Getting Free Compost

Since the municipal compost site opened two weeks ago, I have made several trips to collect the free finished compost. I have built some new raised beds and want to fill it with nutrient rich compost. The price is right as well since the local big box stores are about a dollar for a 40lb bag of compost.

I have my own compost piles in the backyard, but I am not able to produce as much as I need to complete the bed build outs right now. It is a short drive to the compost site, so I’m not using much gas. I am trying to keep it as efficient as possible by filling up nearly every space possible including the trunk, passenger seat, and back seat.

Hauling it in buckets seems to work really nice right now for several reasons. I think a trailer would be faster, but it would be harder to deal with once I get it home. The free compost is decent quality, but it needs to be screened first. I am using 1/2” hardware cloth to screen mine. There are twigs, rocks, plastic, and other things that don’t compost well mixed in. I even found swimming goggles and a large log last week!

The buckets make it easy to screen and to haul around the yard once I get home. I’ve filled up my first raised bed, and am now working on my second.

Check with your local city or county to see if they have finished compost available for pickup.

Testing Compostable Products–The Start

I’ve been wanting to do this test for a while now. More and more products seem to be labeled as compostable or biodegradable which I really like, but I wonder, do they really? How long does it take? Will they compost in my backyard composter or do they require industrial composting?

I’ve been collecting items for about a year now. First up, two 100% cotton shirts. I’ve heard these compost nicely. I was cleaning out my closet and donated several large bags of old clothes, but I kept these two to experiment with. I expect them to decompose. I wonder how long it will take.

I also added:

• plastic bag
• plastic paint sheet
• several cups (6)
• one cup lid
• takeout tray
• sample cups
• bamboo bowl
• 3 forks
• a spoon
• plastic wrapper for fork
• 2 dryer sheets (used)

It looks like trash! All the products are proudly labeled compostable, so I hope this works. I put them into the middle of a new compost heap I was creating. It was mostly shredded leaves with a few buckets of kitchen scraps. The test material is in the middle of the bed. The bed itself is 42 inches (107cm) in diameter by 36 inches (92cm) high.

I was torn if I should shred the items first, but I thought this would better more authentic to leave them whole. It might make finding them easier later as well if they don’t compost. I’ve been composting the dryer sheets for a while now, so I know they work. I think the plastic might as well since it is thin. I’m excited to see what happens.

I set it up in my new geobin with a pile of shredded leaves on top. Then I watered the entire thing thoroughly. I plan on checking on the items in a few months to see if there is any change. Stay tuned!

Composting with Wood Chips

I have two decent sized compost bins in the backyard. I also have a wormbin in the house. The worms aren’t eating enough of the food waste yet, so I continue to store compost in buckets in the garage. Once they are all full, I haul the buckets to the big bins in the backyard. Not much is happening since it is so cold outside. Only one of the piles is slowly shrinking.

I usually put some shredded paper or leaves on the bottom of the buckets to soak up the juice and to provide a bit better balance of browns/greens in the mix. I watched a YouTube video last week about using woodchips in compost. It seemed like a great idea since I’m out of leaves. I made a trip to the county woodchip pile. I picked up a couple buckets for free.

My plan is to use them on the bottom of the buckets as a liner. I think they will work better than the leaves or paper which had a tendency to mat down and stick to the bucket once they got wet. I’ll throw some in the middle and on top as well to help control bugs and smell. I use the compost in my gardens for both the annual vegetables and the perennials.

Expanding the Compost Bin

I have two compost bins in my outdoor composting rotation. The one on the right is an expandable one. I originally set it up at a small size since I was having a hard time keeping it full. Now that fall is here, I have lots of extra organic matter to put into the heap. I took out the plastic bolts and enlarged it to the biggest size which is about four foot across which doubled the amount I could put into it. I think I will have enough room now for all the extra green mulch, garden plants, and leaves to keep things tidy. The pile should be large enough that it make heat as well and continues into the winter. I wonder if I will get to see it steam or if I’ll have to rotate it. 

How To Make and Use Compost Tea

What is Compost Tea?
Compost Tea is a liquid made from compost which contains beneficial microorganisms and helpful plant compounds. It is used to replace chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and fungicides. Compost Tea is more than simply a suspension of compost material in water. The tea is a good overall plant health booster. Healthy plants are better able to resist pests and diseases.

Compost Tea is made one of two ways: with aeration and without. Take some finished compost material from either an outside bin or finished vermicompost and soak it in water for several days. I like to use an aquarium bubbler to make the aerated variety because I think it helps the aerobic microorganisms grow faster. There seem to be as many recipes out there as people making it, but I like to keep mine relatively simple by using things I already have onsite.



How I make Compost Tea:

1. Put some water into a bucket. If you are using chlorinated tap water, it is best to let the water sit for a day first to let the chlorine dissipate. I filled a five gallon bucket about half full. Since I have a small one gallon sprayer, I don’t like to make large batches. 
2. Fill an old sock with a few handfuls of finished compost. In this case, I used a handful of finished vermicompost from my worm bin and a handful of finished compost from the regular compost bin outside.
3. Tie the sock to a stick, so it doesn’t fall all the way in. Then add the aquarium bubbler.
4. I held my aquarium bubbler down with a small rock since it wanted to float. Let it sit for several days. I like to wait about a week, and just leave it bubbling away in the basement laundry room. It doesn’t smell bad at any time in the process.
5. A week later, you can see the color has gotten much darker. Some of the compost has dissolved into the water, and microorganisms are thriving in the oxygen rich environment. Use it immediately after turning off the bubbler for maximum benefit.

How do you use Compost Tea?
Compost Tea can be used two ways: spraying and as a soil drench. I use mine both ways. I fill my sprayer up first. I use a small one gallon sprayer since my yard isn’t very big. This sprayer has only been used for compost tea, so there shouldn’t be any harmful chemical residue behind to interfere with the compost tea.



I spray it on the non-edible parts of the plant. In the photo below, I am spraying one of my small blueberry plants. It should be applied very early in the morning or later in the evening to minimize the effects of UV rays on the microorganisms.



After I am done spraying the leaves of plants. I pour the remainder out into the root zone as a soil drench. This helps to build up the soil microbial populations. Healthy soil leads to healthy plants.