Hello,
A bit lost here, I know some of you are composting masters and need some guidance here.
I have a small garden with 5 fruit trees, lot of weeds all year long.
So I got a composting bin and have been throwing small tweegs, leaves, roots and all green matter I get from the garden.
I also have a shredder for leaves and small twigs that makes nice leave powder.
So today I got a bucket of those shreded leaves and made a bed with used indoor soil and made 6 layers of shredded leaves and soil and will leave this alone for 2 months, maybe moving the mix once a week, doing good?
About the outside bin will take longer to produce some soil? Wrong?
You can accelerate the composting process. https://homeguides.sfgate.com/compost-accelerator-recipe-52989.html
If its available to you add some manure to the mix.
Composting requires heat so you’ll know its working if the sides of the compost bin feel warm to the touch.
It’s really nice to have a thermometer, but they get costy (Reotemp makes nice ones). Put your hand down in the pile to feel it heating up. Bio-actvation is the key to thermal compost. keep it moist, as well, and you can add things like molasses to assist it in heating up (I just make it up, like two tablespoons per half gallon, watered in). The key is moisture and oxygen (and good ingredients), to feed the bio-activation. The finer your material, the faster it will compost
Agreed, you’ll need to turn the pile regularly.
That’s also where a compost thermometer is handy: my compost usually peaks at about 160°F/71°C and then begins to come down.
At that point I turn it, and get the moisture level back to field consistency, then let it begin to heat again.
I don’t have a pic. I can tell you it varies by what goes in it. Think Bl;ack Coiw or mushroom compost. Most times it will need some ingredients to lighten it as it is fairly heavy if moist.
No, not yet but they are growing, before the post I went to shake the pile and found some white calices in the middle of the shredded weeds and garden plants, but in a few days I’ll take a picture of one or two, all the same species.
When I am done composting and I can use the compost?
I am getting something very similar to all mix soil just more wet and no perlite.
I read that in order to re use old soil mix 1 part compost with 4 parts used soil, right?
Should I use any meter to check anything or I can thrust that the soil will have all nutrients needed just by mixing the 2?
Started my indoor compost bin yesterday as a test to get rid of old plants and generate soil for keeper moms.
Mix is shredded cardboard and chopped plant material. Layered it, added a cup of sugar maybe a 2 liter s of water and 3 cups of warm fresh urine. Bin has lid on it but left cracked 1/2 inch gap for airflow.
Wish you luck, I am doing my 1st one but on a 600L composting bin with some holes on the side 2 top lids and a bottom one.
From what I understand you need to compost first and then mix with used soil.
I have a bag just like that, with layers of leaves and old soil but will take much longer that way I think.
This because while composting you are looking for some quemical reaction as material actually rotten.
And while mixed with soil it won’t react on chain and as fast as if it was just compost.
I have a medium back yard and I have leaves from trees, some vines, and a lot of wild weeds that grow by themselves and I shred all pf this and throw it in to the bin, some water every 2 days if doesn’t rain and I mix and revolve the compost every day, after 2 months I am getting some results.
