|
| I was able to get these two large bags of wood shavings from our local high school (wood shop). (In fact I can obtain two similar sized bags each week if I wanted).
I have two residential rectangular composters (approximately 14 cu. ft each in capacity). How much of these shavings can I add to the bin at anyone time?
|
Follow-Up Postings:
|
- Posted by toxcrusadr (My Page) on Tue, Mar 13, 12 at 10:56
| They are a super-brown and will need at least an equal volume (if not twice) of fresh grass clippings to make compost, just as an example. I would not add them in a clump, but mix with other materials when you have them, or layer them over your regular kitchen scraps and other deposits. I use a lot of them, they are just slow and need a lot of nitrogen. You can dump them in a wire mesh bin to begin *very* slowly composting on their own, and use them out of there so they have a bit of a head start. Also makes pretty good mulch. |
|
| toxcrusadr wrote: They are a super-brown and will need at least an equal volume (if not twice) of fresh grass clippings to make compost, UPDATE: Well I did just that yesterday i.e. I was able to get a large bag of week old grass clippings from a neighbour. Just below the surface of this bag it was hot, hot, hot. I then added one bag of my wood shavings and this bag of grass to my two composters. The problem is that for now both bins are now full to the top. I am hoping that in a few weeks the volume will be decreased so I can continue adding my household greens. |
|
| The grass should go fast with the wood shavings to soak it up. Lotta water in there! |
|
| Rouge, did you get any heat with your mix? Wood shavings are a very strong C but as far as nutrition goes I think it will be limited. Having said that, grass clippings have decent nutrients themselves. Keep us posted on how it works. Lloyd |
|
- Posted by toxcrusadr (My Page) on Fri, May 25, 12 at 10:44
| I've made an awful lot of compost over the years using mainly grass clippings, wood shavings and leaves. Of course all my kitchen waste and other yard stuff goes in, but I've made entire batches out of just those ingredients plus a scoop of wood ash. It makes great fluffy compost. Would be interesting to test the nutrients vs. compost from more varied ingredients. It sure is great for lightening soil texture. Rouge, if you have garden beds, the mix also makes a great mulch around tomatoes, etc. By fall it is usually gone, nutrients and humus given up to the soil below. |
|
- Posted by lazygardens PhxAZ%3A Sunset 13 (My Page) on Fri, May 25, 12 at 16:09
| If you mix the wood chips with the grass clippings it all composts really fast. And, for covering kitchen scraps, it's nice to have a bag of something dry. However, I wouldn't worry about getting the perfect balance, because they WILL decompose. Use it as mulch, cover paths with it, whatever you can think of. |
Please Note: Only registered members are able to post messages to this forum. If you are a member, please log in. If you aren't yet a member, join now!
Return to the Soil Forum
Instructions
- You must be a registered member and logged in to post messages on our forums.
- Posting is a two-step process. Once you have composed your message, you will be taken to the preview page. You will then have a chance to review the contents and make changes.
- After posting your message, you may need to refresh the forum page in order to see it.
- It is illegal to post copyrighted material without the owner's consent.
- HTML codes are allowed in the message field only.
- No advertising is allowed in any of the forums.
- If you would like to practice posting or uploading photos, please visit our Test forum.
- If you need assistance, please Contact Us and we will be happy to help.