I'm looking to start a composting setup using 4-5 50gal drums, and I was hoping to just use grass clippings for my greens, and dried leaves for my browns during the spring, summer, and fall, since I always have an abundance of each. Would this make for good compost, or will I need to add other things as well? I always have things like bread, egg shells, coffee grounds, envelopes from junk mail, napkins, dryer lit, etc that gets thrown away. I just figured if I could use just clippings and leaves for 3/4 of the year, it'd be easier, since I can mow the grass and dump my bagger, and I can mow over the leaves, mulching them, and empty them the same way.
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New to composting, what to use?
- Thread starter chuey_316
- Start date
Wetting the pile with some N heavy nutrient or even pissing on the pile a few times helps start it as well. Coffee grounds are very high in N as well, egg shells good, the rest I would avoid. Try to stay on the vegetal inputs, as troutman said. Keep in mind, a compost too high in N and with little aeration, like for example grass clippings can create will go bad and smell and take more time to compost that way. You need some texture in there to avoid that, like leaves or even small chopped up twigs, or tree bark are good as part of the mix. Variety of inputs will also add to the variety of nutrients and micronutrients available in the end product, so not bad to add some extra stuff you find around from time to time.
Three Berries
Active member
Throw in some powdered limestone to add Ca and Mg and speed up the process.
Thanks everyone. I'll use the clippings and leaves as a base, add in some bone meal, and limestone, and add fruits and veggies each week, as well as egg shells and coffee grounds as they add up. Would it be a good idea to add some blood meal as well? I'd like to eventually get my soil to the point that it'll get me from veg to harvest, having to only top dress at the beginning or end of each season. The soil as it sits got me all the way through my last grow, and my plants were all 4-6ft tall, after allot of super cropping and lst, but definitely fell short in flower. I brought in a yard of cow manure compost for this season, and plan to use my own compost to amend after each grow.
Best place for organics....
Get compost starter maybe find a better deal...but its microbes help start breaking down your mix
Ive seen this everywhere Its available locally where ever you are......
Tutorial - Organics for Beginners
Here are some tried and true recipes for getting started in organic growing. Pick one of the first two soiless mix recipes for your grow medium. Then, choose a nutrient recipe that will work best for what you have available. Enjoy... Here are two very good organic soiless mixes... LC's Mix is...
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Get compost starter maybe find a better deal...but its microbes help start breaking down your mix
Ive seen this everywhere Its available locally where ever you are......
Espoma Organic Traditions Compost Starter
St. Phatty
Active member
If you're in a closed system, I suggest sticking with redworm composting.
they will do their job and turn the food scraps etc. into usable fertilizer.
they will do their job and turn the food scraps etc. into usable fertilizer.
So that would mean doing everything listed above, only adding worms to help speed things along? Would a compost starter still be useful, or no need with the worms?
There are a lot of factors at play to get high quality compost.
Maybe try find some YouTube vids from your area or at least similar climates. Hawaiian composting would be very different to composting in Alaska for example.
Maybe try find some YouTube vids from your area or at least similar climates. Hawaiian composting would be very different to composting in Alaska for example.
Inoculate with compost microbes, and keep some guano or blood meal (if you're comfotable using it) on hand to add Nitrogen to the pile when it needs a Charge.
St. Phatty
Active member
Food scraps yes.
>>> envelopes from junk mail, napkins, dryer lit, etc that gets thrown away
I have a small area where I put cardboard that has ants on it since I don't want to burn that.
Not organic but the plants still grow there.
Three Berries
Active member
Fresh wood ash is high in trace elements and calcium. High pH though.
No meat in the food scraps, or you will get flies.
Steviewunder
Member
lots of factors come into composting , first would be heat created by the piles
second would be your worms. First you want compost piles to reach a certain temp and stay there over a period of time, in turn this does two things.. it allows harmful bacteria to be burned off, and lets unwanted seeds germinate and die off. You will see lots of fungus and mycelium's in this stage. After this break down happens the change of size in a pile can be drastic but takes some time depending on conditions(carbon:nitrogen ratio, weather etc) Aeration is important as mention that's why you want to turn or rotate the pile often.
After the heat breaks everything down you will have a nice fungus or bacteria that the worms then will move in and work. I usually add in kelp meal, ground egg shells, and lime at this point. If i was to buy worms i would add them after the heat breakdown process I feel like adding them from the start they would burn up in the pile. If you want to speed everything up keep adding molasses when you water your pile down, Add whatever you may to your piles I avoid human and dog poop. the list of what goes in for me is endless the more diversity the better.
second would be your worms. First you want compost piles to reach a certain temp and stay there over a period of time, in turn this does two things.. it allows harmful bacteria to be burned off, and lets unwanted seeds germinate and die off. You will see lots of fungus and mycelium's in this stage. After this break down happens the change of size in a pile can be drastic but takes some time depending on conditions(carbon:nitrogen ratio, weather etc) Aeration is important as mention that's why you want to turn or rotate the pile often.
After the heat breaks everything down you will have a nice fungus or bacteria that the worms then will move in and work. I usually add in kelp meal, ground egg shells, and lime at this point. If i was to buy worms i would add them after the heat breakdown process I feel like adding them from the start they would burn up in the pile. If you want to speed everything up keep adding molasses when you water your pile down, Add whatever you may to your piles I avoid human and dog poop. the list of what goes in for me is endless the more diversity the better.
I’ve had great success using black soldier fly larvae to breakdown organic waste including dog and human poop, even huge rats that my cats frequently catch. Do an internet search of the term and you will have enough links for a lifetime of reading.
In my opinion if you are embarking on a composting project black soldier fly larvae are essential.
In my opinion if you are embarking on a composting project black soldier fly larvae are essential.
Steviewunder
Member
They certainly are, I have had them naturally come to my compost when using spent brewers waste from a local brewery, and they also liked coffee grinds.. My chickens loved them when they found them in piles and they would go crazy for them, I later learned they are a common feed source in poultry operations. I was going to set a up a farm for them to harvest them its not to hard. I know they eat poop and stuff I just dont incorporate that into my systems, they will consume anything!! proteins especially I dont think they like carbons. They multiply 500x each time the female lay eggs so you can amass them fast.
