i used to have the traditional 3 bin compost pile. adding food scrapes and leaves and grass, all that good stuff.i never could keep up with the turning and aerating. So, nothing ever happened with it. It just sat there, then the weeds would take over. A big mess. Then, i read an article about red wigglers. I ordered a couple thousand from "gardens alive".I started out with a medium size rubbermaid tub with a lid. Drill holes in the bottom and along the sides for some air circulation. shred news paper into thin strips,soak them in water and ring all the water out.About enough to half fill the tub.mix in alittle potting soil to break up the clumps of matted paper. the soil should be damp also. throw in the worms and some scrapes and your on your way. Keep adding scraps till all the paper turns to a fine dark brown compost. when you want to get the compost out, start putting all your scrapes to 1 side for a few days and all the worms will migrate to that side. scoop up all the compost from that side and replace with more shredded paper and food scraps and repeat the process on the other side. i keep it in my house and there is NO Smell at all. and very very easy. it started out slow , but, now i put something in and it's gone in acouple of days. It's incredible. when i empty it out i transfer it in to a large bin in my shed.
2 comments:
You make it sound so easy, I'll have ta try it. I love the idea of the worms...I'd go fishin' if the river wasn't so polluted. Yeah, my pile just sits there too, just waitin' to be turned and nothing, so I am definitly gonna check 'er out. I am gonna order bees this fall for delivery in the spring. Get my hives built and painted this winter so they will be ready for the little hummers. It's so much fun to do them. The queen comes in a little box with a sugar plug, you put her with the workers and they eat out the plug and gitter done. I just hope they survive all the aerial spraying done down here. Now that I won't have a shop to worry about, I can become the homesteader I have always wanted to be...wonder when I will get the goat??? (not a man)!!!
Later friend...s
I like your bin, it looks like it was much easier to build than mine. They sure ARE simple, and fun! My composter is jealous, he mostly gets outdoor plant discards and leaves now...poor baby! I have one of those commercial plastic composters with a door at the bottom to take out the finished product, so no turning for me! I don't stir it too much either, so my process is slow but very easy.
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