Compost advice. Worth it or not?

[booger]

Thinking of doing my own composting this spring. Plenty of yard waste to round up and i might end up putting in a raised garden bed for just a few things like tomatoes, aspargus and wanted to know those that do their own compost is it worth it or not.

Saw a few different ideas on building a tumbler and there are plenty for sale. Any ideas/experiences on that would great too. Building one to ventilate properly seems like it could be tricky.

[ClevelandBronco]

I'm interested as well. I feel like an idiot raising a lawn.

[booger]

couple of examples of them on Ebay i was looking at.



http://cgi.ebay.com/New-65-Gallon-Tumble-Tumbler-Compost-Bin-Composter-Mix-/400195982328?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5d2d8a13f8

http://cgi.ebay.com/RotoLock-No-Spill-Compost-Tumbler-MOCHA-6-5-Cubic-/280612494735?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4155cedd8f

[booger]

I'm interested as well. I feel like an idiot raising a lawn.

More than anything i think i would like a tumbler as a way of getting rid of yard waste and not worry about hauling it away. Possibly a way to make a few bucks to either selling the compost or picking/cleaning up others yards and composting that.

[Bugeater]

Just mulch. It's so much less work.

[booger]

i put it as a poop thread because i think its a good way to get rid of some dog turds too. probably not all or even half of it but the dried stuff i could throw in i would think. Some blog i came across the gal said chicken poop works best.

[Bugeater]

I throw a lot of stuff under my pine trees.

[ClevelandBronco]

More than anything i think i would like a tumbler as a way of getting rid of yard waste and not worry about hauling it away. Possibly a way to make a few bucks to either selling the compost or picking/cleaning up others yards and composting that.

Urban compost farm. Interesting idea. Pick up neighborhood yard waste, compost the stuff, and partner with a few others who will share their crop with you in exchange. It wouldn't be cost effective, but you'd get better produce than you'd get from most grocery stores, and you'd get to know some good people.

If you get really lucky you get some fruit wood for the smoker in the bargain.

[booger]

Just mulch. It's so much less work.

the work and time i don't mind i just don't want to spend much other than the cost of a tumbler. Got to make sure i would get use out of it though as i would hope it won't eventually wind up being a garden hose real cause i don't use it.

[Bugeater]

the work and time i don't mind i just don't want to spend much other than the cost of a tumbler. Got to make sure i would get use out of it though as i would hope it won't eventually wind up being a garden hose real cause i don't use it.
My mom does it. But she's retired and borderline batshit crazy.

[booger]

Urban compost farm. Interesting idea. Pick up neighborhood yard waste, compost the stuff, and partner with a few others who will share their crop with you in exchange. It wouldn't be cost effective, but you'd get better produce than you'd get from most grocery stores, and you'd get to know some good people.

If you get really lucky you get some fruit wood for the smoker in the bargain.

Yep just a matter of learning how to do it right and if there is enough interest.

[ClevelandBronco]

i put it as a poop thread because i think its a good way to get rid of some dog turds too. probably not all or even half of it but the dried stuff i could throw in i would think. Some blog i came across the gal said chicken poop works best.

I live in an unincorporated "island" in the suburbs that will never be annexed by the surrounding cities. Even though we look like any other hellishly suburban neighborhood, we're only governed by the laws of the county. My neighbor has chickens, and I'd really like to put in a coop as well.

[booger]

My mom does it. But she's retired and borderline batshit crazy.

does she have good results with mixing the batshit in the compost?

[booger]

I live in an unincorporated "island" in the suburbs that will never be annexed by the surrounding cities. Even though we look like any other hellishly suburban neighborhood, we're only governed by the laws of the county. My neighbor has chickens, and I'd really like to put in a coop as well.

:thumb:


Along the same lines but a totally different catagorie i've thought about the plastic, glass, cardboard, etc recycling that they do around a few towns here they pick it up with the garbage. A company does a bunch of different towns. I think plastic is tricky with different kinds and cardboard isn't worth it because of the tons you have to get. It just pisses me off when i see the truck doing it and thinking that could put a few people to work if we kept it in our own town. I havn't researched it enough though to know all the laws plus what the market prices are. Gas prices don't make it worth the risk either.

[Buehler445]

I was thinking about starting a thread about this. Any one do it? What sort of equipment/processes do you use?

[booger]

I was thinking about starting a thread about this. Any one do it? What sort of equipment/processes do you use?

It's kind of a knock off of sorts to the gardening thread. I bet Mohillbilly and the other greenthumbs will have some pointers.

[Saccopoo]

i put it as a poop thread because i think its a good way to get rid of some dog turds too. probably not all or even half of it but the dried stuff i could throw in i would think. Some blog i came across the gal said chicken poop works best.

You can't put dog crap in a compost pile. At least one you intend to use for vegetable gardening.

[booger]

You can't put dog crap in a compost pile. At least one you intend to use for vegetable gardening.

Damn. I got a pile of it and instead of burring it i was hoping i could turn it into something useful. Winter time is handy as it is frozen and the garbage man can't smell the stink . I don't try it in the spring or fall i don't want him to catch on.

[Saccopoo]

Damn. I got a pile of it and instead of burring it i was hoping i could turn it into something useful. Winter time is handy as it is frozen and the garbage man can't smell the stink . I don't try it in the spring or fall i don't want him to catch on.

Here you go:

http://www.cityfarmer.org/petwaste.html

[booger]

Here you go:

http://www.cityfarmer.org/petwaste.html

bookmarked it. thanks

:thumb:

[Phobia]

Costco has one of those tumblers. I just have an open bottomed barrel I throw stuff into. Let it break down and till it into the garden the next spring.

[booger]

Costco has one of those tumblers. I just have an open bottomed barrel I throw stuff into. Let it break down and till it into the garden the next spring.

i've got to sit down and think about how much i will use one before i purchase. I may buy a small one for dog waste. If i can find one cheap enough. Youtube vids show people just adding ridex to help break it down. I don't know if i like the idea of digging one or not. Not sure yet. Just looking for a way to break the dog waste down and then throw the leftover dirt in with the shrubs and bushes.

for regular compost an old whiskey/wine barrel or 55 gal drum and i bet a guy could make one. I got a friend of the family with a shop so it would just be trial and error. If it would have to be ventilated properly i suppose that could get tricky with the fabrication part of it.

Been keeping my eye on craigslist for used ones but i imagine if they work good people don't get rid of them often.

[booger]

that costco price aint too bad

[Phobia]

i bought my compost thingy at a garage sale for a buck. I don't take it too seriously though. Throw some coffee back there, garden waste, yard clippings, the family jack-o-lantern, etc.

I've seen the mini-septic for canine excretment. You bury a little bucket in the yard and the lid sits flush with the lawn. Step on a lever and drop the turd in. Ground-water breaks it down and returns it to the soil.

[booger]

I've seen the mini-septic for canine excretment. You bury a little bucket in the yard and the lid sits flush with the lawn. Step on a lever and drop the turd in. Ground-water breaks it down and returns it to the soil.

i've seen those too. Lots of vids on youtube and people building them right next to their foundation. I don't know if that is a great idea or not.

those are just the non flush types. i can't imagine shelling out the bucks for an actual dog septic system. I got a freezer in the basement i would fill up with plastic bags and throw it in the trash year round before i did that.ROFL

[booger]

I've been searching craigslist for hobby sculptures with no sense of smell to pick up free "clay" too with no luck. They need a drop box for that like those for recyling ink cartridges.

[ClevelandBronco]

i bought my compost thingy at a garage sale for a buck. I don't take it too seriously though. Throw some coffee back there, garden waste, yard clippings, the family jack-o-lantern, etc.

I've seen the mini-septic for canine excretment. You bury a little bucket in the yard and the lid sits flush with the lawn. Step on a lever and drop the turd in. Ground-water breaks it down and returns it to the soil.

Since my wife visited Tunisia, the Jack-o'-lanterns become soup.

[NewChief]

I compost. I just use a large brick "burn bin" (lots of old homes had them) that is on the back edge of my property. The beauty of compost is that it's really hard to screw up. Anyway, I love it because I throw all my kitchen scraps in it and they don't have to stink up my trash.

[seclark]

I compost. I just use a large brick "burn bin" (lots of old homes had them) that is on the back edge of my property. The beauty of compost is that it's really hard to screw up. Anyway, I love it because I throw all my kitchen scraps in it and they don't have to stink up my trash.

this.

my great uncle has kept one for the last 3 years on our place, behind his house. don't know much about how he works it. i know i've bought lime for him to scatter over the top of it. he's used it for his tomatoes and peppers last year.

the son comes down from town and takes the soil back to his place for their flowers. says it works great.

we don't put dog shit in it though. my dog goes across the road and pinches.

i'm sure mo can set you up w/the info to get it started though. good luck
sec

[R8RFAN]

Just don't put any leftover meat in your compost pile, keep it organic

[NewChief]

Just don't put any leftover meat in your compost pile, keep it organic

Yeah. No meat, no cheese, and too much cooking oil can also kill your worms.

If you want to go super hardcore, you can start a vermiculture operation for raw kitchen scraps, and it will make some serious plant food.

[Bwana]

Good thread! I was thinking about doing something like this myself.

[NewChief]

And for those looking for how-to, this is pretty good:
http://www.plowhearth.com/magazine/compost_how_to.asp

About the only "tricky" part (and it isn't tricky, because it's no big deal if you screw it up... just correct it when you get around to it) is the balance between "green" and "brown" matter.

A pile that doesn't heat up within 24 hours needs more green material. A compost thermometer is very handy for determining the temperature near the center of the pile, which should rise to approximately 150-160F. Often, however, you can see a pile steaming and can feel its heat even from the outside of the tumbler or over the top of the bin. A pile that develops an ammonia-like smell needs more brown materials; just work some more into the pile, and the aroma should go away.

[notorious]

I was thinking about starting a thread about this. Any one do it? What sort of equipment/processes do you use?

You are in shit heaven in Scott. Just use cattle manure and you will be growing some amazing vegetables.


My parents built a garden where we used to have our cattle pens and their "crop" turned out like something you would see in the Guiness Book of World Records.

[HonestChieffan]

My compost is in a bin. It is 18 feet wide, 4 deep, 4 high, open across the front. Turning compost for aeration and cooling is critical to speedy composting. 1/3 of the bin is always empty. I take 1/3 and scoop it into the empty 1/3....its like find the pea under a shell sorta compost shuffle. In summer ill turn it every week to 10 days. All weeds we pull go in and I get fresh horse manure and bedding from a horse farm. I never use grass clippings because i spray my yard for weeds and dont want residual herbicide in the compost. I do get leaves from city folks in fall and love having them in the works.

Another key is what the experts call a green to brown ratio...if you have all fallen leaves it will not decompose as well as if you have a mix of green material to brown material. Its all about bacteria....they get busy, heat builds, gets too hot, shuts down bacteria, you turn it, bacteria is happy and off we go again....

[tmax63]

If you want to do it as a hobby/feel good thing then go for it. I built an 8x12 greenhouse last fall and bought a full 8' pickup bed full (2 cubic yards) of compost for around $25-30 at a landscaping type place and there is no way to make it for that kind of price.

[NewChief]

If you want to do it as a hobby/feel good thing then go for it. I built an 8x12 greenhouse last fall and bought a full 8' pickup bed full (2 cubic yards) of compost for around $25-30 at a landscaping type place and there is no way to make it for that kind of price.

Well... mine is free (which technically beats your price). But yeah. It's not that expensive to buy.

Mine actually saves me money, because it reduces the amount of trash I have, and we get charged by the size trash bin we need in my city. We can downsize thanks to composting.

[DJ's left nut]

i put it as a poop thread because i think its a good way to get rid of some dog turds too. probably not all or even half of it but the dried stuff i could throw in i would think. Some blog i came across the gal said chicken poop works best.

I was about to ask if you have dogs...

Here's the problem - that stuff stinks and your dogs will do what they can to root in/near your trough. Everytime I go to the in-laws, I have to watch my idiot mongrels because I know they'll bury their heads in that mulch pile. Then they come in absolutely smelling like ass.

If you do it, make sure you're able to stay on top of it because it piles up in a hurry. It takes up a bunch of space and doesn't rot away as quickly as you'd think. Everyone I know that has tried it gave up on it after a year or so (save my in-laws), but good luck to you.

[MOhillbilly]

mines cinder blocks maybe 8x6. i just throw shit into it. When you need it fork the shit out and use it.
My grandpa ran two massive compost piles. One for this years & one for lastyears. I always hid the adults easter baskets in them.

KISS.

[MOhillbilly]

Brass Tacs.

Anyone know anything about compost tea? Ive seen a few deals on it and know we talked about it lastyear. But when i was over a Groves and he was pushin maple sap outta his drum with a poolpump it sparked that part of my brain.

Ive heard nothing but great things. Any hands on experince?

[Buehler445]

You are in shit heaven in Scott. Just use cattle manure and you will be growing some amazing vegetables.


My parents built a garden where we used to have our cattle pens and their "crop" turned out like something you would see in the Guiness Book of World Records.

I use composted cow manure. You don't want to use the fresh shit or it will smoke off all of your crops. It's hot as hell.

[MOhillbilly]

manure breakdown.

http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/horticulture/M1192.html

[NewChief]

Brass Tacs.

Anyone know anything about compost tea? Ive seen a few deals on it and know we talked about it lastyear. But when i was over a Groves and he was pushin maple sap outta his drum with a poolpump it sparked that part of my brain.

Ive heard nothing but great things. Any hands on experince?

Supposedly the tea made from vermiculture composting is insane.

[MOhillbilly]

worm beds are pretty simple. They use composted worm dirt and then aerate the mix?

[NewChief]

worm beds are pretty simple. They use composted worm dirt and then aerate the mix?

The setups I've seen are for the indoors and you have to be careful what you put in them (raw vegetable/fruit scraps only, nothing cooked with oil). They compost super fast and it's supposedly crazy nutrient rich.
http://www.indoorcompost.com/worm-bin/

[MOhillbilly]

we dug a square hole,put garden net at the bottom, lined it with cinder blocks, & put a lid on it. maybe 4x4x4. We used red wigglers and african night crawlers. Lots of leaves, semi green manure, fruit,vegi, & coffee ground.

You can still see it at the house in town....20 years later.

I understand how they aerate the (compost) to livin up the good microbes(kinda). Im hearing tenmillion diffirent approaches on how to 'boil' the tea. You have to have a special bags, special stuff for the microbes to eat, high powered aeraters ect.

Ive seen guys use garden hoses with holes cut in em & 55 plastic drums with harbor freight air pumps. They say it works, others say you have to generate super fine air bubble to get the microbes to eat right and take off.

Everyone i know looks at me like im retarded when i bring it up. Ive seen some very fascinating studies that relate to plant growth and root depth.

[MOhillbilly]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shIBFdGBGfo

compost tea how to vid.

Guy has some great tricks & puts out a sick patch of greens. Knows his shit.

[booger]

this.

we don't put dog shit in it though. my dog goes across the road and pinches.

i'm sure mo can set you up w/the info to get it started though. good luck
sec

i'm tempted to look into on of them redworm boxes for composting. A few sites i have looked up say some people have good luck with them composting the dog shit too. Plus i fish so i could get the worms fat and use em for bait. As long as the fish like worms that eat dog shit it could be a good thing.

LMAO

[booger]

I was about to ask if you have dogs...

Here's the problem - that stuff stinks and your dogs will do what they can to root in/near your trough. Everytime I go to the in-laws, I have to watch my idiot mongrels because I know they'll bury their heads in that mulch pile. Then they come in absolutely smelling like ass.

If you do it, make sure you're able to stay on top of it because it piles up in a hurry. It takes up a bunch of space and doesn't rot away as quickly as you'd think. Everyone I know that has tried it gave up on it after a year or so (save my in-laws), but good luck to you.

Thanks man. I'm thinking now with the info from everyone i will do a barrel type rotating tumbler of some size, i don't know which yet for the garden compost.

then this video seemed like a good idea for a part of my yard that slopes away from my garage/shop. Plus i would have all materials on hand to make it which is a major plus and would just have to pick up some river rock or swipe a bucket of gravel off a gravel road.

Either this one or the one Sac mentioned earlier in the thread. Nothing fancy as the harsh winters and ground freezes if it cracks the material after a couple years i'm only out a bucket.

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[booger]

If you want to do it as a hobby/feel good thing then go for it. I built an 8x12 greenhouse last fall and bought a full 8' pickup bed full (2 cubic yards) of compost for around $25-30 at a landscaping type place and there is no way to make it for that kind of price.

I figured as much. I'll either get a smaller size tumbler just for myself or a bigger one in case i get some interest locally if anyone uses it. Kind of a scratch my back i'll scratch yours neighborly type of thing. Central Iowa and Iowa in general has really good soil already so i'm not sure there would be a ton of interest.

thanks

[booger]

this guy has an interesting method for the dog crap turning it into liquid compost over a weeks time. Not for the veggie gardens but could help out someone who is into more ornamental type stuff and supposedly improving soil quality which he shows at the end of video 4.
part 1
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part 2
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part 3
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part 4
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[booger]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shIBFdGBGfo

compost tea how to vid.

Guy has some great tricks & puts out a sick patch of greens. Knows his shit.

that sure looks like it's worth a try. I got an air pump, air tubing, and air stones from a minnow/chub bait tank that isn't set up right now.