"Let It Rot"

 

Dan,
what do you think of the book?
--
- Billy
"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the
merger of state and corporate power." - Benito Mussolini.

http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Zinn/HZinn_page.html

 

In article


Still reading, However, much better than Rodales Book on composting!

I just got done mowing the lawn and added one cubic yard (3 acre lawn)
of grass clippings to the pile along with about one bale of straw with
chicken crap and two crocks of kitchen scraps. For the rest of summer
this will a weekly ritual. It took me all day to mow the yard, clean the
hen house and feed myself and the dog. I am tired. Good for the soul :)

I like page 34, Stubborn Materials. I have in the past put corn cobs,
Grapefruit rinds and husk in the compost to be still there. They will
compost in the very large hot compost pile. But very difficult to turn.
Someday I will get a farm tractor with a front loader or a BobCat (more
dream than reality).

I have put some woody materials in the compost pile and they break down
quickly. Some woody materials like rose bush clipping never break down!
Just like on page 34.

Composting like other aspects of gardening is a big learning curve for
me. Until I can afford a nice chipper/shredder I will burn or bury all
wood materials. Like California, Michigan now has state wide burn bans
during dryer months of summer.

I currently use open piles. I may construct several wire bins.
I wish I had "Let it Rot" long ago. I switched to burying woody
materials after reading "Gais Garden".

When I learn something new - I call it a good day - Today was a good day!

--
Enjoy Life... Dan

Garden in Zone 5 South East Michigan.

 

Dan L. wrote:
...

hi Dan (and everyone else :) ),



  i have a ban on piles here so i cannot compost
at the moment, i answer that by digging holes and
burying whatever i want to rot.  in a few years it
digs up nice and black.  the wood i have set
aside and then done a "mushroom garden" in a
low spot that gets plenty of moisture.  i figure in
a few years it will be mostly done (2 cu yds :) ).

  a chipper/shredder would speed up the process
but i like the sound of my shovel thunking through
the dirt and the exercise from digging.  :)

  some day i will look into learning how to make
charcoal and see if i can try that someplace.  i'm
hearing a lot of good things about "black" earth and
from what i remember about activated carbon i
can see why.  the smoke is my biggest trouble
(lungs really don't like it at all).



  ah, i should have read ahead.  :)  hehe,



  ditto!  finally a sunny afternoon for gardening.  beauty
of a day to get some weeding done.


  songbird  (also in MI, up in the Saginaw Valley plain).

 



The technique for burying woody materials is called "Hugelkulture".
http://hubpages.com/hub/Hugelkultur-Using-Woody-Waste-in-Composting

That makes four here, that I know are from Michigan.
I will let you discover who they are :)

--
Enjoy Life... Dan

Garden in Zone 5 South East Michigan.

 

Dan L. wrote:

  ah!  i didn't think there was a name for it and it
is not a woodland area they are buried in.  basically
i just dug a trench, put some wood in, layered some
dirt on top, then another layer of wood, and then more
dirt, no mushrooms yet, but i'll expect some this fall
and next spring, a lot of it already was partly decayed
and had some fungi underneath it when we moved it.



  i've already seen a few fly by.  :)


  songbird