Compost Tumblers For Sale

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If your attempts at composting seem to take forever to break down to a useable product, try building your next compost heap with straw bale. Remember to get organic straw bales if you have an organic garden.

The idea is to use bales of (organic) straw as the external structure of your compost heap – it will hold your composting ingredients. The straw bales allow air to flow through your heap and because they are organic material themselves they contribute to the heating up process of the heap. Eventually you can use them as ingredients in a future compost heap.Step – by – Step

1. Wheat or pea straw are the best types of bales for composting. Start by building one compost pile, then if you have the space you can create a row of composting “bins”. Build the structure two bales high, with three sides, covering your joins with the second row for strength. Leave the front section open and have the working area about 1.5m square.

2. Layer organic materials directly on the bare soil base. Build with alternate layers of nitrogen rich materials such as animal manures, grass clippings, comfrey or yarrow and high carbon materials such as kitchen scraps, straw, shredded paper etc.

3. To allow better air flow you need to place a pvc pipe into the middle of your heap, on an angle as you build. Your heap will start to compact with the breaking down process. You can jiggle the pipe every week or two, to let in more air, then remove it after about four weeks.

4. Continue layering ingredients around the pipe. Make sure you water each layer (unless it is really wet already) as you go to help speed up the composting process. Always include as much variety of ingredients as possible for an excellent final product, including generous amounts of animal manures.

5. When your layers have reached the top of your straw bale structure, cover the whole thing with biscuits (small sections of a bale) of straw. This will further help retain heap which give you a fast-burning heap. Give it another good watering.

6. To generate more heat enclose the front of your structure with more bales. Water twice a week during dry or windy weather. When the ingredients start to collapse (about four weeks) you can remove the pipe.

You can quickly create compost that will enrich your soil, improving the health and vigour of you plants.

Good luck!

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Compost is good for the garden and great for the environment. When kitchen scraps end up in landfills, they give off methane gas, which is bad for the environment. When used in the garden, compost adds nutrients to the soil that your plants need to be as healthy as possible. Unfortunately, it will probably not give them everything they need, so you will need to augment your compost with organic fertilizer such as fish emulsion or kelp that can be found at your garden store.

Buying or Building a Compost Bin

If you are handy and like to build things, you may want to build your own compost bin. There are probably some fine plans for building a bin like this online. Otherwise, buying a compost bin such as the Earth Machine, which is what I have, will work great, too. Some cities actually provide free compost bins to residents because it helps cut down on the amount of trash that goes into landfills. The location that you choose for your compost bin may have an impact on how fast your compost happens. Compost will generally happen faster in a sunnier location.

Getting Your Compost On!

Once you get your compost bin set up, you can either follow the directions that come with the bin if you purchased one, or start with 4 to 6 inches of “brown” material, such as dead leaves or straw. Then you can begin incorporating “green material” in the form of kitchen scraps such as eggshells, fruit and vegetable scraps, rice, pasta, teabags, coffee grounds, and houseplant cuttings. Do not put meat, bones, or other animal parts into your compost pile. Also, do not put any diseased plant matter from your backyard into the pile. Whenever you add green material to the pile, be sure to add some brown material and give the pile a stir to incorporate the additions into the pile.

Turning the Pile

To insure that your compost is running at maximum efficiency, you will want to turn the pile frequently. How often you turn your pile depends on how fast you want to produce compost for your garden. Some people turn the pile every 7 to 10 days, while some turn it once a month. Figure out what is best for you and plan accordingly. Turning the pile more frequently will produce faster results. Also, if the compost pile is dry, you should add some water to moisten it. If it seems overly wet, try to increase ventilation to dry it. The Earth Machine has a lid with ventilation control that allows you to control airflow to interior of the compost bin.

Compost Tea & Compost Starter

You can find recipes for a compost activating tea online or buy a compost starter at your local garden store that will activate your compost pile faster.

Using Compost

Once you have created your compost, you can either dig it into your garden soil if you are doing a fresh planting, or spread it on top of the soil around your plants. This will benefit your soil and your plants.

Even if you do not use the compost in your garden, you will be doing a service to the environment by putting less garbage in the form of food scraps into the landfills. Your compost pile will keep breaking down even if you do not remove the compost for garden use, so you don’t need to worry about it filling up.

Good luck!

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Compost is part of a solution to our current state of pollution. I choose to grow organically because I do not wish to introduce synthetic chemicals into the food, air and water supply. The process of making compost is a sensible alternative to the commercial petroleum based synthetic 10-20-10 fertilizers. Compost builds the health of soil and provides nutrients for plant growth.

Our landfills are overflowing with organic materials that could have been recycled as compost. By creating a compost system we reduce our needs for more landfills and municipal services locally. On a global level, composting is a method to reduce our dependence on distant sources of oil.

There are many possible recipes for making compost. It is similar to creating a soup of leftovers, an artistic expression of organic degradation. The process involves recycling anything that is organic (once living) into a form that serves as plant food. The household is the best source of materials, obviously toxics should be avoided.

The following is a list of possible ingredients; grass clippings, kitchen waste, wood ashes, weeds, leaves, garden residue, pet and human hair, shredded paper, twigs and wood chips, and animal manures.

Here are some exceptions and considerations. Dog, cat and human manure should be treated separately considering disease pathogens. Garden residue should be avoided if pesticides or herbicides had been applied, or if the plants were diseased. Kitchen waste that includes meat must be treated carefully to avoid odor and local scavengers.
The site location and the mixing of the proper ratio of ingredients determines a successful compost pile. Sites should be accessible, convenient to dump the daily kitchen waste. Depending on the scale of the system, it may be appropriate to plan for tractor and trailer to transport material to build the pile. A common system is the three pile method.

Compost piles can be contained by fencing, this allows the pile to be built vertically and provides air ventilation. The size of the pile is determined by the ability to turn the quantity of material. The freshest material is layered into the first pile. Oxygen, water and biologic factors begin to degrade the material. This process generates heat, this heat spurs microbial activity and kills weed seeds and disease pathogens.
After a period of time, dependent on the type of materials and the ambient temperature, the compost is turned into the second pile. In the second pile the biologic activity builds until a point where it stabilizes and becomes useful for plants. At this point the compost is stored ready for usage in the third pile.

The proper ratio of raw ingredients and water determines the compost process. The ratio of Carbon to Nitrogen is crucial. A ratio of 30:1 is ideal for compost. Materials high in nitrogen like manure and kitchen scraps need a lot of leaves and wood chips to achieve a proper balance. Otherwise, the bacteria are over-stimulated by the available nitrogen, over multiply, and die before they decompose the high carbon material. A properly balanced chemistry is required.
Likewise the right amount of water is essential. A wet pile becomes a stinky anaerobic mess that is difficult to turn, dryness also prevents decomposition. The ideal is damp but not over saturated.

Finished compost material is not recognizable as what it was. Properly prepared, compost is a stable, odorless plant food. We can nourish crops by building the life of the soil. Compost is the alternative to petroleum based synthetic fertilizers that pollute food and water. Households, restaurants, schools, and municipalities can use the simple science of compost to more efficiently use resources.

Josh Trought is a member of the Pemigewasset chapter of the Audubon Society of New Hampshire. He lives, works and practices organic farming at D Acres Organic Farm & Educational Homestead www.dacres.org.

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It seems that most organic gardeners love the idea of making their own compost, but some gardeners have trouble making it really happen. Don’t give up! There are ways to give your compost heap a boost and get it heating up again – creating beautiful, nutritious humus for your veggie garden.

OK, so after six months your ‘compost’ has remained unchanged from it’s original state? Remember there are certain conditions your heap needs to be able to actively turn it’s ingredients into compost. They are air and moisture. Here are some things you can try.

1. Turn your heap over, exposing it to air, watering if dry.

2. If your heap dries out it will stop breaking down. Water the heap every few days in summer if conditions are hot and dry.

3. Add ingredients that are as small as possible. Use a shredder, mulcher or lawn mower to chop up larger ingredients such as prunings and larger leaves.

4. To speed up the composting process add lots of nitrogen-rich ingredients such as clover, manure laden straws, herbal activators (see below), washed sea-weed or fishmeal.Herbal Compost Activators – some herbs are well known as particularly impressive compost activators. Add them to your heap to speed up your results.Comfrey (Symphytum officinale) is rich in calcium, nitrogen, phosphates and potassium. It has large hairy leaves that break down very quickly.Dandelion (Taraxacum sp) also accelerates the breaking down of materials in the heap. It is rich in copper, potash and iron, all valuable goodies in your compost.Valerian (Valeriana officinalis) has a reputation for attracting earthworms to the compost heap. It’s leaves are also rich in minerals.Yarrow (Achillea sp) can have the most dramatic effect in your heap, even in small amounts. It will enrich your compost with nitrates, potash, phosphares and copper, so is a very valuable addition.Tansy (Tanacetum vulgare) has the ability to concentrate potassium from the soil where it grows. Adding Tansy to your compost means adding potassium.

If you have the room, it’s best to have two or more compost piles on the go. One that you are preparing by gathering materials, one that is semi-matured and one that has already turned into that gorgeous, black, earthy plant tonic – ready to use.

One more tip is to make sure air can get to the middle of your heap, especially if you don’t plan to turn it often. Place garden stakes or pvc pipes through the middle of your heap so that you can ‘jiggle’ them every few weeks allowing air to the centre.

Try some of these tips and I’m sure you will speed things up for your compost heap and you will be topdressing your veggies with your own compost in no time.

Good luck!

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The amount of trash that we generate is a big concern among Americans today. One solution that seems to be catching on is composting at home. Some people report reducing the amount of trash that they produce to less than half of what it was before. The biggest reduction in trash is seen when yard clippings and leaves are composted instead of disposed of in plastic yard bags.

You can easily start composting in your own yard without very much effort or cost. Most people choose to build their own composting container as opposed to spending a lot of money on a manufactured one. There are a few basic things to keep in mind when you are building your compost container.

First, there needs to be circulation. Air needs to be able to reach all levels of the compost heap in order for decomposition to take place. Some people drill holes in the sides of a bottomless trash can to create a quick and easy compost container. Wooden slats are popular as well. Space boards about an inch apart to allow air to enter. This helps control fungus and other problems. Chicken wire can also be used.

The second thing to think about is humidity and moisture. The compost needs to stay moist to decompose. Making you compost heap tall is one way to ensure that it does not completely dry out. Five or six feet tall is about right for a home compost bin. As food scraps, yard clippings and other organics decompose, they will create heat. The ventilation will help keep the heap a little cooler. If you put your compost bin in a shady location, that will help keep the temperature down as well.

You do not want your compost bin to create odors, attract insects or other pests. So, keep a few things in mind as you compost. Do not put meat or fats into your compost heap as they can attract rodents, raccoons and possums. When you put grass clippings in, mix them around with other layers or leaves because moisture is easily trapped in wet grass and it can smell. If you are adding food, like vegetables, egg shells, coffee grounds and bread, bury them under a layer of yard waste to keep insects from being attracted to the pile. Only add manure from farm animals, not dogs or cats.

Adding manure helps keep the nitrogen content of the pile high enough to encourage decomposition. Do not put in a lot of acidic waste at once, like pine needles, or the nitrogen content will be affected. Basically, you need a balance of green and brown waste to maintain a healthy compost bin. Greens include grass, vegetables, fruits, coffee and tea grounds. Browns consist of egg shells, cardboard (shredded), dry leaves, fireplace ashes and dryer lint.

The moisture balance in your compost bin is very important. If it dries out, nothing will happen. If it gets too wet, it will create odors, molds and fungi. Keep a hose reel close by for occasional watering and keep a lid on top to avoid the bin becoming too saturated by rain. Your compost will help you create a cleaner environment and give you plenty of healthy compost to use in your garden and landscaping.

Good luck!