Composting

[SweetSilver]

SweetSilver, I took a class on composting and as far as a ratio goes we were taught to use 7in of brown, 3in of green, and 1in of black.

Bolding mine. Do you get that the same every time? In all seasons? If so, how do you do it?

My point is not that there isn't an ideal for a bacterial compost, just that I doubt many people have exactly what it needs every time they need to add stuff to the pile. I do know there are some who stockpile leaves to add to their pile, but I can't otherwise imagine how people get 7 parts brown to 3 parts green during high summer.

This time of year my compost pile is almost entirely green. I just don't have many browns to add right now.

 

[3forfree]

I only put in grass clippings this time of year, but I keep running the roto tiller through it. It breaks down pretty fast.

 

[TheChickMan]

With what you all told me I layered dry straw and sweet corn husks from the garden until the pile was about two foot tall, then I wet it down with water, I've been adding random veggie food scraps to it also. Hopefully next spring my garden soil will look alot more healthy. Thanks for all your help.

 

[4boysn6chicks]

Hi!

This was really helpful as I am just to put my six chickens out in to their coop for the first time. I have two questions:

1) What kind of initial bedding do you use? Wood shavings?
2) The floor of the coop is wood as it is raised up. Should this be a problem or will tour method of composting only work on a wood floor?

Thanks!

 

[Daisy8s]

Quote: Hi 4boysn6chicks, I think you might be addressing me with my post about composting in the floor of my coop so I'll answer.

My method of deep litter/coop-floor-composting works best on a dirt floor as you want to have contact with soil organisms that will aid composting and you also want good drainage. My coop is situated on an old gravel bed, to which I added 3-4 inches of soil from an old compost pile.

A few weeks after starting the litter I noticed a smell so I added a few more inches of the same soil and that seemed to seed the floor with enough healthy organisms so I've never noticed a smell again. When I clean out the coop in the spring I make sure I leave a few inches of littler to maintain enough of those organisms.

I would hesitate to try this on a wooden floored coop. First, I'm sure it would greatly increase the rate at which the wood would rot (the constant moisture would be bad). Second, you'd be missing all those healthy organisms in the soil that are needed for composting. Sometimes people report that they use the deep litter method (though this term is used loosely and means very different things to different people) with raised, wooden-floor coops. I think they put down linoleum or something like it to keep the moisture off the wood.

For a longer, more detailed post about how my system works, search for: results-from-first-year-with-deep-litter-method. I posted this back in March.

 

[Hillschicks]

Is sunlight important?? Should my pile have direct sunlight for hours or would it do fine in a shaded area??y

 

[equinealot]

I am doing the pallets around my compost pile. How wet do I keep it? How often do I turn It. I have turned it a couple times & there is moldy hay in it. I am using Horse manure,chicken,mouse with the pine shavings. I can get bags of leaves from a neighbor but he has a bad case of black ants all over his flowers. I dont want them. Will they die in the compost? Help me please very new at this.

 

[Estephanie]

I usually mix in all the water from my aquariam and eggshells and veggie scraps that dont go to my chickens

 

[LoveChickens123]

I need Help. This spring i bought eight chickens and planted a decent size garden from my perspeective, about 30' by 50'. i've been daydreaming ( i know allittle weird) but still, i would like to do something with my chicken and garden waste. Something like composting. I was wondering if any of you educated elders out there could help me out with some of my questions. What can i use to compost, where to locate the pile, i've heard about using pallets, is that efficent? how many bins to have, 1, 2, or even three? What I can't use, can I compost year round. Or am I overextending my self, should i just buy bagged mulch? Any input is greatly appreciated. If i missed any important questions please feel free to tell me about those too.

you should always compost before you plant things then water then let it sit!

 

[3forfree]

I am doing the pallets around my compost pile. How wet do I keep it? How often do I turn It. I have turned it a couple times & there is moldy hay in it. I am using Horse manure,chicken,mouse with the pine shavings. I can get bags of leaves from a neighbor but he has a bad case of black ants all over his flowers. I dont want them. Will they die in the compost? Help me please very new at this.

I have never put any kind of animal waste into my compost but I suppose you could. As for how wet to keep it, I would just turn it with a pitch fork once a week. My compost pile is pretty big and I use a roto tiller to turn it. Saturday is my composting day. I don't water mine, but I keep it turned. Compost should never stink. When things start to turn moldy that's when the smell starts and you don't want that. I started with pallets around my pile and would fork everything out of the pallets, and then fork everything back in, that was how I turned things. Good Luck.