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Tue, May 10, 11 at 10:03
| I turned my working pile and "semi-finished" pile the last couple days and weird thing was the working pile was actually farther along than it's older sister. I have been jonesing to see steam pouring off my compost for 10 years now to no avail, but I still get usable material in 3-4 months. My latest innovation for getting some heat going was to throw alfalfa meal every layer or two. Anyway, I am happy with my cold compost, it reminds me of my grandma's worm bed she used to keep since Lord knows my piles are full of nightcrawlers and red wigglers. I'm still thinking moisture is an issue, but it seemed moist enough today with all the rain we've been getting in MO, plus the hog slop I poured in was mighty wet...
Anyway, just riffing... |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| Whether a compost pile heats up or not depends on the activity of the bacteria that digest the material you put in. If the Carbon to Nitrogen ratio is close to the optimal 30:1 and the moisture level is about right, not too wet and not too dry they will go to work and generate the heat. Most often when a compost pile does not heat up it is because the C:N ratio is not quite where it should be or the moisture level is not where it should be the bacteria will not work as fast as the could and they do not generate that heat, although they will digest the material albeit more slowly. The moisture level should be about what is in a well wrung out sponge, slightly moist to the touch but no water drips when it is squeezed. That your compost pile has a lot of earthworms is an indication that it is too wet for the bacteria, water excludes the air they also need to function. Earthworms need an environment much moister then the aerobic bacteria in a compost pile do. |
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| A optimal pile will reach 160F in two to three days after it is built. The simplest recipe is one pound of shredded dry leaves to 1.5 pounds of fresh cut grass. |
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