COMPOSTING 201 or THE DEVIL HIMSELF

COMPOSTING OCCURRED TO ME when I first encountered Autumn (Fall) here in the US northeast; mowing the huge lawn was not a problem to me (after all, there are two mowers, one a ride type, motor mowers in the garden shed), but when the leaves began to fall from all the trees and hedges the picture changed for me. At first, I raked the leaves and, like all the neighbors, took them out to the front to be collected by the local corporation. This was hard work. What did the corporation do with the leaves? When I discovered it was believed the leaves were composted I thought, why not do that myself? Anyway, you can read my earlier blogs on this.

Since I joined the composting army of enthusiasts, I have not raked leaves all that much and none have left the property (except when the wind blows hard). This is because I discovered that the (non-ride) mower is a "mulching mower"; the blades have a special shape that, with the mower set up one way, shreds material and returns it to the ground as the mower proceeds. Later, the mower can be set up to collect this material, rather like a vacuum cleaner. All that is required is to remove a plastic blocking plate from the rear of the mower so that cuttings and shredded leaves can go back into the catcher bag. Then all one has to do is to empty the bag contents onto the compost heap.

Well, it is not quite that simple as you will see; there is periodic work to be done. The secret of composting lies with the work that billions of bacteria do the real work within the heap. These bacteria are already on the leaves and lawn cuttings. It is good to mix leaves and grass cuttings together as the grass has high nitrogen content and bacteria love nitrogen. To see how quickly these little fellows go to work, collect the lawn cuttings in a barrow; when it is full go away for a cup of tea or a well-earned glass of beer. When you return, place your hand into the barrel full of cuttings and feel the warmth as the bacteria go about their work.

In an earlier post I noted that I have learned how the size of the heap is important. The new pile contains old leaves from last year plus some material from last year's pile on its left which had grass cuttings as well as leaves. When making this pile, I found old leaves shed up into finer particles, which helps the bacteria no end. The new pile is much superior and actually got smoking hot despite the cool weather.

The bacteria like a moist, humid environment and it is wise to water each layer as it is added to make it a little soggy. They also like lots of air and the best way to keep the pile aerated is to turn it over each two weeks or so. Another trick is to place small tree limbs horizontally in the pile and pull them out from time to time. I like to turn the pile over but found this to be hard work when using a garden fork; good exercise however.

When Uma asked me what I would like for my birthday (at the end of this month I turn 72!), I replied that I would dearly love a pitch fork. Why wait, said she, and the next time we were at the hardware store, we got the fork. What a blessing proper tools are! How I love my new fork. Now I know why 'the Devil' is often pictured with a pitchfork...he has so much work to do, pitching those poor souls, and the right sort of fork makes the work so much easier!

Here I am, in my favorite gardening hat, good old Aussie Blundstone elastic sided boots and all! Is this the devil himself?

The great thing about compost piles is that one can put almost anything into them (except meat and fats) and, provided they are kept aerated, always smell OK. The microbes just munch it all up and turn it into stuff that, when added to the garden, does wonders for soil structure and is loved greatly by the worms, keeping the soil warm and so aiding plant growth. You can see I am a compost nut.

I made up a sieve from and old pallet and some chicken netting (left over from the 'banish woodchucks' project) and this is very useful in preparing the compost for adding to the garden and for potting. Here is some in the ancient wheel barrow. It smells fresh and sweet and has a wonderful feel to it. How could this, a year ago, have been pesky leaves and grass cuttings?

UPDATE ON ENERGY: Recent development of huge natural gas fields in Texas and Pennsylvania, along with new drilling techniques will translate into plentiful supplies of natural gas. This should enable, with carbon cap and trade, a shift away from coal fired power plants.

WAITING FOR YOUR CONCERNS ON HEALTH INSURANCE MATTERS and will see you next time.