Good soil is necessary for healthy plants; healthy plants are necessary for healthy animals; healthy animals are necessary for healthy people. The first attempt at the compost pile was not successful; but we seem to be making progress..
I was under the impression that water was necessary to keep it going. I have made a couple large worm bins to handle my compost . Instructions by “captain Matt” about the flow through worm bin. At the end of last season, I was so excited to see the black soil that I dumped out of the cans…. It might not be for you but it was easy and the worms reproduce in the can so when I add it to my garden I’m adding thousands of worms
I have thought about vermiculture but it requires a little more effort than I care to put forth at this time. Composting, as I do it, is a much more hands off process and, generally speaking, produces more compost. I add water to the pile when necessary but by adding additional green material (kitchen scraps) there is usually not much need for water.
@@holmesteadridge you must live in a rainy climate. There's still green stuff growing. Where I am, everything is brown and dead, unless it is being watered, as we have 0 rainfall from March or April until October or November. Compost piles that aren't watered will sit for years.
Vermiculture is the next natural step for the full compost process. 1 to 2 weeks after your pile finishes it's last thermal cycle, you will have fungi moving to continue the process. It's this fungus and it's byproduct that worms eat directly. Most biomass needs to go thru the worm/insect process to be bio-available to plant roots.
Thank you for your comment! Where are you located? In our area of Kentucky we receive about 42 inches per year. Our dry months are July-Aug-Sept. We have had an inch or so in the past 36 hours, so that has been a blessing.
I am happy to hear that. My last video, I “lost” a subscriber. Can’t please all the people all the time I guess, but if you stop back let me know how I can make a simple garden experiment more interesting!
When I first started composting years ago, I made the same key mistake you're making here: moisture!!! As small as this pile is, you either need to water it twice a week or cover it with a tarp. If the pile was at least 2 times bigger, the shear volume helps retain water in the center, thus perpetuating the thermal process. Tips on easy, super-dense nitrogen: your own urine, animal dung, acorns (ground up), Japanese beatles (other captured pests). The example with acorns, if you run them thru a leave shredder, a SINGLE cubic foot of this goes thermal on its own within 1 hour!!! No additives, no water, not even close to the cubic yard they suggest for thermal. It has so much fat and water in acorns that they go thermal in your wheelbarrow lol. Do your research, locate rich sources of free material in your local area that's available with each season.
Wow! Great info! Thank you! The compost pile you see is less than 20 feet from a Red Oak which produces multiple cubic feet of acorns. I am literally surrounded by oak trees. I have never heard anyone mention them as an ingredient for compost, before. I will use your expertise and make a video in the future. May I mention your RU-vid handle in it?
