s something to be said for just getting the cob on the wall, and then working out the details later. After all you want to save some time for the detail work.
Watch out though, you may carve off too much! When using power tools it’s pretty easy to get carried away.
Make sure to wear goggles, earplugs, dust mask and saftey gear with the saw-z-all. You will need it.

Update:
I’ve been using a non motorized pruning blade lately and that also works wonderfully! Quiter too.

The Green Expo » had a new and innovative presentations this year. I was so glad to see the Twike!

The Twike » is an electric vehicle with human assist! It would be ideal if you lived in the city. Pedaling through traffic and hitting the hills with the electric motor. I think it’s just what we need; a little exercise, a little less carbon dioxide, and a little more (human) energy independence.