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Chronological Thread  
  • From: orchardist@hotmail.com
  • To: nafex@egroups.com
  • Subject: [nafex] Re: composting
  • Date: Thu, 21 Dec 2000 05:31:59 -0000

Hello Compositors,

There's black gold in them their leaves. When I `m from
there are a couple composting companies that get leaves from all over
the county and they are making a fortune composting and selling the
finished product.
I when to a composting class that was presented by the county
Master Gardeners. Here's what I remembered. To keep a compost pile
active you must have four things in place, carbon, nitrogen, moisture
and oxygen. Carbon can be anything that has you have grown in your
back yard and has died. It could be fallen leaves, dry grass, or any
other plant material in your yard that is brown. The Plant material
should be as small as you can get it. Some folks own a chipper-
shredder to reduce the size of their compost materials. They work
great but not necessary. I use my lawn mower and it works just as
well as a chipper-shredder. Nitrogen is needed to spark up the pile
and makes it heat up. Any green material fills the bill for
nitrogen. Grass, freshly pulled weeds and other green plant material
works as nitrogen source. Manure's will work also work to heat up
the pile, but DO NOT PUT DOG OR CAT WASTE IN YOUR PILE. Moisture is
also required so the microorganisms in the pile can help break down
the waste. The pile should be as wet as a sponge that had the water
squeezed out of it. A pile that is to wet will not stay hot enough
to breakdown the material in the pile. Oxygen or air in the pile
also is required to help keep the pile active and at the right
moisture content. Constant turning of the pile will aerate the pile
to help keep the moisture down during the winter months when there is
a lot of rain. The pile should be covered to protect it from snow
and rain. A ratio of 3 to 1(3 carbon to 1 nitrogen) with frequent
turning at the correct moisture is required to maintain an active
pile. You will see a lot of little critters in your pile too.
Slugs, sow bugs, thousand leggers, and a few others will actively
help reduce the pile. Don't put dairy products or meats in the
pile. If you add food scraps, bury them in the middle of the pile.
This way the animals won't be able to smell them. If you pile starts
to smell, you need to turn it to add more oxygen.
Don't forget, Keep those piles turned. Mike – WA.


--- In nafex@egroups.com, Tom Olenio <tolenio@s...> wrote:
> Hi,
>
> Moving the leaves with a front end loader is turning them. But I
think you need
> to do it at least once a month to make a lot of progress and speed
decompostion.
>
> I think if you added layers of old compost, to layers of new
leaves, you would
> speed up the process. This would make it into a large sandwich of
sorts, with
> different layers. Just save a pile of leave compost from the
previous year to
> use as a "starter" for the next years leaves.
>
> You might want to make a few piles, and shift them around if you
have the
> space.
>
> Wish I had that kind of space.
>
> Regards,
> Tom
>
> Ed Mashburn wrote:
>
> > 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@c...
> >
>
> --
> Thomas Olenio
> Ontario, Canada
> Hardiness Zone 6a


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