I started my composting bin back in early October. For now it's just a large plastic bin with a lid. I hope to transition to a pile or large stick-built box later on, once I get things going (have a lot of browns to do something with, but I need a wood chipper first). I put what appeared to be good soil in there to start as well.

So it's been a little over a month, and I'm not seeing much... biggest thing is no heat that I can tell. Things are slowly breaking down, and there's some mush of broken down stuff at the bottom of the container. I typically leave the lid off for a day/week and give it a hard shake 1-2 times per week. I know the recent cold weather isn't helping. It seems to have plenty of moisture (slightly damp).

Should I drill holes in the sides of the container? I was hoping not to so that 1) I can repurpose this container later and 2) I don't want stuff coming out of the holes. Should I just leave the lid on all the time, since the lid certainly isn't air tight?

Also, I think my ratio is also way off now. I think I started at 2:1 (C:N) and have continued to add N, so I'm probably at 1:2 now. Guess I should quit being lazy and go get some more carbons.

11/12/2012 4:15:00 PM

Composting is kinda a liberal thing imo

I'm Krallum and I approved this message.

11/12/2012 4:21:38 PM

I started a vermicompost bin (worms) in February. It was mostly newspaper at the onset based on the setup instructions I was following. I added a handful or two of dirt but that's it. Mine did pretty much the same thing. I was worried I was doing something wrong at first because it didn't seem to be breaking anything down for a long time. Then in the span of a few days it started looking like compost. Now I have several cups of compost, and pretty much all I add is food scraps and a cover of shredded newspaper. Mine does have holes in the sides and bottom. I don't know if any of that is useful to you and I don't know a lot about troubleshooting compost, but that was my experience.

11/12/2012 4:26:49 PM

The secret is to pee on it.

http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/11/11/2477317/man-sees-ufo-in-carrboro.html

11/12/2012 4:37:45 PM

haha there is no way that article lives up to its title, and accompanied with your compost tip there is no way i'm going to disappoint myself by clicking on it.

I'm Krallum and I approved this message.

[Edited on November 12, 2012 at 4:41 PM. Reason : ]

11/12/2012 4:41:06 PM

It delivers.

11/12/2012 4:42:59 PM

^ Confirmed

Quote :

"CARRBORO -- Roy Mars was peeing in his compost last weekend -- it adds nitrogen -- when he looked up and saw something streak across the sky. "

[Edited on November 12, 2012 at 4:58 PM. Reason : .]

11/12/2012 4:57:23 PM

Worm composting is the way to go.

11/12/2012 7:50:48 PM

^

11/12/2012 7:59:42 PM

^^ agreed. You can buy worms to get started from Gardens Alive. My bin is bottomless is planted a couple of inches down.

11/12/2012 8:32:55 PM

if its not close to your house and you have no neighbors you could try dookie or rotten meat

11/12/2012 10:08:01 PM

It usually takes 3-6 months for a compost bin to get going. You need a good balance of green vs. brown (equal amount of each usually) and alternating layers are best. Kitchen scraps vs. wood chips, or whatever. It should be moist, but not clumping-together damp.

I try to turn mine every few months, but I'm lazy. I've got chickens that do a decent job of that. I usually get to it when I re-dig the garden beds each season.

You'll also not see as much activity in the fall and winter- you could try covering with a dark tarp to increase temperature from the sun.

You could try vermicomposting to speed up the process. I let mine sit directly on the ground so the native microbes and worms have come up from below.

11/13/2012 12:50:45 PM

It won't take months to get going if you aerate it! For bin composting, I recommend putting an aquarium stone at the bottom underneath some kind of grate. A large plastic trash can and perforated pizza pan work well in my experience. This will also cut the smell, so it will work fine in the garage or on the porch. Keep the lid on and use a stick to stir it as often as you think about it, at least twice a week, whenever you add stuff. You can use a probe thermometer taped to the stirring stick to check the temperature. It should get up to 140-160 degrees within 30 days. Then your compost bin will be rolling! The bacteria consume a lot of the nitrogen you add to the bin, so making the bin heavy on green waste/ food scraps is fine/preferable.

11/15/2012 10:48:27 AM

You'll want to make this for when you are ready to harvest the compost. I made one a few months ago and it was great for filtering out big sticks rocks and any other debris you don't want.

It's quick easy and inexpensive to make.

http://m.instructables.com/id/Compost-Screen/

11/19/2012 7:34:06 PM

Again, all these posts should make you realize vermi composting is the way to go.

11/19/2012 7:43:11 PM

Some people like to be really scientific with composting, temperatures, ratios, etc.

All I do is throw everything in a pile in my back yard. I made an open-top box out of forklift pallets. Worms found their way in and I throw in food scraps and the occasional bag of leaves. When I bury some food scraps, they'll be broken down in about 2 weeks in the winter, 1 in the summer.

11/25/2012 10:14:33 AM

yeah, i just have a pile in the backyard. there isn't even a bin...just a pile. I keep it in the corner of the fence behind a blueberry bush so it isn't really visible.

11/25/2012 10:42:35 AM

So, I have some holes and bare areas in my yard; could I just use compost to fill those in (from City of Raleigh)? Most of these areas are where dog pee has killed the grass so I want to fill in the gaps with good soil and seed this weekend. I'm hoping that good soil/compost will give the seed a good start and hopefully mature better to withstand some dog pee (I'm also training my dogs to go in a wooded area, but I don't know how well that will work out).

as far as my composting...

still haven't really started

I have a bin of mostly greens that I have neglected, so now it's a stinky mess I also have a large pile of browns in the back yard, but it needs to be chipped (trees, branches, etc.). I really want to chip that stuff up and build a bin to contain it (thought about just going with a pile, but I'm too OCD to do that.

4/3/2013 8:55:17 AM

i am in the process of getting a composting bin. cant wait to get started. I have a ton of browns but need to increase my levels of greens.

4/3/2013 11:33:15 AM

I do vermiculture! I have one bin of worms that are churning real well, I need to go ahead and dump out and restart!

4/3/2013 11:54:56 AM

My worms died in the move in November I tried to get new ones, but I haven't been able to find the right kind around here, so now I just have a box of dirt.

4/3/2013 12:08:45 PM

Go to any country store that sells fishing worms. Ask for red wigglers.

4/3/2013 12:16:39 PM

I know that. And I did that. I even went to a place with a giant WIGGLERS sign outside. But they only had Alabama jumpers, which are brown wigglers I believe. Even Walmart has worms, but not reds.

4/3/2013 12:51:58 PM

My father is heavy into composting and verma composting. I highly suggest checking out his youtube channel and if you have questions send him a message. He has a lot of connections with people and can help you out.

http://www.youtube.com/user/gsmWF360


The flowers in my mom's garden are some of the biggest anyone has ever seen. Their vegetables and fruits are truely organic and beat out everything else I've ever tasted, farmers market and whole foods included.


[Edited on April 4, 2013 at 1:30 AM. Reason : .]

4/4/2013 1:27:12 AM

OP: Drill holes. I had a friend who did this with a .45, though I used a drill. Or, if you really do wish to repurpose the container, just dump it all in a pile. It'll work better than being enclosed in the can.

4/4/2013 7:51:30 AM

^lol.

Well, my huge pile of yard waste, that I haven't touched in 5 months, is about 50% composted! It was mostly browns, but it's looking good. Unfortunately, I don't really have a use for it yet (not doing landscaping this year), except to spread it out where it currently lies in order to get a relatively flat area so I can build some stalls to keep this process a little more organized (the pile was just a huge mix of leaves/needles, limbs, trunks, roots, vines, rocks, etc. and thus not the best material to actually spread and use). Planning on doing (4) 4x4x4 stalls (compost, yard waste holding/compost (grass clippings, needles, leaves), to be chipped material (small trees/limbs/etc.) and trash (stuff to be burned)).

[Edited on April 22, 2013 at 10:55 AM. Reason : .]

4/22/2013 10:52:16 AM

So I'm on the lookout for some fancy compost bin thing I can roll around (on the cheap), but for now, what can I use? A big Rubbermaid tub with holes that I turn myself? Is a trash can better?

Speaking of brown vs green, it appears that grass clippings and kitchen waste are both green. This time of year, where do I get my browns from?

also should i go ahead and get some of those worms?????

[Edited on May 18, 2014 at 11:42 PM. Reason : ^ Where are you at these days with composting?]

5/18/2014 11:36:32 PM

We built a frame out of 2x4s and field wire, left the bottom open. I add kitchen scraps (no meat or cheese), grass clippings, shredded brown paper. Haven't mixed it yet this year, because I just started it last month and we don't have a lot of chicken litter yet from our chicks.

At the rate this normally goes, I get about 1 cubic yard/year from compost for the garden. I'm doing an experiment on a 15'x30' plot to see if lasagna gardening works on a larger scale. I rototilled the grass under, then added a layer of cardboard, now goat manure and straw. The objective is to have it be ready to turn under by September.

5/18/2014 11:47:52 PM

^^Yes use worms. You won't have to turn or mix. It also works better year round. Also, don't you get your yard treated? Do you plan on using this compost for a garden?

5/19/2014 6:37:49 AM

I bought a rolling one from Amazon. The Goodthings dual-sided one here: http://amzn.com/B0090I5AAI .

Last year in the fall, I created a compost pile when I went over the lawn with the mulching mower, bagged the mulch and stuck it in a pile near the property line. I went out to check it a few weeks ago and it had started to turn pretty well, so I bought my GF the bin above and we added some scraps from the kitchen.


I too am having issues finding browns at this time of year, though. I've read you can add cardboard.

5/19/2014 8:11:18 AM

whoops, forgot about this thread...

I built a 3-bin open system this winter (4x4 posts, 2x4 framing, and chicken wire).



I added a mobile rough screen and screen frame that can be placed over any of the bins




But I'm not as motivated as you folks. I don't turn the piles or maintain them at all. Mother nature knows what to do, she may be slower, but it still composts.

And browns? browns? I got so much brown I'm burning/burned half of it already. Greens are normally my issue.

And the good thing about an open system like this is that the worms will come to you! Only real issue is it drying out, but oh well.

[Edited on May 19, 2014 at 8:46 AM. Reason : .]

5/19/2014 8:36:31 AM

So I've got my bin started...in the form of a free-to-me earth machine. Parked it in the woods where it's mostly in the shade...a little sun hits it for 30-60 minutes a day though (not full on).

Dumped in a couple bags of mushroom/cow compost, a bunch of green kitchen waste, some of those soft cardboard fruit containers, few handful of leaves. Ordered a pound of red wrigglers...supposed to be around 1000.

What else? I feel like I need to add some water. I read you want it to be like a wet sponge. Wring it your hands and a drop of water should come out. Sound right?

Do I really need a thermometer?

6/2/2014 4:37:01 PM

^ I have that same one

I don't have a thermometer, in the summer time (when I throw my neighbors grass in), you can feel the heat. Grass also helps keep plenty of moisture. Everything else you said sounds good I guess.

6/2/2014 4:40:13 PM

Oh yeah I've got one of those yard bags full of grass clippings. should i throw them all in? too much green? maybe try to put layers in with brown?

[Edited on June 2, 2014 at 5:12 PM. Reason : also think imma start collecting the coffee grounds at work]

6/2/2014 5:01:10 PM

I use fresh clippings as green for the plot. I gather them from my bagged grass clippings. I put cardboard and unbleached paper as my browns in the pile.

6/2/2014 5:26:04 PM

be sure to leave most of your grass clippings on your lawn. Free low-power fertilizer year round. Helps quite a bit.

6/2/2014 5:29:11 PM

^ i do...i just grabbed one bag's worth to use as compost. i suspect they're gonna break down quickly and help everything else break down quicker too. tonight i added layers of leaves, coffee grounds (got a bunch from work), grass clippings and bagged compost (the compost to hopefully jumpstart the process)

i wonder if i shouldn't just completely load up another compost bin in the fall with alternating layers of grass clippings and leaves and maybe coffee grounds. should have plenty of all three then. seem like a decent idea?

can't wait for the to throw the worms in. i figure a pounds worth should be enough right?

6/2/2014 9:21:55 PM

also how many of you all put cardboard in your compost? i figure you gotta shred it up some right?

what about beer containers? what about paper plates that don't leak through...there must be some plastic there right?

6/2/2014 11:46:12 PM

The worms will reproduce to the appropriate level if you don't have enough to start.

6/3/2014 6:07:28 AM

I jam pack my composter with grass clippings, as much as I can jam in there. It gets broken down very very quickly and I can jam another big bag in the next week.

I have never put cardboard in my composter and rarely do any paper towels (just don't think about it). During the summer I don't put a lot of brown in the composter.

Quote :

"be sure to leave most of your grass clippings on your lawn."

that's why I use my neighbor's grass clippings. I just steal them from the curb before the city yard waste collection comes.

6/3/2014 4:29:18 PM

Don't grass clippings eventually produce a thatch that will help kill the lawn? I fully intend on displacing all lawn with more productive gardens, so it'll be gone anyway. I feel the grass clippings are more useful in the compost bin right now.

I also don't mow my lawn that often right now (~ 1-2/month) because my honeybees are harvesting clover nectar off of it.

6/4/2014 10:56:58 AM

^ I used to think that clippings might promote thatch, but I don't think that's true anymore.

http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/garden/07007.html

Quote :

"The idea that clippings left on lawns will cause thatch has been disproven. Thatch is a brown, spongy material consisting of dead grass stems and roots."

6/4/2014 11:37:45 AM

^this. thatch = roots & stems, primarily an issue with any spreading/running grass or weed invasions.

Grass clippings left in the lawn still breakdown or compost providing much needed nutrients year-round and actually lessen the amount of manufactured fertilizer needed. Now, if you've got such tall grass or enough clippings that they start to build-up in the grass, or bury the grass (even clumps), that will kill the turf. Chances are, your compost doesn't need weekly grass clippings, at least not more than your turf. I typically bag & compost grass clippings if I've let my grass get tall and I'll have an excess of clippings (too much to leave on the turf at once). Otherwise, I'd recommend something like composting 1 out of every 4 mowings, depending on your mowing schedule.

6/4/2014 11:45:13 AM

For those that vermicompost, do you prepare a bedding for your worms (peat moss, shredded cardboard etc) then compost on top of that, or can you just throw them in your existing pile. In general is there anything you do different/special with what's being discussed ITT?

Also I might be getting access to more coffee grounds than I can use. Would anyone be interested in some coffee grounds?

6/4/2014 11:59:15 AM

Just sprinkle the grounds across your lawn. Doesn't hurt and keeps bugs/pests down.

My dad has a layer of cardboard on top. He will bokashi and composts separately. There's an extra tuppaware container in the fridge where they keep house scraps (banana peels, fruit/vegetable waste, coffee grounds, egg shells, etc) that will later get pureed. Pull up some dirt and fill the hole with the puree. Helps to do this in a couple/several spots. Doesn't have to be deep, just get the puree below the surface. Cardboard clippings on top of the composted soil.

If you haven't already, watch my dad's youtube channel linked above.

The compost will have some cardboard/paper in it. if the compost looks light on fiber, you can always add a some carboard clippings in addition to the new layer from your compost/bokashi bin.


[Edited on June 4, 2014 at 12:35 PM. Reason : .]

6/4/2014 12:32:37 PM

^ Thanks for the ideas.

Seems like I might not wanna throw worms in my existing bin since it sounds like the temperature of the heap can get pretty high doing a regular compost.

The link below says you wanna keep your heap below 84 degrees with worms...

http://lancaster.unl.edu/pest/resources/vermicompost107.shtml

6/4/2014 2:51:27 PM

Feeding will also increase temps. Helpful in the winter... Something to be mindful of in the summer. its nice to have a few thermostats (with different length probes) in the heap so you can measure the temps at different layers without having to disturb them. Ice packs can help hold off high temps.

6/4/2014 4:28:19 PM

I have two square composting bins. One of my biggest problems is having roots cluster in the bottom of my compost. I spent almost an hour maybe a little longer on Saturday getting all the compost out and de-rooting the bottom of one composting bin. It took almost a third of my total volume of compost out once I de-rooted the entire box

My worms looked great

6/5/2014 9:55:20 AM

Interestingly, I went out and put some greens in my rolling composter this morning, and there were some earthworms in both sides. Not sure how that happened, but I'm not complaining. Nature shit be crazy, yo.

6/8/2014 3:22:05 PM

Quote :

"I too am having issues finding browns at this time of year, though. I've read you can add cardboard."

Anyone have any ideas outside of cardboard? I'm thinking nutritionally cardboard doesn't add much to the value of the final product.

I've read straw (not hay though) is a good brown to keep around as needed, but I'm not sure where I can find it. Any ideas?

6/16/2014 5:10:03 PM