My New Compost Source

Wed May 30, 2012 12:37 pm

I'm very excited about composting this year. Last year's endeavour was fruitful, but as I had mostly browns (the majority of my organic matter was straw from my chicken coop) it took a very, very long time to break down. This year, however, I've tapped into a nearly unlimitted source of greens - I work for a lawn-care company, and I've been bringing home a crate of grass clippings every day. I mix this in layers with pine needles and other yard waste I raked up a couple months ago (I have a very large pile of this), sprinkling liberally with lime to balance the acidity of the needles. Whereas before I had only a dull heap of straw, chicken droppings, and kitchen waste, I now have a very warm pile of rapidly-composting matter. By mixing the lawn clippings with the yard waste I should be able to produce a huge volume of compost this year.

Of course, I have a question; can anyone see a problem with having lawn clippings as my almost-only green matter? There is also kitchen-waste and the occassional urination, but that's nearly it.

Wed May 30, 2012 1:02 pm

Well, we generally say it is better if no more than 10% of your pile is one ingredient. That way your compost is balanced, contains all the needed nutrients including micro nutrients, trace minerals, etc.

But my bigger concern would be that grass clippings from a lawn care company almost definitely come with a bunch of chemicals - insecticides, herbicides, synthetic fertilizers. Personally I wouldn't want to put any of that stuff in my compost pile, much less a whole ton of it.

Wed May 30, 2012 8:29 pm

The lawn clippings I'm using are from lawns where only lime is applied, so this is not a worry. I'm interested in the 10% idea, however, which I will look into immediately.

Thu May 31, 2012 11:37 am

It's a guideline, not a hard and fast rule. Grass clippings count as one ingredient. Kitchen waste is a whole bunch of ingredients -- egg shells, coffee grounds, banana peels, etc etc. Yard waste is probably at least several ingredients, different varieties of leaves, weeds, trimmings, pine needles etc. The point is just that balance and diversity is important and you don't want to just overwhelm you compost pile with grass.

Thu May 31, 2012 3:45 pm

Lucius, you may not want to do this, but we use grass clippings as bedding in our chicken coop. When I clean the coop the clippings/manure go into the new compost pile, which is allowed to sit and do its thing for six months, then I either use it on the gardens or add it to the "old" compost pile which has everything in it except chicken manure.
If you are buying hay, the grass clippings will make nice coop deep bedding and, as long as the only additive is lime, your chickens are safe, also.

Fri Jun 01, 2012 1:22 am

Marlingardener, your idea is very intriguing. We currently buy either staw or shavings for our chickens, but I'm always interested in utilising what's available instead. Does the grass not begin to compost in the coop? Do you mix it with dry bedding, or use it all on its own?

Fri Jun 01, 2012 11:21 am

We put the grass clippings about 4-6" deep in the inside coop, less in the outside coop (kind of depends on how much grass we cut and I rake).
The hens love to dig through it and get the tasty bits, and they keep it "turned" so it doesn't compost in the coop. Their scratching keeps the clippings fluffed and it doesn't mat down. We don't mix it with anything, although the ladies do mix in some dirt with their scratchings. When I do a major coop cleaning, I just put the clippings and assorted other matter directly on the garden, and put in fresh clippings.