This is what I have - what else do I need?

13 years ago

I would like to be able to produce some compost on a reasonably large scale - more than the typical homeowner but not commercially. Here's what I have available to me:

- unlimited horse manure and bedding, some of which is 3-4 years old.

- unlimited wood chips and mixed leaves, from local municipal trimming crew.

- unlimited leaves, mostly maple, cherry and ash.

- 8-10 cubic feet of wood ash per year.

- 4-8 yards of wood shavings and sawdust, mostly pine, per year.

- 2-3 gallons per week of kitchen scraps and coffee grounds.

I can also get my hands on a fair amount of clean grass clippings, probably as much as a large heaped pickup truck load per month, and a similar truckload of pine needles and duff once a year. I probably can get a fair amount of spoiled hay bales too, but they'd probably be mixed with the horse poo.

So with this list of ingredients, what should I be adding to it for good proportions, and what should I be limiting the use of (wood ash, maybe?). I am simply going to create a few large piles or a windrow of material and let it sit for a couple of years. I have enough compost now for a couple of years, so I can afford to let it sit. I am not a fan of hot composting, I don't have the time or effort to turn piles all the time, and way too much material to do that with.

I get the wood ashes and kitchen scraps whether I want them or not, the rest of the list I can get at will and as much as I need. I have to do something with it, but I want to make sure that I'm either not missing a substantial proportion of green or brown, or adding too much of something.

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Comments (9)

kqcrna
13 years ago
Not too much ash. Sounds like you're set with lots of ingredients. Just keep that 30:1 C:N ratio in mind, but it doesn't need to be perfect. Sprinkle with water as you build- not too wet, just moist.

Karen
jonas302
13 years ago
Sounds like a good list of materials leave out most of the wood ash and have fun.

I think the only other thing you need is a skidloader and a dumptruck
nutsaboutflowers
13 years ago
You may want to look at Florida's Online Composting Center at www.compostinfo.com

They have all kinds of info, (which I haven't taken the time to read yet) plus a Virtual Pile, where you can "build" a pile and it'll calculate your ratio for you. It's kind of fun.
jbest123
13 years ago
For the volume that you are talking about. that won't be too much wood ash. John

Here is a link that might be useful: John's Journal
Kimmsr
13 years ago
Wood ash does nothing to help a compost pile get digested and may even hinder the bacteria from doing their job of digesting the rest of it. Wood Ash, when mixed with water, produces lye a very caustic substance that will kill many forms of life.
Below is a lionk to the composting tutorial mentioned above.

Here is a link that might be useful: Online Composting tutorial
Lloyd
13 years ago
Off the top of my head, it looks like you are going to be on the high side for carbon. In your case that's probably okay as a "let sit and decompose" pile is best to be higher in carbon.

I'd try a pile, keep track of the volumes of materials you used and adjust if necessary. If it starts to smell, add more carbon.

Good luck and keep us posted (and we luv pics)

Lloyd
idaho_gardener
13 years ago
Jon, Lloyd is the resident expert on composting. He runs a composting operation on his farm.

I would suggest that you might want to get a chipper to re-chip the wood waste you'll be getting. I suspect that the chip size you'll be getting will be on the large size. A Crary Bearcat might be the thing.

You can get a bigger screen so you aren't there all week trying to get through your material. Otherwise, I'd just mix the stuff, make a windrow and forget it for two years.

Oh, and for those who are unfamiliar with New England soil, it's rather low in pH, so the wood ash is a necessary addition.
jbest123
13 years ago
"Wood ash does nothing to help a compost pile get digested and may even hinder the bacteria from doing their job of digesting the rest of it. Wood Ash, when mixed with water, produces lye a very caustic substance that will kill many forms of life.
Below is a lionk to the composting tutorial mentioned above."

That has not been my experience, I put much more wood ash on my garden/compost than the experts recommend. I have a free supply of fire wood and I use about two full cords in the house for atmosphere and I heat my shop all winter with a wood stove using another two cords. I have been doing this for 37 years on this garden. If your soil is alkaline then you may want to add some garden sulphur but it is an excellent source of pot ash. If anybody needs photos of the garden, I've got em. John

Here is a link that might be useful: John's Journal
lazy_gardens
13 years ago
DON'T GENERALIZE ABOUT WHETHER ASHES ARE GOOD OR BAD. They are very alkaline.

If you have really acidic soil, ashes might help raise the pH and that might be a good thing.

If you have alkaline soil they make the pH higher, and that is seldom a good thing.