Compost

[admin]

Compost is a vital element to a healthy vegetable garden.  Tell us about your compost!

[Brian Gallimore]

I have plans to make a compost pile as taught in the Citizen Gardener class.  I'll also have a separate pile where I accumulate materials. 

The problem I have with what I'm doing now is that I always pile up stuff in one place, on top of the compost pile, so I never turn it and it never gets done.

[Gale]

Hoping to start a compost pile soon!  Right now I'm using compost that I've bought:  composted manure and mushroom compost.

[CypressLakeRanch]

Interesting thread! I have never been very scientific about making compost, but just happened to have two piles this year - a small one to which I add the kitchen garbage and a much larger one with lots of horse manure, chicken and rabbit droppings, etc. The small one seems to be working well, I turn it occasionally (very occasionally) and there is a leak in the hose that waters one of my beds that waters the small compost pile just perfectly. Seems to be working well!

[Brian Gallimore]

I am watching Geoff Lawton's "Permaculture Soils" DVD, and he has a section about making compost.

He says 'good compost' is compost that doesn't loose volume when it cooks.  He says the 25:1 ratio is best to achieve this.

[Frank]

Caveat concerning manure-based compost: Proper composting - especially pile temperature - is extremely important to kill pathogens.  Essential is a compost thermometer - got ours (cheap ones) from Pike Agri Labs.  Three magic temperatures to keep in mind: 131 deg - minimum temperature to kill pathogens.  161 deg - point where microbial diversity starts declining as more sensitive microbes start dying.  185 deg approx - all microbes dead - spontaneous combustion possible.

I prefer a temperature of 150 - 155 deg for bacterial compost.  Compost Camp demonstrated that it is possible to achieve this range of temperatures within 48 hours after building a cold pile.  Moisture and Oxygen essential for an active, healthy pile...

At some point, you may want to consider what kind of compost you want - bacterial, fungal or some combination - what you want to make depends upon what you're going do with it or put it on...

Much reference material has been written on the subject.  Malcomb Beck is pretty much the founder of Texas composting...

[Brian Gallimore]

The users on the NTVG facebook group have started a doc on Compost info.  Here are the contents as of 5/13/2012  (https://www.facebook.com/groups/58399429851/doc/10151113413214852/)

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/80-items-you-can-compost.html
http://www.finegardening.com/how-to/articles/get-started-in-composting.aspx
http://www.co.hanover.va.us/works/composting2.htm
http://earth911.com/news/2007/04/02/nine-steps-to-hot-composting/
What is a Compost Starter? http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-compost-starter.htm
Let it Rot! by Stu Campbell is a great reference and how-to book. http://www.amazon.com/Let-Rot-Gardeners-Composting-Down-To-Earth/dp/1580170234.
Build a compost bin. http://www.woodworkersworkshop.com/resources/index.php?cat=428

[Brian Gallimore]

http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/publications/landscape/compost/

Aggie Horticulture

Don't Bag It™ - Compost It!!

Today, solid waste management is one of the most prominent environmental issues facing Texas and many other states throughout the nation. Our landfills are filling up at an alarming rate.

Texas AgriLife Extension Service in cooperation with the Texas Natural Resources Conservation Commission recognizes the need for public education regarding the minimization of solid waste and has created this educational resource on composting toward that goal.

Composting Guide Index
Introduction
Chapter 1, The Decomposition Process
Chapter 2, Composting Fundamentals
Chapter 3, Composting Structures
Chapter 4, Building and Maintaining a Compost Pile
Chapter 5, Utilization of Compost and Other Landscape Refuse
Chapter 6, Composting Questions and Answers
Chapter 7, You Can Start a Home Composting Education Program
Glossary

[Frank]

We have a paper relevant to this.  See: http://www.texasplantandsoillab.com/PDFs/soil-organic-matter-infomation.pdf

Also, we're working on a paper discussing the several types of compost...

[Brian Gallimore]

here is a tidbit from https://www.facebook.com/kalachandji.garden

When I first started using this compost (from the City of Mesquite) I was concerned about Picloram contamination, which is an herbicide used particularly in fields and pastures. It can be taken up by trees through their roots. This compost comes primarily from tree branches. Local tree-trimming companies have to pay to drop off a load there, which is composted and screened.

(We get our mulch free from one of those same companies, but we don't have the room or the equipment to make enough compost. We do sometimes screen the mulch in the garden and get the same material, but it takes time, and we need a lot.)

Picloram can kill some plants even at 1 part per billion, and even if it doesn't kill them, it can stop plants from developing properly. So I tested some in a plot, and the plants, including new sprouts, were just fine. I suspect that if the tree trimming companies were working in the countryside there might be more of a problem.

Now we're all set for gardeners to amend their soil for the fall - compost and rabbit manure!