Thanks so much for the info! Bluegoat your equations are bringing back faint memories of a college biology class. I've gotten much fodder for googling! Although it seems the answers to some questions just make me think of more questions. It sounds like "compost" is actually a continuum. Lots of activity early then a slow reduction of activity until eventually it becomes humus. What are the (technical) indicators that identify when compost is "ready" for the garden or "done" and has become humus? If the microbial activity is responsible for the heat how hot can a pile get before the heat is detrimental to either the composting and/or the welfare of the microbes? Do you want those microbes in the compost when you add it to soil? (that's what I think the compost producer guy was saying.) Bedding horses on pellets is a relatively new thing. One of the big advantages is that when removing the manure from the stalls you generally remove about half the amount of pelleted bedding as you would if you were using shavings or straw. Since straight horse manure is generally around 20:1 to 25:1 adding less bedding helps keep the C:N ration closer to 30:1--thus much faster composting than with shavings or straw which shoots that ratio up. It sounds like the finish product might be better too. I should be getting testing back on both 6 month and 24 month old compost samples (garden soil samples too) in another week. I figure the raw material mix of the compost won't change much if at all over time, so if I know my compost and I know my soil I can do a much, much better job of only adding to my garden soil what it may need that isn't provided by the compost.

Compost will contain bacteria and fungi, and depending on what was put into the mix possibly some disease pathogens. Compost is definately not sterile, or at least you would not want it to be. For many people with dead soils the compost they add is the source of the beneficial microbes. Often people disagree on whether compost should be tilled into soil or can be layed on the soil and that depends on your soil. If there is some life in the soil, an active Soil Food Web, then laying compost on the soil will work and the Soil Food Web will move that compost into your soil for you, sometimes even with dead soils laying compost on the soil will see it moved into the soil by the bacteria and fungi in the compost. I have seen a soil that never, at least in 25 years, would not allow organic matter to move into it. All the organic matter put on that soil kind of stayed on top and the soil underneath had no residual organic matter, humus, until we tilled all that OM in. Most of the various soils I have worked with have not done that and compost layed on, as mulch, would be worked into the soil by the Soil Food Web. Compost, or any other organic matter, layed on soils will not "rob" them of Nitrogen. Where that has been observed the compost has been actually worked into the soil so the Soil Food Web got busy and digested that material using all the available N which, eventually, was onc again available to the plants growing there after that raw material was digested. Compost is a living organism and everything needed to grow plants is in the compost. Like any mulch material how well it works at suppressing "weed" growth depends on where the "weeds" were when the compost was put down. If enpough compost was applied to keep any "weed" seeds in or on the soil from getting the sunlight they need to germinate and grow they won't. But if the "weed" seeds are put into the compost later, after its applied, they have access to everything needed to germinate and grow, and a very good nutirent source. To add to what Robert said some people do not know that mulch can be anything. I know people that think mulch is something you buy at a store and unless it is labeled as mulch it isn't. I never have enough compost to use as mulch so my compost is laid on the soil, about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick, and then covered with shredded leaves. i have seen where compost was used as mulch and because it dried out and then was wet and the cycle repeated the plants did not benefit much from that compost which was not worked into the soil because the Soil Food Web is not very active in dry soils.

Hi Kathy, I am a little confused about your question. Maybe because I am unfamiliar with your compost. I have never heard of it. Is it a synthetic compost? Was it just microbes you purchased and not compost? Not sure what to look at in the photos. In the first photo, is the bed at the top of the photo, finished? It appears darker, is that because compost has been added or because it is wet? The second photo is of what exactly? It looks like dry soil with broken up sod next to it. Is there any compost in there? I make my own compost, passively, but sometimes I purchase bagged compost. I have bought organic compost from Maine. Lobster compost, the last time, but they have other types. When I buy that, it looks feels and smells great. Very dark. I have had good results adding that to beds. If your question is that you wonder if it is a good thing to add the broken up sod to the beds, I guess it depends on when you are going to plant it. The sod would take awhile to break down. You mention you were doing lasagna beds. What other layers are you adding to your lasagna? pm2

Nice post. I wanted to point out however that bacterial brews actually only need 24 hrs or less and fungal brews need around 48 hrs. Also if you are using a bag for your casting/compost adding a stone inside the bag will help dislodge fungal spores. A quick note on worm bins. in general if you exclude animal byproduct you will have much higher microbial diversity and much higher number of biodegraders in your castings. Also by adding small amounts of compost and minerals such as greensand and/or rock dust you can help further feed and breed your microbial community. Also there are quite a few ingredients you can add to your teas to enhance them. Some enhance the microbial content by adding food, others enhance the micro-nutrients in your tea, while will do both. The teas that we create have at the very least all of these ingredients. Worm Castings, Alaskan Forest Humus, Organic Compost, Hydrolyzed Fish, Sea 90, Micronized Kelp, Micronized Humic Acid, Demerara Sugar, Azomite, Alfalfa Meal, Kelp Meal, Humates, Fish Bone Meal, Fish Meal, Feather Meal, Soybean Meal, Cameline Meal, Fossilized Kelp, Rock Phosphate, Langbenite, Volcanic Ash, Green Sand, Sulfate of Potash. While I'm not suggesting you need all of these ingredient I am suggesting that you experiment. Have some fun, keep notes, and learn.