Compost-the things we do.

Everyone tells you to do it, to compost. there are recipes and fancy things to buy.

I formed a windrow of manure and compost, side by side, along the tree line where it gets sun in winter and not in summer. easier to keep moist :) only 50 feet from the garden.I dig out the front of the goat pen during every warm period I can. In the summer, when they are out grazing, not so much to do.the old dog show mat-plastic, covers it. it lets in rain, it's recycled so not in the dump, it's getting a third life ( dog shows, base of greenhouse, now the compost pile)

kitchen garbage goes in what is left of a black box composter. the bottom level fell apart. so I removed it...it still works. keep the dogs out. every month or two in warm weather I dig out the bottom and move it to the big pile.Considering there is so much paper in it (paper towels with no chemicals and the paper coffee filters) I'm amazed at how fast it works.Egg shells, onion and garlic leavings. corn cobs and spent potatoes. you name it.this pile also gets spread among the tomatoes for the calcium content.when I kept tropical fish, I added the dirty fish water.

I have been adding some cut grass to the bigger pile-carefully-( the new scythe should make longer springier material, easier to add)all the garden trash, leaves get mixed in though I try to keep them separate ( I mow some and make a pile for the next spring veggies that like them-parsnips in our case)vines and stems;dead flower materials; non spreading weeds. but it still just barely keeping up with what I want to do.

the first time it happened, I was furious. having to shovel all the compost stuff back into the pile. and my white puppies were very black!And every once in a while, they;d drag the fake grass mat off and go to it again.

then I noticed something. when I put the pile back together;more and more of it was completely composted. what I waited months for was taking weeks! ( I dig into the bottom when I need compost for the garden)

it seems puppies as aerators really works!

so now, I am not so impatient with my little friends. ( they will be one in April; who knows if they will continue to "work" for me.)I am going to be adding minerals to the pile but I don;t suppose it'll hurt them.


sometimes just letting nature ( or puppies) just do what is supposed to,is all you need.