One of the biggest gardening challenges I have in my urban setting is maintaining a compost pile. This year I hope will be different. I have a plan that should address my compost problems and also benefit my container gardens. Part of my plan involves my new vermicomposting system.
My compost bin sits under a pine tree and is covered in sap and needles. |
My compost woes stem from this one fact: I don't have enough browns. Greens I have in abundance but as a healthy compost pile composition consists of three parts browns to one part greens, I need a lot of the one thing I don't have. Browns are the carbon additions to the pile such as dead leaves, twigs and debris. These can be supplemented with sawdust, cardboard and newspaper and I am working on creating a stock pile to use during the summer when my green additions are at their peak. I don't have a lot of woody perennial trees or shrubs on my property, plus several hurricanes in recent years took down two trees, leaving access to browns challenging. Last fall I had to use ten huge leaf bags acquired from my neighbors to mulch my beds for the winter.
Worm food: apple core, tea bag, coffee, stale bread and ripped up egg carton - yum! |
These are the worms when they first arrived: stressed, hungry and cold. |
This is the system I chose called The Worm Factory. |
As I can use the vemiculture system all year round, I can continue to recycle my greens in the winter and create a reserve of compost to use in the spring.
I have high hopes for my plan. It would be nice to not be swearing over my compost pile this year!
Sue
Related Posts:
Compost Green and Brown Ingredients with Graphics
Using fall leaves as mulch
Pinterest Pin
While the Yimby does sound like a good buy to make fine soil out of your home waste, you may like to consider a few things before taking the final plunge.
ReplyDeleteCompost Bin HQ