Composting

cross-posted from: https://mander.xyz/post/2967556

I know I can send soil samples to my local university extension office for testing, but how do I test soil for glyphosate-based herbicides, lead, arsenic, and other contaminates?

As a citizen scientist I'm about to get into composting more on my property and would like to know more.

Welcome to The Composter, a podcast for farmers and composters. I'm your host and fellow composter, Jayne Merner Senecal. Join me in practical conversation between industry professionals and farmers with a passion for producing high-quality compost. We are going to dig deep into the science, technology, and art of compost production so that we as composters can help enliven the world's soils.

Season Two begins August 15th!

1. Keep a couple pieces of charcoal in your kitchen bin for smell absorption. I just took some charred bits out of my firepit. When they're used up they can just go right in the pile.

2. A large piece of cardboard makes a good lid, and somehow looks nicer in your yard than a pile of old food. Also helps regulate rain absorption/moisture retention.

An OK starter article here with a range of composting methods. Minor summary below:

Composting is a process that involves the decomposition of organic materials to create nutrient-rich soil.

It is an environmentally friendly way to reduce waste and improve soil health.

Composting can be done in a backyard or on a larger scale.

There are two common types of aerobic composting processes: vermicomposting with worms and hot backyard compost piles.

Some states have legalized human composting.

My understanding is a lot of "greens" eventually become "brown". Green leaves when they dry up would switch to a "brown". Same with dead grass.

With that in mind I tried a very lazy process of only adding greens for a continual process. My first addition to my pile this year was grass clippings. They still haven't really broke down.

Is my approach fundamentally flawed? Or is there something I'm missing to improve the process?

cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/1154585

I was going thru an old device and found this bookmarked. It's a great resource if you're into brewing compost teas or would like to get started doing so

I am curious. Are some of you doing bokashi ? What composting / fermenting method are you using ?

Two years ago I started composting the cut grass from the lawnmower and occasionally some thin twigs and leaves. "Composting" as in dining it all in a cheap plastic compost container without any bottom.

In my head worms and other things would find their way there and start munching away.

In reality the end result was dry cut grass cakes and twigs. So this spring we got rid of the contents.

So ... What beginners guide to easy composting do you recommend.

I would like to start easy and in a distant future, if all goes well now, I might get an isolated container for leftover food and scrap. But that seems very distant right now.

I make no excuses.

If at all. I know some folks just let it sit and go low and slow.

Just curious to see what you folks prefer.

This is a simple game but it's challenging! If you are thinking about starting a worm bin but you're not sure if you understand the guidelines, maybe this game can help. I've been maintaining a bin for about 8 months but I keep losing at this game pretty quickly lol

I know it was a thing on reddit, but how does everyone feel about peeing on your compost? Apparently it really helps, but I've never brought myself to do it.

My neighbors were getting rid of these pallets and I was able to snatch them up before they hit the curb for trash day. I have been toying with the idea of building/buying a compost bin since starting up a backyard garden over the past few weeks and couldn't turn down the opportunity.

More info and pictures here, https://mastodon.sdf.org/@Famicoman/110561970446094158

i live in alaska and i've started doing some very slapdash lazy composting. i bought a wire pet pen off amazon for $35ish that comes in 8 panels, and then i split that into two 4 panel segments, and then i staked & zip tied them behind my shed to form two wire boxes and i've been tossing yard & kitchen veg waste in there willy nilly. the advice i got was it's tough to compost here properly because of the 6 months of winter, so just put everything in a pile and cover the top when the snow comes, and then next year when it thaws, dig it out and use it.

i'm thinking about starting a small indoor worm farm this fall to handle kitchen waste in the winter months, instead of having to shovel a path to the compost bins.

i have a large raised garden bed and i think the lady who had the place before us just put her kitchen waste in the corner of the bed. there's a lot of happy worms in the soil.

anyone got any tips for composting options in northern latitudes?

Hello, I am exploring Lemmy due to Reddit's changes, and I wanted to become more involved with Solarpunk. I volunteered to help moderate this community which will hopefully make me lurk less and contribute more. Hope everyone is doing well!

This is our local park composting setup for leaves and grass, not long after having removed finished material. Leaves (browns) are abundant in late winter, and grass is abundant in summer. Water is usually an issue, as volunteers who take leaves don't have time to wet everything down, so that usually gets resolved when we turn the compost (a community event 2-3 times a year). We just had an automatic watering system installed, so that should help. Doors are attached with wingnuts and come off fairly easily.

I have a happy worm bin that takes care of most of my composting needs. I use the castings around my garden, mostly when I'm planting something new, but I also feed my established plants with it when I can.

But! I've also been thinking it'd be great to deliver castings right into the ground, and would love to use semi-buried containers in the beds to compost right there. There are plenty of native composting worms in my location.

I have a bunch of small (1-1.5 liter ish?) buckets with lids that I'd love to repurpose for this. I was thinking I'd make a bunch of holes in the body and lid of the buckets, and bury them up to the rim. Then fill with some bedding and some scraps, and inoculate with come castings and some worms. And just feed whenever there's space, hoping the castings spread a bit into the ground, or otherwise dig it up when it's full of castings and bury it in a new spot.

My main concern is that the buckets would be too small. The reason I'm aiming for this size is honestly because I want to use these containers for something useful instead of tossing them out. I'd love any suggestions and to hear about your experiences with in-ground composting!