What do you know about composting?! - Page 4

 

 

 

I just saw this thread but the timing is excellent as I just set up my 3-bin system last weekend.  We currently live in a suburban area and have one little compost "box" but it doesn't do a very good job of composting so I decided when we move to our 10-acre property next month, we need a decent system, and its just one of those projects I wanted to get set up and going before we move.  I used pallets to set up the 3 bins and my idea is to start with the first, then, rather than "turning", just use a pitchfork to toss it over to the second bin, after it has reduced some.  Then, after it has reduced some more, pitch it over to the third bin.  Meanwhile we can be filling the first bin again.  In addition to chickens, we have plenty of horse manure so I figure this way we end up with a lot of good usable compost for our garden.

 

I used tie plates to secure the pallets to one another.  They are cheap - I think about 17c apiece, and you just use nails to secure them, so I didn't have to get an extension cord out to get the drill out there....

 

After setting it up, I spent a sleepless night tossing and turning because my new next-door neighbors have chickens who free-range onto our property through the hedge and I pictured them flinging my new compost pile back out of there.  So I went back out the next day and found some wire fencing to put in front of it to prevent that happening.

 

Currently my pile consists of layers of horse manure and shredded leaves.  The bags you can see in the second bin contain more shredded leaves.  My plan is to bring a bunch more horse manure out to add to the pile and continue to layer with the leaves.  Then I just need some rain to moisten it and (hopefully) can watch it heat up.  If anyone has any constructive advice, I'd love to hear it - I am still learning as I go.  Anyway, here is a pic of the set up (and yes I know one of the pallets appears to be leaning.  It is secured with the tie plates so won't fall but visually I'd like it to stand straight so I intend to fix that next time I'm there).  Oh - and that is feed bags you see on the bottom.  I decided to put those down as a weed block so the grass doesn't try to grow up through my compost.  Don't know if it was necessary or not but they're there now.

 

 

Good to know - thanks!

 

 

This is great, and I love the pic (deleted it in quote for space saving)! I was not sure how I was going to work it out without seeing it, and this makes perfect sense! I also have LOTs of feed bags, so I will use this for the bottom.

 

We also have lots of cow manure (Jan - Aug, fair calves) would this work as well in the compost pile? Last year we just piled it all up behind the barn and then spread it in the garden this year. Don't think there was much "cow patty" substance left, but the early spring veggies that are already planted seem to be doing wonderfully! I ask mostly because the proposed spot for the compost pile is not exactly close to the calf barn, and I am not sure I could easily convince DD to haul it out there... but... I will "convince her" if it will be a great addition to the pile.

 

Thanks everyone!

 

 

From what I understand, cow manure is "superior" among manures.  I'd say go for it!

 

 

Awesome! Thanks!!

HEchicken your set up is similar to mine.(several bins side by side)I would add some green waste to it as well. Lawn clippings or prunings work well. I would not bother going to the effort of changing bins. I would just fill the first one and let it break down as you are then filling the second and so forth. I use cow, horse ,chicken,turkey and duck poop in my bins and they all seem to work well. My fruit trees just love the compost i make.

 

Its very "hot" (nitrogen-rich) when it is fresh so it is better to age it first.  Nitrogen is good if you are growing greens but not so good if you are trying to grow, say, tomatoes.  What you will get is vigorous plants with a lot of green growth and very few fruit.  Also, if you grow root vegetables (carrots, radishes etc) and there is fresh chicken manure on/around them, there may be some risk of ingesting things you wouldn't really choose to ingest.

I compost right in my chicken coop. I add kitchen scraps daily to get the chickens to scratch under fresh manure (to reduce smell and fluff the bedding). I add bagged dried leaves or dried grasses as needed (about 6 inches every 4-6 weeks) to keep the bedding dry under foot and reduce smell. 

 

This spring I hauled eight brimming wheelbarrow loads out of a 6x5 coop! The deep litter was really deep--18 to 24 inches--and very healthy. I even found live worms, much to my surprise. The bottom layer was nearly to the black gold stage. I added the mix of leaves, manure, and scraps right to an area of the garden this spring that will be growing broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower plus some herbs. My criteria was plants that need nitrogen to produce their leafy parts but that also aren't in contact with the soil since the manure wasn't aged. 

 

This method works for me because it's minimum work to get great compost (never turn or water the compost pile; only clean the coop once a year) while enjoying a nearly no-smell coop. I also liked that it added some heat to the coop in the winter.

 

One tip: we store our kitchen scraps in the large 32 oz dairy containers (e.g.yogurt, cottage cheese). I usually add two of those each day right under the roost. Nice to use free containers that can be cleaned as needed and then eventually recycled. 

If we allow our birds to dig in our fresh compost piles, are there items that we should not add for their safety?
 

They typically won't eat things that aren't good for them so I don't worry too much - I throw it all out and let them decide what they'll eat (almost everything) and what they won't.  I've always heard that onion doesn't compost well, and the birds won't touch that.  Citrus peels decompose very slowly but I've found if I cut them up into small pieces before throwing them in the compost, it composts faster.  The chooks usually won't touch anything citrus either.