Can I use compost in thermophilic phase in garden bed?

[Ernst]

I cannot fight the soil. I can feed it. Aerobic, or not, mulching soon becomes part of the mix. A very old way of fertilizing is dumping into a large pot or barrel of water. Stinky barrels some people call them. Those go anaerobic, but once dumped out the rotten broken down materials break down even further.

That is interesting.
I do believe they all must eat so that makes sense.
Sill that earthy good smell is enjoyable for me but I do see your point!
I am going to experiment with a "stinky barrel" with soaking cardboard. I have half of what I started with but it's still a tall mountain taking up about an eighth of the shop space and half way to the rafters of Amazon boxes. I had to furnish this place after two decades of living in small quarters and having not much in the way of house and shop!
Note to others. Don't think rototiller can chop up cardboard strips without them being completely wet first.

 

[DirtMechanic]

I dig a trench and fill with anything and everything from compost to fresh veg peelings when I am preparing for planting runner beans. I think what they like about it is the moisture retention, but when I dig next year it is all rotted in fine. Perhaps digging aerates the soil deeper, I had always thought of it as being because the soil contains the appropriate bacteria.
Anyway, I would prefer it to planting in fresh compost, some things might be okay, but it could be a bit much for others.

With our horrible choking clay I put in leaves and charcoal from the twigs and stick pile each fall. I till it in spring. I have a lot of leaves, maybe 25 mulch garden carts full. The composting materials do work to soften the tilling pan limit down below -eventually. I used an auger this spring and was interested to see that pan transition area not be much of a hard horizontal line. I do not mind a non-percolating soil if that water line is well below the feeder roots as if it were a water pan under a potted plant. It gets harder to make an impact with a tiller once I get to the tiller depth limits of 6-8 inches.

 

[DirtMechanic]

That is interesting.
I do believe they all must eat so that makes sense.
Sill that earthy good smell is enjoyable for me but I do see your point!
I am going to experiment with a "stinky barrel" with soaking cardboard. I have half of what I started with but it's still a tall mountain taking up about an eighth of the shop space and half way to the rafters of Amazon boxes. I had to furnish this place after two decades of living in small quarters and having not much in the way of house and shop!
Note to others. Don't think rototiller can chop up cardboard strips without them being completely wet first.

If you put an aerator in the barrel you will be on the way to making the modern version of compost tea. In both cases the bottom of the barrel can be fitting with a pouring spout for filling containers.

 

[Ernst]

Not so sure that pure grass cuttings would work just added raw to the soil. By vegetable matter I mean a good mix of stuff, along with grass, vegetable peelings, tree leaves, coffee grounds and tea leaves (not plastic tea bags) etc.
I would let the grass begin to decompose in a turned heap before using it, otherwise there is a real risk of it just doing anything in the soil because of a lack of oxygen.
Composting grass is possible, you just need to keep it watered and aerated, by turning it every week or so.

Well there is that risk that I have become the crazed old-guy gardener.
So I do have incentive to show exceptional results.
The first instinct I had was to loosen the soil. Friability for the roots is the general idea with an eye towards root crops like carrots!
I don't have Bugs Bunny but with Guinea Pigs here both root and top are foodstuffs.
Also I am happy on a Type Two diet that allows me steamed carrots. I'm going to bet my carrots will taste better than store bought.
About that aerobic vs anaerobic microorganisms. I hope that once I am done tilling in materials that the new soil bed will seek it's proper balance. That's the idea. On a purist viewpoint I do understand the benefits of no-till garden bed. I assume with the two inch reference that you do turn under a bit. These are all acceptable to me. I don't plan to spend a month tilling deeply every season-trust me.

 

[Ernst]

If you put an aerator in the barrel you will be on the way to making the modern version of compost tea. In both cases the bottom of the barrel can be fitting with a pouring spout for filling containers.

Now for my indoor garden of an ( I believe ) unmentionable genus, I often bubble guinea pig manure and fresh fresh coffee. I can add other things too like unsulphered black molasses or powdered kelp.
I like to be imaginative so it is usually what I think is appropriate for the situation. Then again I would water with that with the intent of feeding microbes rather than feeding plant roots.
But you have good advice for sure!

 

[Meadowlark]

I dig a trench and fill with anything and everything from compost to fresh veg peelings when I am preparing for planting runner beans. I think what they like about it is the moisture retention, but when I dig next year it is all rotted in fine. Perhaps digging aerates the soil deeper, I had always thought of it as being because the soil contains the appropriate bacteria.
Anyway, I would prefer it to planting in fresh compost, some things might be okay, but it could be a bit much for others.

I've been reading up on "No Dig" gardening and what you describe, which is prohibited by No Dig, is one singular failure of the No Dig approach, IMO. The ability to amend soil by digging the amendment in is a powerful gardening force.

 

[Ernst]

I have a question...

In the no-dig style, which I understand has some impressive devotees, I believe there are some crops that "do work" in friable ( for the roots ) soil.
What would be some of them?
I read beets are one.

 

[Meadowlark]

I'm doing an experiment on what "works" means in the context of "NO Dig". I'll get back to you in Nov. So far, I'm not at all impressed.

 

[DirtMechanic]

Now for my indoor garden of an ( I believe ) unmentionable genus, I often bubble guinea pig manure and fresh fresh coffee. I can add other things too like unsulphered black molasses or powdered kelp.
I like to be imaginative so it is usually what I think is appropriate for the situation. Then again I would water with that with the intent of feeding microbes rather than feeding plant roots.
But you have good advice for sure!

lol its worth what you paid for it. But if you are having fun that is really the priceless point.

 

[Oliver Buckle]

The idea of tilling in lots of grass cuttings appeals, but I feel cautious about it because it is only one thing being added. Nature is usually fond of diversity, I would be looking for other things that could be added, coffee grounds, ash from wood burning stoves, agricultural leftovers, like hop shoddy, the sludge from the bottom of the pond, autumn leaves; there are all sorts of things you can get for free that add a bit of diversity.

 

[Oliver Buckle]

With our horrible choking clay I put in leaves and charcoal from the twigs and stick pile each fall

I am on Weald clay. I go round the beds with a bucket every so often and pick up the hard balls of clay that the hoe doesn't break up, then I stick it in the greenhouse to dry. I make a cylinder of chicken wire and fill it with layers of twigs and sticks, and dried clay, not too neatly so when I light it the fire can spread easily and burn hot enough to fire the clay, You would think "What difference is three or four buckets going to make?" but remember you have also taken out three or four buckets of clay as well as adding the ash and terracotta the fired clay has become, it makes it much more friable and the process is accumulative, because, unlike compost, it does not rot away.

 

[Meadowlark]

The idea of tilling in lots of grass cuttings appeals, but I feel cautious about it because it is only one thing being added.

Composted cow manure is my mainstay soil amendment not grown in situ in the garden. The cow manure I use is simply processed grass from my property sans any chemicals which has gone through the cows stomachs. Grass cuttings is just the "raw" material of great composted manure... Letting the animal do the processing.

Nature is usually fond of diversity, I would be looking for other things that could be added, coffee grounds, ash from wood burning stoves, agricultural leftovers, like hop shoddy, the sludge from the bottom of the pond, autumn leaves; there are all sorts of things you can get for free that add a bit of diversity.

Wodd ash has the ability to change the soil ph. I recommend use with caution including soil tests if you do not know the ph.

Sludge from the bottom of ponds I have decided not to use unless I am absolutely sure that no heavy metals or harsh chemicals were ever in the pond. I have cleaned out several old cattle ponds over the years on this property and always decided against using that muck because I have no idea what is in it...it dates back 50 to 100 years and some very dangerous chemicals were used back then. We had a recent thread on that very topic. Sometimes "free" can be anything but when the repercussions are considered.

Bucket load of pond dirt?

Someone locally is selling pond dirt from "cleaning out a pond". I've never heard of cleaning a pond, and I'm not at all familiar with or knowledgeable about pond dirt. Is it suitable for a new raised bed? Also, does anyone know how much pond dirt a "bucket load" contains? Thank you!

www.gardening-forums.com

 

[Ernst]

I think manures are a good thing. I understand we need be aware Steer has a lot of Salts in it but cow I understand is okay.
I understand about pond muck. People harvest fish farms that way but they do put antibiotics in the water so there might be issues with that.
This is a small county people wise and we have a local radio station that allows us to call in to buy, sell or request.. free of charge so maybe I could have some luck there with the no-cost aspect, except for, the work of shoveling S***.
Still I will wait until I finish the plot.
I have decided use one Tank of gas and I am done for the day. It's just a lot of work that can't be done quickly so a little every day when possible.
I am hoping I have it tilled and leveled before the rain comes.

What is cool about hanging out with Y'all is it seems we all have an eye for Organic soil.
Folks here seem to be political with "Organic is Hippy Crap and Chemicals Rule..." Think the movie Water-boy and "Gator aid is better."

 

[Ernst]

I'm doing an experiment on what "works" means in the context of "NO Dig". I'll get back to you in Nov. So far, I'm not at all impressed.

Yeah cool. I have a quarter of an acre that is just as Clay as what I am working so there is plenty of opportunity to try things that way.

 

[Oliver Buckle]

You guys are so large scale, When I wrote it I was thinking of the small ornamental pond we cleared out recently, lots of silt, baby newts and toads and masses of Canadian pondweed, water lilies, kingcups, and a lot of grass. The animals went back in, and a bit of lily and kingcup, but over a barrowload went on the compost heap, which can always do with damping down a bit.