Join @Jacques in the Garden and I as we make the first pile of compost here at the Epic Homestead, going over all of the elements you need to consider. It CAN be overwhelming, but we’ll offer a few suggestions to simplify the process, as well as discuss materials you should and shouldn’t add to your first pile.
00:00 – Intro
01:10 – Key Components
04:36 – Surface Area
05:35 – Layering Pile
10:53 – Final Layer
IN THIS VIDEO
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YOU CAN SCRAP THE INNAR OF THE STOCK DRY IT AND USE IT AS FLOWER
Hey…I have horses and feed them #2 Alfalfa (it's green when we get it). How dry does it need to be before it's considered to be brown?
Who says composting can't be fun?! Just don't forget your garden hermit and machete! Haha
Well at least now I feel less bad about so many tomatoes going in the compost lol. This year when my parents were doing their spring leaf cleanup, I asked for a few bags of leaves. Then I took them home and mowed over them with the lawnmower bag on. Great way to get a lot of brown material and it put all those leaves to good use!
Can blood meal or other high nitrogen fertilizer be used in place of green plants? My yard is heavily wooded so I have a ton of carbon but virtually no nitrogen.
finalllllly, bee waiting forever for this video
First time I got a proper hot pile it started raining heavily, and didn't stop for about 3 months (literally). I had it tarped, but the ground became so saturated that the pile went sour.
I would bet 50 bucks this dude is homosexual. Fruity as a berry smoothie
The chickens would have LOVED all that squash. 🙁
I am curious though…I’ve been trying to start my pile for like 4-6 months but it’s not heating up. Tons of straw, grass clippings, with palates as walls for air flow, and I’ve added water consistently and inconsistently. Maybe I need to add more dirt?! Just a little defeated because I can’t seem to heat it up.
Save all your Amazon boxes for browns. Put them through a paper shredder first.
If you make a bin with no openings on the sides and leave it slatted on the front, you can grow tons of potatoes.
Curious as to why you didn't shred any of the greens?
I buried a dense mat of wood shaving caked with duck poop deep in my raised bed. After having to dig up and move the bed there was a solid block of mycelium in its place! Largest zucchini you could imagine grown above it and it kept producing late past the time it typically tapered off with the cold.
Lol when Jacques emerges
I am doing the lazy compost. I don't really stress too much about ratios because I don't have the time. I add shavings from the chicken coop, hay/goat poop in my last pile (first time I had any heat in my compost was from this), some garden waste, and kitchen scraps. I have two fairly large piles that I let sit for six months before using. We have a tractor that I use to scoop it up and then drop it to get oxygen in it. When a pile is done and ready to use I move it to the garden area, that way I only have to have 2 piles. My issue is that it doesn't really get hot. I haven't had to purchase any compost for about 2 years now.
I have used and abused (left outside all seasons) that same thermometer for years and I love it! I also use it for checking my soil temps in the spring to see when I can start planting.
Love the video! So much great information!
Do you need to worry about any pests going into the compost pile? Such as a plant that has mealybug on it? Could you add it to the compost bin, or would it be better to get rid of the plant (such as putting it in the green toter to be taken away) so that pests don’t spread?
are u sure ur gona use that for ur pile i mean it looks too damn nice for a pile XD use older wood its too nice XD
I had to laugh, you two are such boys! Love the energy of your vlog.
Have you guys made out in the maize patch before?… how was it?
I think that throwing all that perfectly good squash in the compost pile is pretty gross. You should give it to the food bank if you're not going to eat it