Composters???

I am looking for a really good, fast composter, one I won't have to do much with to get good rich compost from my yard clippings. Is that possible? I am not asking to much am I? I have never composted and am at a loss. I don't have much time, (I guess about the same amount of time you have). I must be getting lazy in my old age and want things 'simple'. (Any one else with me on that?) I think I may purchase a shreader and put everything through it before I compost it. Any way, If anyone has had good success or any ideas for me I would appreciate it. My pile of composting material is getting a little out of hand, and I am sure it would rather be on my garden or at the bottom of my flower pots.
(Oh, I forgot, not really expensive either.) HaHa

Marie

MyRee, I think you have the right idea about a shredder. There are recent posts in the Soil and Gardening forum that make it clear (to me anyway) that a shredder is a lot more useful than a store-bought composter. All you need is a space on the ground, and something to keep the pile from blowing away. Take a look at that forum, there's a lot about this subject !

Thanks claypa, I will. Marie

Forget the composter and get some palettes and tie them together at 3 sides. Mix some carbon (brown) material with the grass clippings. 1 to 1 mix and wait 2 months in the summer and 6 months in the winter. Keep wet and you have a blessing to your garden. If you have too much grass, mulch cut the grass and let it compost there.

Soferdig, I have so much that I compost, all my 'weeds', flower clippings, grass. I have a huge pile. Starting my vegetable garden this year I have been pulling weeds constantly! I have not thrown anything away. I think my best bet is to get the shreader, shread all that I have and go from there. What do you think?

Marie

Marie yes I shred every thing but pine needles in my compost. That includes wood chips. Then it takes only a couple of months to cook. I use all material too. The only thing I don't use is root tubers they go to the fire pit. IE dandylions, mile a minute roots, Quack grass, etc. I think that a shredder is the best gift any garden can have. Once you tried one you will never go back. LOL This is my baby with its blanket on in the middle compost area.

MyRee, take Soferdig's word for it. I got one of the barrel-type composters, and it is now a very expensive holding pen for stuff to put in the compost pile I made out of pallets. It sounded too good to be true, and it was. This is not the Compost Tumbler; I don't have anything to say about that because I've never used one. But "black gold" in two weeks? NO. It ain't gonna happen unless you just put compost in there and pretend.

Myree~ I just started to compost this year and I had the same questions that you have. I read books and got information on the soil and composting forum on good old DG!! I have one pile that is done and one pile that I am working on right now. I don't use a compost bin. I just compost mine on the ground and turn it every few days. It is fun believe it or not. My neighbors think I am weird. I have been collecting their coffee grounds and yard clippings. We had a neighborhood party last week and they were all commenting on how great my flowers and yard looked. They asked me what my secret was. I told them it was because of all the "junk" they have been giving me to put in my compost pile!!! They couldn't believe it. It is all in the soil I tell ya!!

Lissy

You need to name the highlights in you garden after a coffee drink and when the neighbors visit they will get the Idea. If not you get their grounds. LOL

These compost bins have worked well for me. They are ventilated with multiple slots on all sides. They can be filled though the tilt up lids or the complete top can be lifted off. They also have small slots near the lids so that a small amount of rainwater can enter. As purchased they have no bottoms. I constructed the bases. An old fireplace poker with the hook does a good job of stirring things up. The composters were purchased for $35.00 each.
The front of each unit has a slide up door for access to the compost.

Hey, Rocco - $35 bucks each? Where?

This setup would be perfect for me.

I agree. I'd like to know where to get one, too.

Should composters not have bottoms, then? Where I plan to put mine is overgrown with weeds and the ground is covered with red lava rock.

I have a whole pile of weeds ready to put into a composter.

I purchased the two composters at a local home and garden show several years ago. I was told rhat they were made in Canada from re-cycled plastic. As to the bottoms,I thought it would be a neater installation. It also makes it easier to remove the compost. A few of the 8" X 16" flat concrete blocks would serve the same purpose. The composter dimensions are 22" X 22" and are about 40" high, approximately 11 cubic feet.
The composters as puchased are in a box that is much smaller than the finished unit. They are composed of interlocking panels that are easily assembled.

We compost directly on the ground, in a pile with grass clippings, mowed leaves, daily vegetable waste, coffee grounds and a variety of animal (stock) manure. The pile gets moistened and never really looks that big until I go to turn it!! That's one of the good things about armadillos...quite often they "turn" it and I just have to pile it all back!

The following web site for our city environmental trust offers information for composting and compost bins. http://www.metrecycle.com/compost.htm
I am trying to locate the source for the compost bins that I posted.

I searched for the composter that I had posted. I found it on Amazon,Composters.com and several other sites. It is called a Garden Gourmet. The pricing is much higher than I paid three or four years ago. They can probably be found at a reduced price elsewhere. I checked my garden log and found that I had paid $32.00 for each of the units.

Alameda County, California residents https://www.stopwaste.org/home/index.asp?page=175
Check with your local garbage collection service. I see the Waco, Tx site states "Compost bin sales held periodically"
How is this for a choice? http://www.composters.com/main_comp.html You can sure spend a lot of money on rot.
I have also had local landscapers drop off a load of scredded tree trimming to add to the pile. They are happy to get rid of it, without having to pay dump fees.

WOW, I can't believe the information here. Thank you all for helping me. I have decided to get a shreader and make bins for my compost. I liked the Alameda County waste bins, that is a great idea for a county project to stop excess waste.

I will be looking for shreaders today. Wish me luck.

Marie

I would put it directly on the ground, all due respect. That way the worms can do their part. Just my opinion.

Thanks, I will. Marie