Lloyd

Karen

I sell some, I give lots away, it all seems to be gone by the end of the year.

I'm guessing there is about 140 yards or so in the screened piles and another 30 or so left to be screened. We goofed by putting the 'overs' back onto the unscreened pile. We should have waited until we had it all done before we re-screened the overs. Having all the sticks and stones mixed back in slowed us down at the end.

This 'post is from windrowed yard trimmings gone through a long heat cycle and long curing period (two years total). Any foodstuff composting goes through the multi-tumblers.

Lloyd

The composting is quite the hobby and only the whackos enthusiasts here understand. The guys at work think I'm totally off my rocker. DW doesn't mind so much, keeps me out of the bars. ;-)

Cigarette filters do not compost at all, or at least in the two years that I let it sit. The paper and any tobacco disappear of course, but not the filter. There are a few, but surprisingly, I don't seem to get a lot and they do stand out like a sore thumb so are easy to spot.

Lloyd

I would like to inform you now that Nova Scotia is a very lovely place to live and there are some major pieces of land up for grabs - some very close to my humble abode - for those like you who are so incline to make wonderful compost and give it away.

I have already trained all Haligonians to set their bags to the curb every other week for you. Mondays is the south end, Tuesdays is the north end, Wednesdays is the west and so forth. No cigarette butts.

When should I book your flight?

You have to come and get it. You can either stop by the farm or pick some up in town. I have delivered to some worthy service organizations such as the Legion, schools or Community in Bloom, but you have to buy me coffee. ;-)

Lloyd

P.S. I've seen your compost piles and yard, you really don't need any help from me.

I just love my yellow gold, but the black stuff somehow is more satisfying =:)

What can I say, I like to make compost, it's not any one thing. It's the smell of finished compost, like a freshly turned garden. It's the silky smooth feel of screened compost as it sifts through your fingers. It's the magic of taking what many consider trash and making a desired commodity. It's the reaction of an experienced gardener when they see the 'post when I deliver it. (It's mostly elderly gardeners that really revere this stuff.) It's seeing a good gardener do magic with their seeds and soil. It's the solitude out in the field opening the bags in the morning. It's seeing the deer come out and nibble on all the apples that people throw away or the hawk diving out of the blue at a mouse I've disturbed. It's taking old cast off equipment and sprucing it up a bit to do a job.

People either "get" compost or they don't. If they don't, you can't make them "get" it but you can teach them to appreciate it a bit.

Or, I could just be nuts.

Lloyd

P.S. BTW, Thx for all the nice compliments.

Thx, I get all sorts of stones, from larger than a fist to tiny tiny gravel (this is the reason we don't use the trommel screener for the windrow compost). Not a lot of volume of these rocks/stones as our leaves are collected off lawns and such. I don't get leaves swept off the streets.

There are always branches and twigs as well, some up to 1.5 inch thick. The vibrating screener takes anything over 5/8ths of an inch out. Screened out rocks go into the rock pile (we are in a pretty rocky area so every farm has rock piles), inert materials go to the dumpster and wood either gets put into next years windrows or spread out on the field and worked into the land. Quite often the sticks are very soft and can be mushed by hand if a person wanted to.

I generally get most of the larger trash pieces picked out when I de-bag as I build the windrow but the small stuff sneaks by so we have to screen.

Lloyd

Lloyd

Oh my.. for a moment there when first viewing your photo I thought I could smell it. That perfect rich compost fragrance we all crave.

Then came the overpowering urge to stand at the edge of the pile, facing away from it, and fall back.. to make a lovely "compost angel"... ( you know..like a snow angel but in compost). :D

Love how your compost has a vintage; 2008.

Your screener looks like it does the job very well judging by the finished product. Looking at the screen, is that a 1/2 inch over a two inch wire? I'm guessing the wire supports the finer screen? How do you get rid of the oversize stuff or is just broken up until it falls through? Park a 'barrow underneath and you're good to go.

Lloyd

I've marked you as a contact on flickr. Please, please post more pics. Love your tractor and screener. Just shouted out to DW, "See, I'm not the only one who does this"!

Thx for posting.

Lloyd

Very nice compost and a big farm you have too. What do you use to make this compost?

"What do you use to make this compost?"

It is all yard waste yard trimmings. Grass clippings, leaves, garden/flower bed plants and some wheat straw. I don't do manures.

Lloyd

It is confirmed. I have compost envy.

""Took some of grandson spending time dropping thru screener."

Nice! And this is just a suggestion, if your tractor is anything like mine noise wise, see if you can get the young lad to wear some hearing protection. I wish I would have when I was young. :-(

Lloyd