Will this stuff break down.... plus RANT

I had issues with my neighbor last year... tossing all sorts of stuff in my "tumbler" - to the point i literally dumped it all out and started over.

I specifically told her, no whole egg trays, shells included -- that she has listened to
no enact rinds... and NO chicken ... that one I had to tell her again when i saw her with a bunch of Chx bones
[wasnt ware she was doing it, until my dog was digging up the old bones from where i dumped all the compost last year]

Early on in the season when she asked if she could put stuff in my composter... I told her that she could add the remains of fruits and veggies from her juicer, because i knew she was making juice every day, and that it's shredded so it will break down easily -- i told her the larger chunks take a long time to break down... hoping to deter her.

Lately, i've been opening the tumbler to see how things are breaking down and i'm finding WHOLE romaine lettuce, Cantaloupe rinds [huge pieces] lemon and orange halves.... I have to keep the lid open so it hopefully dried out because it is so wet in there... a problem i had last year too... and specifically told her about it.

Ive printed info on what can and can't go in a composter too, and gave it to her ....

she and i get a long very well, she is very sweet -- but her english isn't the greatest and i guess she just does not understand.

Ive even gone so far as to tell her to bury her 'refuse' directly into the flower beds....

The thing is, i rarely see her do this .... If i am out there, she has just a small amount, but then the next day, there is a boat load of kitchen garbage in my tumbler.

So -- sorry for the rant... but will those larger pieces break down? I feel like going out there with a garbage bag and get all that stuff out of there.

and the other thing.... I do not have a lot of "browns", i try to keep up on my own... but with all the "greens" she puts in there... I can't keep the balance... plus it's so darned WET.

how can i be diplomatic about this without rolling it under some shrub so she can't find it?

thanks in advance,

Terese

Tell her you are trying a new method, and the ingredients are "special" and only you have them. Or tell her it will blow up if she touches it.

Maybe you could get a bucket and leave it next to the composter and she can put stuff in there. That way if it's too big or the wrong items you can give it back to her. Just tell her that you can't add any stuff right now because it's busy cooking and you don't want to interrupt it.

>>because it's busy cooking and you don't want to interrupt it.

Well, honestly -- that is what I should have tried last year, instead of dumping it... but i was fit to be tied.
Hopefully I will see her tomorrow -- she really does not come out much, unless it's warm.

It really does need to cook AND dry out. Last time it was this wet, i put a phone book thru the shredder ... that seemed to help, it' was on it's way to great compost.....

I did go out there and pull all the big stuff out. I should have put THAT in a bucket for her to see.

jlp -- i could tell her that, and she'd probably believe me.

Hmmm, maybe you should have a bokashi bucket going beside the tumbler. (The simple method with a 5 gallon bucket and tight fitting lid--nothing expensive.) Use the newspaper method (newspaper activated with EM or AEM or the whey from yogurt) and just carry it out with you for "just in case" she's put stuff in the tumbler. Pull the big stuff out, put on a layer of activated newspaper, squish it down and close the top tightly. If she hasn't, throw the newspaper into the tumbler. The extra microbes will help your tumbler compost.

Sorry, but it seems that if she hasn't "gotten" it, what with a language difference of sorts, doesn't come out much, yadda yadda, she most likely isn't going to "get it" this year.

JMO

>>yadda yadda, she most likely isn't going to "get it" this year.

I dont think she will ever get it. But the Bucket thing sounds like a good idea... I think i 'browsed' that bokashi thing somewhere.

any idea if those orange rinds completely break down, or the cantaloupe .... oh and there were many many cores of Romaine lettuce... they were not decomposing at all.

I also saw egg shells in there, when a few weeks ago, i asked her not to put them there.... I also told her to save them for her hostas.

They will break down (the composter's mantra is "EVERYTHING rots--well, organic-everything) but they will take a longer time if not cut up in smaller pieces. I am assuming that the language barrier precludes your being able to convince her to cut things into little pieces before she "gifts" you with them?
The Bokashi bucket idea is a really good way to use up her inappropriate (for the tumbler) scraps. You can just stockpile them in a 5-gal. lidded bucket, following pennymca's advice. (It would be good if you could bring yourself to cut up the rinds.) When the bucket is full and there is nice white mold on top, you can bury the contents in your garden, where they will nourish your plants and soil and delight your earthworms.
There are several threads on the Soil and Composting forum that discuss Bokashi.

Yes, i've browsed some of the discussions, but not fully. I should look into it now.

and yes, we do have a bit of a language barrier.... though she's been here a long time, she just has troubles with english at times.

she is very sweet though... so i try to cut her some slack. plus -- she has joined me in my gardening venture, so thats a HUGE plus.

It sounds like you have good will in common. I think you and she can make some beautiful compost together. . . .

Cue the poetry on the pile ...

The bucket beside the compost bin sounds like a good idea, although I think I would use something with holes in the bottom, like a large planter, so the rain could have an outlet. Why don't you want egg shells in your compost? I crush mine and throw them in there.

>>Why don't you want egg shells in your compost?

it's not that i dont. i add mine... but she throws them in WHOLE with the entire card board egg crate - whole.
It was more of a .... OH, you can use those for around your hostas

I crush mine too.... she doesnt and i have not seen that they break down at all.

I will use the crushed shells and mix them with spent coffee grounds and spread them around my hostas. I am hoping she does the same... but then again.. .maybe she just didnt "get it".

She must be out for the day, as i have not seen her [and its gorgeous out] and thankfully she did not add to the tumbler today... i left the lid open in hopes it would dry out a bit.

go to www.bokashicomposting.com for a simple way to do bokashi. I'm not sure you even need to really incubate the newspaper has he has shown, unless it is to keep the moisture down in the bucket. I don't know why a light spritz of LB on some shredded newspaper wouldn't have the same effect.

I was thrilled when I realized one didn't have to capture the LB from the air but could use the whey from yogurt.

Even more thrilled to realize that it could be done on the cheap.

I may need more information, but isn't there someone that you can get to help translate for you? Someone that can help her "get" it, so that you both may benefit?

It sounds like she enjoys the growing aspect of things, and if you or she could find a decent translator, that she might get the idea of what is going on, and perhaps even start her own bokashi bucket to help with.

one day when she and i were talking... she was saying how she heard how to make her own compost bin.... a box frame with chicken wire... i was telling her it' pretty easy, and her compost may "cook" a bit faster than mine does.

i was hoping that was a gentle nudge.

out back, by my tumbler... i DH put our huge "yard cart" [sorta like an over sized wheel barrow] i basically leaned it OVER the tumbler... short fix.

I may get that bokashi bucket going... just havent had the time to research it more.
though - maybe when we get the beds worked on a bit mroe, she can just bury her 'scraps' for a while.

thanks for all the input... it has been very helpful.

Well -- update ---

my neighbor actually built her own composter. YAY.

mine is still quite wet ... and that was the reason i asked her to stop adding to it.

I've added shredded paper, but it's not enough. If one does not have leaves, what are some other good "browns" i can add to dry it out?

I wish my DH had a wood shop, instead of a metals shop.. then at least i could get saw dust.

I think straw would be ok. Is there any way to sop up the extra moisture and remove it?

Can you get your hands on cardboard?

Oh yea... lots of card board. but doesnt that take a long time to break down?

Straw i do not have access too... i'd have to buy it.

and ... does "dry" lawn clippings count? or is that still a 'green'?
sometimes i'll spread it out til it dries, then add it to the tumbler.

I speed the breakdown of my cardboard by hosing it down with water first. It softens nicely, and it's easy to tear. Lots of carbon for your high-nitrogen pile!

I can use the boxes i use for Winter Sowing... with all the rain and snow... they start breaking down.... some are pretty ratty.... i will use those.

I did add a bunch of shredded paper today and stirred it all up. it [hopefully] will cook all week.