Compost--Ideas, Recipes and Theories

[DKWunlimited]

I've been trying to work on raised beds <wheelchair level> and researching lasagna gardening, composting, worm composting etc... It sure would be nice to not have to go through all the searches every time I'm looking for the info.

If I'm building beds in the Fall, can I just layer paper, scraps, chicken manuer, rabbit manuer etc.. into the beds and let set over the winter... or should I set up a worm composting station to process all that stuff first? How do I decide which food scraps would be better to feed to the rabbits or chickens and which ones to go in the compost bin?

[tallpines]

How do you make your best compost?

[oberhaslikid]

Originally Posted by DKWunlimited

I've been trying to work on raised beds <wheelchair level> and researching lasagna gardening, composting, worm composting etc... It sure would be nice to not have to go through all the searches every time I'm looking for the info.

If I'm building beds in the Fall, can I just layer paper, scraps, chicken manuer, rabbit manuer etc.. into the beds and let set over the winter... or should I set up a worm composting station to process all that stuff first? How do I decide which food scraps would be better to feed to the rabbits or chickens and which ones to go in the compost bin?

This is what I do and it works for me.
I switched to raised beds this year in my main garden. I layed news paper in the bottom to get rid of it mainly.My DH collects leaves in town in the fall and we keep them or use them when we need to. Then we add any new grass clippings, and clean out chicken coops and barn droppings and layer it. We still didnt have enough,and we went and bought some top soil to add to it.We layered it all in the boxes, with the leaves on the bottom and covered it with the topsoil to 10 inches and planted.This is six 4x10x10 boxes.
The Garden looks great this year.

[oberhaslikid]

Originally Posted by tallpines

How do you make your best compost?

Leaves, grass clippings, Manure,Sun and a can of cola to jump start the micros.

[ceresone]

I 'kinda patterened mine after what I read in Four Season Harvest.
I use straw bales, set apart a slight bit for air. I have 3 bales wide, 4 bales long. I have straw first layer, supposedly the straw is hollow stem, and lets air in. I have chicken house cleanings, horse barn cleanings, clippings from the 10 acres I mow, residue from 3 bushels of apples, 3 bushel tomatoes, 3 bushel of corn, scraps from the rest of the garden, weeds, house scraps, corn stalks, will soon be cleaning up the garden, and mowing leaves to add to the pile. By winter, I hope to be 3 bales high,
Big undertaking, getting a little hard to turn, but going fine so far.
I used to just sheet compost, but now this.

[mnn2501]

Originally Posted by DKWunlimited

I've been trying to work on raised beds <wheelchair level> and researching lasagna gardening

You can grow lasagna??


just kidding, I couldn't resist