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nafex - Re: [nafex] composting

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  • From: Ed Mashburn <ribes60@currants.com>
  • To: nafex@egroups.com
  • Subject: Re: [nafex] composting
  • Date: Wed, 20 Dec 2000 11:07:35 -0500

At 08:37 AM 12/20/00 -0500, you wrote:
> Keith: You must have mulched these leaves along with lawn clippings eh?
>Usually takes years to get stand alone leaves in a pile to do anything
>except become wet and a forage for worms along the bottom or merely a
>component for a good composting mix. If your outside temp is 0 and you can
>see steam eminating from your pile turn, turn, turn the pile. This will
>cook it and break it down, cook any weed seed and give you a wonderful
>medium when done. Donna and I are great believers in compost tea. I line
>my compost pit with a double layer of 6 mil plastic set on top of concrete
>pads and tipped at a pitch towards the front to one corner. reclaim the
>solution and then store it up in a big covered barrel on hand when needed
>and use this as a fertilizer throughout the season. I might add kitchen
>waste to the "hot pile" now as well. Egg shells, coffee grinds etc as
>you've got a very valuable situation in that it's cooking and able to
>consume almost anything added, keep turning every few days or so....
>Happy Holidays! Gianni

I have been following this thread for a while and now have to get in. I am
in a small town (Boro) in PA and the township brings me all the leaves that
they collect in the fall. This amounts to about 70 truckloads, so is quite
a pile. I have no way to turn the pile as it is as large as a three car
garage. I do try to flatten the top and let the pile sit over the winter
and collect rain and snow. I find that there are places in the pile that
decompose very well and others that remain completely dry. I use the pile
that has "rested" over the winter and start a new pile and let it "rest"
for a year.

This has worked very well for me and the township. They are happy to have a
place to dump leaves (PA forbids that they put them in a landfill) Lasy
year they came out with a large front end loader and "repiled" the leaves
for me (that is almost like turning them). I use these leaves on the rows
of gooseberries and currants to provide mulch, conserve moisture, and to
provide some nutriants. Just seams like a "win/win" situation to me



Northumberland BerryWorks
707 Front Street
Northumberland, PA 17857
Phone: (570) 473-9910
WWW.currants.com
Ed@currants.com

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