I need composting help!

[Percheron chick]

I was on chipdrop for about 6 months with nary a nibble, even when I offered to pay $50 a load.

That's what I'm afraid of. I got 2 loads from the tree company that removed 2 trees at my sister's and it was enough to mulch 90 lilacs and that was it. I'll shovel a load for the garden but that's not even a drop in the bucket of what I can use. I'll gladly tip the driver a cold one and$20 to save my back.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

That's too bad. Do you have any free wood chip alternatives, like a county landfill?

FYI, this winter I used paper shreds inside the chicken coop as deep bedding. I make my own paper shreds at home, from newspapers, junk mail, food grade light weight cardboard, etc... and that worked out very well for me. The paper shreds should break down into good compost a lot faster than wood chips, too. So if you live in an area that wood chips are expensive, you might consider using paper shreds for the coop and composting.

I would not recommend using paper shreds as mulch in the gardens or walkways unless you don't mind having confetti flying all over your yard.

No free wood chips at the landfill as I think they don’t charge to dump but do sell mulch and compost. Part of me is sad I can’t get those materials for free, but it’s kind of exciting there’s a market for them.

I do add all my shredded paper and a lot of cardboard to my system. I may buy wood chips at some point to see if they last longer…as you know, leaves, paper, cardboard, and hay break down very quickly. I struggle to keep up and longer lasting carbon may be worth paying for!

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

That's what I'm afraid of. I got 2 loads from the tree company that removed 2 trees at my sister's and it was enough to mulch 90 lilacs and that was it. I'll shovel a load for the garden but that's not even a drop in the bucket of what I can use. I'll gladly tip the driver a cold one and$20 to save my back.

Chip drop is worth a shot…it’s free and quick to sign up, and you might just get lucky!

 

[Ascholten]

Using junk mail etc for mulch seems like a good idea but be careful about the shiny paper, and colored stuff. The inks are not always the best for composting, and it doesn't always break down very well. Newspaper is good but the shiny color stuff, magazine type stuff, id not use. Just my opinion.

Aaron

 

[gtaus]

Newspaper is good but the shiny color stuff, magazine type stuff, id not use.

Our local newspapers use soy based inks, so even the colored papers are good for composting. I think it's actually a state law, but I'm not sure.

I don't compost magazines because I think they still use inks that might be toxic for plants and animals. But, I don't know that for sure. Would be helpful if publishers were mandated to disclose if their product is safe for recycling/composting. A simple recycling tag on the products like most of our plastics have.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

I’d be surprised if much is printed with toxic inks in this day and age…but this is one of those topics everyone has “heard something” about but nobody seems to know. We need some chicken keeper from the ink and printing industry to give us the intel!

 

[gtaus]

Part of me is sad I can’t get those materials for free, but it’s kind of exciting there’s a market for them.

I'm not a Green Warrior, but I do appreciate any efforts to clean up our environment and leave a better world for those following us. I think maybe that comes from being outdoors with my grandfather and going out hunting with him. You really get to appreciate nature and want to keep it clean.

Where I live, the hunters are the most environmentally friendly and give the most charity money to preserving both our native animals and plants. You would never catch a hunter throwing garbage on the ground, but you might well see him picking up a bag of debris and taking it back to the car/truck at the end of the day.

Like you, I think I would rather pay for a load of wood chips if that meant less material being dumped at a landfill. But, in my case, I can pick up a load of free wood chips at the county landfill and still feel good about saving some material from the garbage pile.

 

[gtaus]

We need some chicken keeper from the ink and printing industry to give us the intel!

That would be best. You can't always trust stuff you read on the internet. Their info may be old and outdated. A quick search on the subject still recommends not using magazine paper in compost systems.

 

[Percheron chick]

County fairgrounds and some cities around me have branch and Christmas tree drop offs and will chip for spring gardens. Self serve until it's gone.

 

[littledog]

I looked into this chip drop, I had never heard of it before! So do you have any say on what or how much you get or is it just the luck of the draw?

You can specify if you will take larger logs or not, as well as what species of wood you absolutely refuse, otherwise it's the luck of the draw, in my experience.

would not be tricked into paying for a chipdrop. I know the arborists have to pay to dump their wood chips at the landfill. So, I am doing them a favor, and saving them money, by allowing them to dump wood chips at my house.

I've never paid. The more I read here about others' results, I feel really lucky that my location seems so attractive as a dumpsite for the arborists.

I was on chipdrop for about 6 months with nary a nibble, even when I offered to pay $50 a load.

Geez. I'm definitely very lucky when it comes to chips.
The other night when I got home from work, I parked in my usual spot in front of the chip pile, and noticed a big dent taken out of it. Did a neighbor help themselves? I glanced around the neighbors' front yards, but didn't see any evidence of new mulching. But if a neighbor did help themselves from my pile, I don't mind, especially after hearing that some of you folks didn't get good results from chipdrop. I live on a larger property at the edge of town, and the houses up the street are semi-suburbia - so if they need chips from my roomy driveway that has room for a pile whereas theirs don't, they're welcome to take what they need. I'll just request another chipdrop when I run out. I like all my neighbors, and want to encourage them in their gardening endeavors. Maybe I'll put a "free" sign on my chip pile. like I did last year when I put out some tomato plants, and most of them were taken.