Compost - Page 2

Great design thank you for taking the time to post them.

Originally Posted by sawmilleng

You have a nice design there, Bear. It's a pity no one recognizes the valuable wood you used to make them.

I came across a similar stacking crate arrangement with hinged metal corners--it is used in the industrial supply game in my neck of the woods to ship bearings and power transmission products. The base pallet is sized to fit the foldable sides and they are stacked up just like your setup to the height required to ship whatever. I picked up a dozen or two of the sides and will probably put the metal hinges on some 2" lumber to make something like what you have...but not in Redwood!!!

Jon.

Thanks Jon
I had quite a bit of that stuff once upon a time, and it all made the move from TN. I wrapped our 8x24ft front porch in lattice, built side boards for the truck, even made a couple of farm gates, one's a 10ft cattle grade. It sure won't ever rot. That's no where near the amount of it they threw away. It was harvested in the 50s, installed in 1960, and we were replacing it with aluminum about ten years ago. Wish I had the rest of it yep, I'm down to 4 or 5 - 8 to 9 ft pieces of it left. I do know the value of it, not only in monetary numbers(last I checked it was around 5-10 dollars a board foot, and I had around 7-800ft of it) but it's rings are in most places 15-20 per inch(12 per inch qualifies as "old growth")

You'll have a rough time stacking panels like that built with 2x stuff, specially if it's treated. Treated is heavy to start, and when it gets wet it's even heavier, and at least the bottom rung of a compost bin will be wet most all the time ; )

Originally Posted by tsmith53149

I have a question/problem y'all might know how to help me with. The other day i went out to check out my compost pile, and since i grew my own tomatoes this year, the rotted/bad/ugly ones i just threw in my compost pile, and the other day i went out to check how things are going and to dump leaves in my compost pile, and noticed that there was a decent amount of slugs... and that some of the tomatoes looked like the tomato slug (or whatever the insect or bug is) that found its way to the tomatoes... I know that beer is a good way to get rid of slugs, but any other tips?

Without the use of chemicals, beer and copper strips are the best. For killing the slugs that are in abundance like that I would fill an old coffee can half full of beer and place it in a hole so its level with the ground. That may be the meathod you were referring too. Chickens would eat the slugs and help turn the compost a bit.

I have a pile of fallen sticks and empty cigarette packs...

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COMPOST!!!!!!!

Originally Posted by NatBrnCO

Check the laws on that one before you get to involved. I know Colorado is pretty well regulated. Agriculture product across state lines, spread of noxious weeds and pathogens, etc. Now you can give it away without any concerns.

I personally run 3 bins and don't actually grow anything, I just can't bring myself to put bio-degradable stuff into the dumpster.

Um, why not? Doesn't it biodegrade just as well in the landfill as it does elsewhere? Sorry if this is a stupid question, I have no farmer in me and my plants die within days.

You are right burly in our area landfills make compost. The problems with this are 1 it is full of trash material like plastic 2 it is not created properly and by putting it on top of gardens will fill your garden with weeds. 3 well lets say not everybody gardens organically and some chemicals will make it through into your garden. Our company will use it in a pinch and only put it in the bottom of a perennial/tree hole and definitely not in something someone will eat. But it is there and it's free and it makes some pretty good starter in a pinch.

Horse manure is about as good for composting as anything, and you might find your best source is close as some local stables.
I knew a guy on the mounted patrol in Nashville and went out to the barns with him one Sunday to help feed the horses and clean out the stalls.(they ate very well, only the best in alfalfa, wheat, oats, etc) We'd fill up a big wheelbarrel and push it across the road to where they'd been dumping it for years. I saw as rich looking soil over there as I'd ever seen anywhere. Got to asking around if I could get a load of it and finally found the answer, "YES!, get all ya want, and tell all your friends"
I began hauling it over to my garden a small pickup load at a time, taking two buckets and digging the old stuff from back of the pile, and filling up the bed of my little Ranger. I'd haul several loads each spring to mix into the garden, and soon there began to be other people around, getting them loads of it too.
As several years went by there would be more and more people there, sometimes waiting in line to back in there and fill up. I'd even show the ones behind me where I'd found the best looking stuff that day.
Funny thing is that was all taking place at a major agricultural center, and I'd see their grounds crews hauling little trailer loads of bagged compost to put in their gardens ; )