Dave, my bet is that anything organic (previously dead) would be great. Can you post picture? I am not exactly in cotton country, but I know a garden center that has it hauled in and calls a pretty price for it. If its "nutrient value is eight times that of manure," I wonder if that means it can be over applied?
Heya Steve- I just commited the worst crime a minute ago- I planted a bareroot tree (shhhhh) in heavily-amended soil! soil two feet deep and 50% organic. Let's call it an academic experiment, eh?
Dung, Doo Doo, and Dirt
Kenton
i think bare rooting a tree is ok this time of yr. Not in the summer though, or are you just being naughty. LOL
yeah yeah yeah big 10 ,march madness , we'll eat those golden goffers yet
No i m just rottilling twice a yr , havea compost pile all finished up to add in the garden we have snow right now, when will it end!!!!!, my DH is biting at the lip to get in on his skid steer. LOL
was it your dog that was stitched up steve ? how he doing, ? aaaah morphime buzzzzzzz
kento can you add newspaper to compost ? i m out of brown material getting tired of searching our local yocals and raking up there lawns and i remember newspaper can do it.?
what kind of tree did you plant kenton? i have a bunch of trees you can have lol, the woman who lived here before us was a master gardener and a bit on the quirky side, planted 35 trees , all in a row like a big square !!!! around the house, uuhhg we are yanking them out, to hard to mow around, her landscaper actually quite!!!! because she had to many trees lololol
sue
I throw my newspaper in the bin every day, it rots, nothing has complained.
Planting a tree in heavily amended soil? Done it. Depends on type of tree, your soil, what you do to surrounding area on an ongoing basis, etc. I hate "hard & fast" rules, they don't work in every situation. Whatever happened to common sense?
Well done Kenton. We boldly go where no one dares in every event of planting in our scurrulous ways. don't forget to amend out 50'. LOL
Sue: I always shred my newprint to get it to fork in the pile easier when I turn it. Don't use the glossy stuff. No I was sewing up a dog for a client, I'm a veterinarian. She went home 2 days ago doing great. But quite sore. Also go to farms that have pit silos and you will find black gold just waiting to be picked up. I know you have those there. Hey take your husband and his bobcat.
Hi K.James! Here is a pic of cotton burr compost.This brand is Gardener's Secret and the brand making the claim of "eight times that of manure" is Garden Heights Pick Products.The price per bag is $3.49,less by the pallet.......Dave
Mmmm. Course material. Looks perfect.
Sheddednewspaper is worth quite a load of carbon.
It was a Laburnum x watereri 'Vossii'
Does newspaper need to be shredded?
I think it should if you turn your compost sandy it is much easier to do if the paper is shredded. Also it is easier for my worms to wrap around and hug. I like shredding paper every piece has the name of something I need to turn over to the Lord and get rid of. Take that selfishness, greed, anger, .......
What a wonderful way to put that. Thanks! I would have never thought of that and there is alot I need to turn over. I can work on alot of things while cleaning up compost I can clean myself up.
I need to go out and start doing some things in my yard. Does anyone use preen and does it work? I have alot of weeds sprouting and with my back the way it is I can't keep up. Once I can get the much down I should be able to do better. Otherwise I will just call them wild flowers
and leave it at that. LOL
I always start my grass weeds with weed and feed in june here. Now I hardly have any so I spot spray grasses with weed be gone after it gets warmer. I pull any emergent weed or use "the tool" a hand held spade and fork and I can get anything. After doing this for a month all my weeds are gone. The lawn shows a few and like paul James, I keep a few just to eat with my polish sausage. Dandelion wine, and greens are delicious. This is where weed types are so much fun I choose which weed-personal challenge and everytime I pull one IE Russian thistle = My abrasive nature is chopped off by the holy spirit with each pull. It is so visual I know I have been renewed in my mind. Dadelions = Impatience Etc.
...And plant a seed of new life...
ok so i have no idea what you just said Steve, LOL,
Kenton how is your compost doing, i need to water mine a bit ,get it moving.aye. How is that tree comming along. we have a guy down the road from us and he planted a bunch of pines, they are all dead, he planted in straight row anyway, what was he thinking? They just sit there all brown and the wind tilted them over, i wonder if there is hope for them , it would have looked nice, i don';t think he waterd them enough.
How about you steve how is your compost, you have mentioned pit silos and the black gold. what is that actually ? remeber i m a city girl, new to the counrty life, i think i know what a silo looks like LOL
best wishes
sue
I wonder if Steve is on his way home thesedays.
While weeding, I have tried Lambsquarters, which certainly don't taste edible...
The Laburnum tree seems to be staked well enough for the wind not to have moved it and damaged it. (the roots must stay still to grow, obviously)
Evergreens are very very very very touchy about winter watering. Serves him right, but not the poor trees. I have to tell a gardenign client tomorrow that she's killed her bazillion-dollar fancy (ugly, tawdry and tacky to boot ) spiral junipers in pots from forgetting to winter water. I think the bijillion pansies I planted for her last fall went the same way. She thinks mulch looks messy. Too bad, eh?
I have not had the good time to compost, and only today did I water it (since several months). I regret not having kept it going over winter. I've been making compost pits for my kitchen scraps (at least 12" deep and 6" wide) just because it's easy and attracts worms. I definitely regret it, because now that I've taken care of some things, I need to finish a big amendment project, (which needs compost) and have run out of some nice stuff I had to use for new plantings.
Well, City Gal Sue, what is making you tick in your garden? Anything blooming yet?
Kenton
daylillies, daffodils, and some other assorted bulbs i have no clue as to what they are. I did have to dig up a old flower bed and move it all to a new location, so i don;t know if most will flower this yr., but next yr should be grand.
i have done the same just dug holes and blooped a pumkin here and there and maybe a squash form leftover thanksgiving and halloween.
i guess you neighbor thinks weeds don't look messy aye? LOL or dried up plants?LOL
wow i didn't know that a plant can cost a bizzilian, bijillion dollars ?LOL aye
this week we are relandscaping our yard, to many trees in straight lines, can't mow around them .They arn'te really trees anyway, just tall shrubs and some small pines, that our neighbor said she wanted. the previous owner said it was a wind break, it is a dwarf variey shrub?!!! how can you make a wind break out of that?? the otherside is taller pines she said were for privacy, well what privacy? they are 8 ft apart from one another? again a dwarf variety and on only one side of the yard? we did learn to find out that she is a quirky type woman,( a bit off balance) so we have some sympothy for her gardening skills, but who am i ? i dont even know what a silo looks like ahahahahaha,started some peppers , but having trouble with keeping them warm on the bottom ,can't seem to find my heat pad,HHMMm
I do hope my one tree a willow is still alive.
sue
Sue, if your grow light (if you use a grow light) is flat on top, that's a fine source of bottom heat. Put the flat on it. Or on the fridge, if the top of that is warm. After sprouting, I don't bother any more.
Hey maybe one of you guys can help me out here..My problem is I started a compost bin and 11 bags of crushed leaves..How do I get this stuff to start cooking..My friends daughter brought me a carbage can of horse manure..She said it's about a few months old looks fresh to me...I told her I wanted alfalfa meal...She brought me what looks like a bail of green straw,I have no idea what to do with this mess I got going on...I live in a city so got to be neighbor friendly,it does'nt smell yet but I'm afraid once in warms up it will really start stinking...All winter I have been getting coffee grounds from Starbucks..Added that to it.plus blood and bone meal still looks like its a pile of frozen leaves on a coffee break.With all the money I have have spent to get this thing to start cooking I could have had a semi load of black gold delivered,less the head ache....Please Help Me Out Here...TIA...
Loretta..
Wow. The bloodmeal should provide the needed Nitrogen for the massively carbon leaves. Coffee grounds are great, too. Horse manure is worth a bit of nitrogen, but not enought to balance 11 bags o' leaves. If you think you have the right stuff, and it is not going because it is too cold, water it a time or two with boiling water to penetrate teh middle. Somtimes this warms it up long enough for things to kick in.
The key is the carbon to nitrogen ratio, "google" that.
Best of luck,
K. James
ok so i know this is a poo poo thread but .....
Hey Zeppy my light are flouresent residential t8 bulbs, i don't feel much heat ? do i have the wrong light? checked my fridge, no heat on top,:( i really am stressed i can't find my heat pad anyewere, i used my dryer last yr, 3 kids and a DH always doing laundry LOL
Demstat are you layering your pile? are the leaves shredded? comfrey herb plant heats it up alot, i cheat somethimes and use a starter from Garden Supply, jumps it cooking in no time, all natrural , no chemicals in the starter, about 9.95 a bag i think? just go to Garden Supply Co.com
I think layering is key also , don't you think Kenton?
sue
ok so i know this is a poo poo thread but .....
Hey Zeppy my light are flouresent residential t8 bulbs, 32 watt ea. i don't feel much heat ? do i have the wrong light? i think i need 40 ea, but i didn't see any at the store..
Checked my fridge, no heat on top,:( i really am stressed i can't find my heat pad anyewere, i used my dryer last yr, 3 kids and a DH always doing laundry LOL
Demstat are you layering your pile? are the leaves shredded? comfrey herb plant heats it up alot, i cheat somethimes and use a starter from Garden Supply, jumps it cooking in no time, all natrural , no chemicals in the starter, about 9.95 a bag i think? just go to Garden Supply Co.com
I think layering is key also , don't you think Kenton?
sue
Hi Sue... I have the leaves shreded and have it layered and still nothing I'm gonna try the hot water,see if that helps..Now what can I do with my green straw that I thought was gonna be alfalfa pellets?Any and all advice will make me happy...TIA..
Loretta...
I m sure you can use it in your pile, i use regular straw.
Have you googled it yet?
This sounds like a job for Soferdig dah, dah ,daaaaaaaaaah.LOL:)
Here is what i do
i have a compost bin, layer
green material
brown material
scraps ( veg,fruit,coffee, ect)
straw
water to damp sponge consistency
poke some holes in and out with a aerator for air ( broomstick might work )
the key is damp, layers, ratio and areration when you see worms then you know your on your way, if it is goopy, no good to wet add some newspaper
or you cheat like i do somethimes and get the starter from Garden Supply mewhahahha
hope it helps
ps sent out your tubers today:)
sue
Thanks Sue..I think I'm gonna cheat too been putting boiling water on my compost and it just steamed it up for a minute and that was all..My friends hubby came over and now my bags are down to 4...I guess I did'nt have them chopped good enough what did'nt fit back in the bags he added to my compost pile...He spread out my green straw and really did'nt want him to do that..I sure have a mess going here..
D-mail me as to what I owe you on shipping...TIA..
Loretta..
Sue, I use the thinnest layers possible. It is easist to mix this way; the concept is getting maximum contact between the green and brown stuffs.
Loretta, I feel terrible that we cannot physically see what ills you are dealing with so as to fix them. It may just be too cold, (and too small an area to keep heat in. It is said that 3' by 3' by 3' is about what you need; I agree.) Heat (thermophilic bacteria) is what is needed for fast compost. Otherwise, it is slow but sure.
Perhaps it is getting matted and air cannot get in?
When I get fed up with a particular pile (I can't be around to manage it properly, it's too small, too course, et cetera) I bury the sucker and mix it with soil, about 50/50. Usually, 6 months will make anything disappear, and I've used the resulting compost-topsoil (in what used to be a hole) to build beds later.
In fact, I ought to go water my big pile... Have a cuppa cha on the way...
I'm out of ideas,
Kenton
When shoudl we be expecting Steve?
Thanks Kenton..Now what can you suggest to do with my bale of green straw..I wanted alfala pellets and she brought me that darn bale of straw...I thought this would be easy,and it's not..!!
Loretta..
To correct my spelling...
This message was edited Mar 29, 2006 2:53 PM
Put a tomato seedling in it. Or a zucchini plant. :)
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/584625/
Or compost it. Or mulch for the veg garden.
"Where, oh Where, is out little steve gone", LOL hahahaha, is he back from Alaska yet? Kenton.
Yeah sorry your compost is not working for you, last yr i has a pile that just didnt want to heat no matter what i did,it became goopy , mush, so i just dug a hole and plopped it in my garden when i was all done for the season,c
can you send a pic Loretta? maybe that would help us see your delima.? is it in a container or just a pile in dirt area ? If you go to the original thread "The key is in the Dung" started by our beloved JamesCo, you can see some of our pics of compost areas. maybe that can help you?
let us know
sue
I don't have a camera and I've read all of this twice..I have one in a huge garbage can,and we emptied all the bags today...There's some worms in there so something good must be happening,but I just can't see it..My friends hubby was here to help and we put more bloodmeal in it.
I think I might just do what you did Sue and bury it behind my garage..This is not fun...I have plenty of Dung thats for sure...I think I'll read it once more and see if anything sinks in this brain of mine...Thanks for all your help...
Loretta...
Sa, does it stink? It's in a garbage can? (If things don't soak in to my brain, ignore it and play along- this week is mad)
If you are composting in a garbage can, I say "anaerobia." It needs oxygen. Worms are good.
A bit of rain here today, hope some of it waters the compost- since I'm not....
Maybe Steve's wife said "enough is enough" and threw the computer out of one of thier fine windows?
Kenton
Lurker here........Steve went to Mexico for a week or so.
Thanks, Lilypon.
Hey, he should have told us, the bone head. (or did he?) We should demand pictures when he returns!
"El Abono- En Estilo mexicano" por Steve Soferdig.
LOLOL re: pics.... I'm pretty sure he will be more than happy to oblige. ;)
It's a huge garbage can that has holes in the bottom and sides made for composting..I've been putting hot water on it all day...We have a heat wave here it's 51 out so maybe once the weather warms up it will start cooking..It does'nt stink yet but thats what I'm afraid it will do..I will never try this again ..I live in a city and my neighbors are really close by and I sure don't want them complaining..Thanks for your help live and learn I guess...
Loretta..
Ah.
A little clarity barges into my scattered mind.
Stop watering. You need moist, not wet. I doubt it's drying out that much during the day
Put it in the sun if it isn't there already.
You may need more holes.
I think it is too small to trap enough heat to go very fast right now (or get use out of the hot water).
Once it warms a bit, put that thing on its side and roll it around a bit. Give it a jostle. Give the kids something to do.
Sorry I didn't think clearly to start,
K
Gee i wish i had steves life ! :) Alaska than Mexico, what next the Bahammas? Lets hope he didn't forget her in Alaska LOL and had to go back LOL:)
Loretta it is good it doesn't stink, that is a good sign i do think the hot water is not going to help you at all? just give you stronger arms,:)
Steve is a picture happy kind of guy, which is good for me ,cuz i have no life AHAHAHa , i have to rely on other people for interesting stuff.
I feel so left out he didn't tell us Kenton? :(
Looked at my compost today, looks ok, good moisture, layers are building up, worms are wiggly and no odor . Lets hope it works this time aye?
Still planting some seeds put up another light on my stand , have room for more yeah!!! can't get enough seeds wha whoooo.," somebody stop me"! "Oh yeah , my DH will" :(. Apparently i have been giving an allowence LOL" because last yr "well" it was crazy.
sue
James, I guess if you pour boiling water on your compost pile to warm it up and get it started you don't have worms working in your not finished compost. I do have worms at least some of the time in my compost and I would be afraid to pour boil.ing water on it. The fellow who works for me , the heavy stuff that I can't do because of angina, shreds almost everything that we prune out of the trees and the old weeds, etc. The stuff that he shredded last fall, that I call shreds, was just piled near the compost piles. Now this spring he is spreading it on the top of my three raised beds and in a small area where I plant annuals. The shreds pile was full of worms, so I didn't want to use the Mantis until the worms had time to go down into the soil. Don's use the Mantis in the raised beds, so no problem there.
DonnaS
I only use the boiling water to start a pile that is big, right ingredients, but too cold to start itself in the winter. Starter fluid, I guess.
The thermophilic (hot) method will toast worms. Usually, any worms evacuate and wait until it cools off to finish the job.
This time of year though, It ought to heat up by itself, sorry for the silly info, School is stealing my brains and not giving it back.
Donna, the weeds that get shedded do not have seeds, I take it? Sounds like an unsurpassable method for topdressing a raised bed.
If there are worms, there shouldn't need to be a tiller (in that area). I think of worms as nature's Tillers. One downside to tilling. I used to overtill and all, but these days, with time of the essence (and worms more essential) I use a turning fork.
Oh, Steve, you goofball.
This thread needs pictures:
Here is what soil amendment does for plants. The area would erode pretty badly and dry out on 24 hours if there was not a mulch of broken willow twigs. My neighbour has a gargantuan weed of a tree that drops twigs continually. Every time I am outside, I take a handful or two and break them down. They tend to trap the finer leaf litter that gets eaten by worms and so goes the process, since it is not a good idea to dig around a tree. (lesson learned there, too)
K. James
