|
| As per my recent emails to this forum, I'm involved with a school gardening project, which includes composting in 3 ft x 3 ft x 3 ft bins using a recipe of alfalfa meal, straw, and some extra mushroom compost we had left over that had been added to the garden's raised beds.
The piles were created on a Monday and were already heating up nicely by the following Wed. Our composting thermometer malfunctioned, so I'm not sure of initial temps., but they felt hot enough to potentially burn your hand. By the end of a hot, dry week, the new thermometers we obtained showed the piles had cooled a little with temps on Friday at ~ 90-100 F with some "hot spots" of up to 150 F. But showers over the weekend seemed to bring the piles down to basically air temp. (75-80 F) w/ the exception of a few lingering hot spots. I was considering, and am considering again, laying tarps over the tops of the four piles to give me more control over moisture levels in the piles. But I've been concerned about the piles being unable to "breath" sufficiently under the tarps, although they would still be open on all four sides, which are composed of wire mesh fencing. Any feedback on anyone's experience on covering a compost pile with a tarp - pros, cons, benefits, etc. - would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. John |
Follow-Up Postings:
|
| Tarps can aid in controlling moisture in compost piles but htey also can limit the air exchange an active compost pile needs if the tarps are placed in such a way they contact the composting material. If you make a frame to keep the tarps up off the compost then they would keep that rain off without shutting off air exchange. |
|
- Posted by schreber_gaertner SoCal 9/10 (My Page) on Mon, May 16, 11 at 12:45
| Here where we get little rain, I almost always put plastic garbage bags over my bins. When I don't, they dry out too quickly, and I end up wasting water just keeping the piles moist. I use the round, roll-up kind of bins with holes around the sides, and I've never had a problem with insufficient air circulation. I also turn them every 3-4 weeks, which helps as well. |
|
| Previous (old) threads with some discussions pros/cons. Lloyd |
|
| Thank you, Lloyd! We all say what we think (or read) is true. Not you, you go out and do it over & over again. Then you record it in photos & explain it slowly for us( some of us are slow or just hard headed). You & a few others have taught me a lot, after many years of compost & gardening. I will say it again You are the Compost Man! Are the flood water down, now? |
|
| I'm not affected by the floods directly as I am up on high land. (Dear old Dad knew how to pick a good location) My wheat is all seeded and now I can get back to composting. :-) Lloyd |
|
- Posted by Lisa(lisa.decker@yahoo.com) onWed, Sep 14, 11 at 14:29
| My mother loves composing since we are in preschool because aside from it's environmental, it is the best way to plant vegetables and it's very healthy that why i'm a vegetarian. My mom uses a tarp to cover the compost pile since then, according to her it's very natural to use tarp instead of some other stuff. I'll gonna share this link to you where you could find high quality tarps that you could use to your compost file. http://www.tarpsplus.com http://www.tarpsplus.com/canvastarps.html |
|
- Posted by Samantha Miller(samantha.miller2236@yahoo.com) onThu, Sep 15, 11 at 15:39
| It's okay to use tarps but make sure you pick out a tarp that is well made and will stand up to years of use and will stand up to harsh weather conditions in case the weather should turn bad. Here's the link where you can find High quality tarps: http://www.tarpsplus.com/heavy-duty-poly-tarps.html |
|
| wow, Helen, Samantha, and Lisa all seem to have different ideas about what kind of tarp to use - perhaps I should just purchase all three types from the purveyor of tarps they have all linked to - what a happy coincidence! I'm sure the merchant in question must be a fine and reputable establishment to have garnered such unprompted endorsements from three upstanding composting citizens within the span of a day or two! |
|
- Posted by novascapes none (My Page) on Fri, Sep 16, 11 at 8:43
| I am a big experimenter. I first had my compost pile uncovered. The internal temps were about 150 degrees. The outer foot was much cooler. I then covered the pile with clear plastic, 8 mil., in direct contact to about a foot from the bottom. Thus far, for about 3 weeks, the pile has maintained temps. from 150 to 160 degrees all the way out to the surface , with the exception of the outermost layer at the bottom. I have another pile which I have a low volume fan forced air tube in the bottom and covered the same way. The results are about the same. I think this is mainly due to the wind blowing rather constantly and forcing air into the bottom of the pile without the forced air. The air blowing over the covered piles will also lift it periodically which I also assume adds air to the pile. |
|
| emmers_m- I know about Lisa she's my friend, we've been purchasing a clear tarps since then because we love gardening with her mother. I don't know Samantha, but i will be glad if we became friends.I will give Credit's to this forum. Regarding placing a tarp to compost file, It is okay. It can never limit an air to the compost because their are tarps that meant for agricultural purposes. I suggest TarpsPlus. |
|
- Posted by albert_135 Sunset 2 or 3 (My Page) on Fri, Sep 16, 11 at 15:21
| I haven't seen a tarp in years that was organic or natural. All the tarps I see these days are blue plastic, artificial, manufactured chemicals. |
|
| albert_135- There are tarps that used for agricultural purposes. Covering plants in a small garden shelter from wind and extreme conditions can help protect them for better health, not to mention more comfortable working conditions. Check this out: http://www.tarpsplus.com |
|
- Posted by curtludwig New England (My Page) on Tue, Sep 20, 11 at 12:57
| Wow, tarp shills on GardenWeb? I have no doubt Helen, Lisa and Samantha are the same person and all in league with tarpsplus. Based on that I will NEVER buy from Tarpsplus. |
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.