OK, seeing the arrows flying my way....! Hold on...
I am looking at one of the barrel drum composters for next season. As of now, have just a pile in the back, mostly shade for kitchen scraps, paper tp rolls, some dirt etc, and keep that turned. The worm population is good in there. adjoining or mixing with it a pile that is mostly dirt from containers from herbs gone south. That includes basil pots and others. That is a mish-mash of dirt, additives, miracle grow and whatever, and the old plants & roots. That gets turned and mixed sometimes.
The mostly dirt pile will be used in filling in and adding raised beds. A few forkfuls of the compost with worms goes in beds, and smaller amounts in containers.
My thoughts are to get a tumbler composter. Feeding it is sporadic, and I need to keep adding to the worm pile. (I say sporadic as after full needs cooking time). As I have mostly containers, and mostly herbs (needing lean mixes), don't need lots of black gold compost.
In checking stores and on-line see them from $99 on up.
Did I mention I like to add a gizmo or something every season to this micro herb farm?!
Thanks in advance for any suggestions, and I'll duck the arrows!
-
rainbowgardener
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 25279
- Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:04 pm
- Location: TN/GA 7b
I've never tried a tumbler composter. A number of people have posted here who have problems with them. It may work for you if 1) add a lot of extra holes for drainage and air circulation. 2) understand that it is batch composting, so you have to have somewhere to store the ingredients for the next batch while you wait for this batch to finish up.
If you care to spend a bunch of money, some ingenious people solved the second issue by making a tumbler with two separate chambers. Fill one up, then start adding to the second chamber while the first one works. Once chamber one is finished and can be emptied, go back to filling that one while the second chamber works. That seems like a smart idea, just that they are expensive.
If you try it, let us know how it works out for you.
If you care to spend a bunch of money, some ingenious people solved the second issue by making a tumbler with two separate chambers. Fill one up, then start adding to the second chamber while the first one works. Once chamber one is finished and can be emptied, go back to filling that one while the second chamber works. That seems like a smart idea, just that they are expensive.
If you try it, let us know how it works out for you.
I'd try Craig's list, or freecycle. for a free-reduced price, or used one. I'm still going to be a proponent for a tower composter, over a tumbler.Susan W wrote: ---><8snip8><--- My thoughts are to get a tumbler composter. Feeding it is sporadic, and I need to keep adding to the worm pile. (I say sporadic as after full needs cooking time). As I have mostly containers, and mostly herbs (needing lean mixes), don't need lots of black gold compost.
In checking stores and on-line see them from $99 on up.
Did I mention I like to add a gizmo or something every season to this micro herb farm?!
No arrows in this post
-
rainbowgardener
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 25279
- Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:04 pm
- Location: TN/GA 7b
I have 3 of those bins on the go at the moment ,one is being used to supply regular top ups for my semi raised beds and slowly rase some dips in my small lawn,and as an ingredient for containers.the middle one is just about full with a mix of leaves kitchen waste,spent vegetable stalks ,newspaper shredded odd bags of spent coffee from the local coffe stall .the third has a layer of last years leaf fall and has just started getting kitchen waste and broccoli stalks and gone to seed chard.plus a small amount of lawn mowings. Both bins that are being loaded have the bits that wont do through my seive "this time" added ,this I think "inoculates" the bins with the fauna and flora that help the decomposition !rainbowgardener wrote:Any kind of tower composter would also solve that problem as well as any compost bin that had small enough ventilation holes/ slits to keep them out (and a top).
Tumblers have lots of problems.
Lawn mowings get used in spring as a mulch to slow moisture loss ,once the weather warms up I like to have the beds clear to let rain and my watering to penetrate easily .
Works for me !
-
rainbowgardener
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 25279
- Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:04 pm
- Location: TN/GA 7b
Sounds great, ACW.
I saw your signature line, about not enough sunshine. I used to be in that situation, before I moved. Do you have any front yard? I built a 10x5 raised bed veggie garden smack in the middle of my front lawn, because it had the best sunshine.
I had a better picture of it, when it was grown up more and had some flowers blooming, where it looked prettier later on than this picture, but I couldn't find that one, except that it is posted here:
viewtopic.php?f=35&t=35768&p=400068&hil ... es#p400068
Oh oops, I just noticed that the previous post I linked to was in response to you also, ACW.... sorry, that was half a year ago, I didn't remember that. Now that I look at it, you said then your front yard is small and also shady. Sorry...
I saw your signature line, about not enough sunshine. I used to be in that situation, before I moved. Do you have any front yard? I built a 10x5 raised bed veggie garden smack in the middle of my front lawn, because it had the best sunshine.
I had a better picture of it, when it was grown up more and had some flowers blooming, where it looked prettier later on than this picture, but I couldn't find that one, except that it is posted here:
viewtopic.php?f=35&t=35768&p=400068&hil ... es#p400068
Oh oops, I just noticed that the previous post I linked to was in response to you also, ACW.... sorry, that was half a year ago, I didn't remember that. Now that I look at it, you said then your front yard is small and also shady. Sorry...
-
rainbowgardener
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 25279
- Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:04 pm
- Location: TN/GA 7b
I second that you should try to start with a second hand composter or build your own. There are diy tutorials on line. If you do get a new one, get a big one, the small one makes very little compost. The composter won't come with the extra holes, so you will need to put them in or be very careful about adding wet waste and water, it will become a stinking anaerobic mass. The doors of most composters are very small and that was another problem. Hard to load and unload completely. I would think just getting a 55 gallon drum with a good lid on the end that can go off and on would be the cheapest thing to use. If the lid was hinged, even better, but that might take some doing. Put the barrels on rollers or on its side and roll it around once a day. Most barrels will not compost because they just don't hold enough mass. The pile needs to be 3x3x3 to heat up properly and most barrels are hard to fill more than halfway without things starting to fall out and you have to leave some room for the material to be able to mix so you should not fill the barrel even if you could.
I found that it was easier to bag compost. Bags are pretty cheap. You fill it all at one time. I did make the mistake of using only corn stalks, but it still worked out. After the bag is full you tie up the end; add water and poke holes all over the bag for air and to let excess water out. Toss it on the side. I actually put them in a pile. Once a week or two I turned the pile of bags. If I forgot, it did not matter, it composted anyway. After about three months a 3 ft light bag had about a gallon of heavy finished compost. It was the only kind of composting that was able to kill the perennial weeds and keep weeds from growing on the pile. The compost mostly anaerobic since very little air gets in through the holes. You fon't want to open the bags too soon because the smell is overpowering while it is cooking, but goes away when it is done. Anaerobic compost is acidic.
Most used two bags, but I only used one contractor bag. They are not environmentally friendly, but I use the bags more than once if I can.
https://crazyaboutcompost.com/tag/garbag ... omposting/
I found that it was easier to bag compost. Bags are pretty cheap. You fill it all at one time. I did make the mistake of using only corn stalks, but it still worked out. After the bag is full you tie up the end; add water and poke holes all over the bag for air and to let excess water out. Toss it on the side. I actually put them in a pile. Once a week or two I turned the pile of bags. If I forgot, it did not matter, it composted anyway. After about three months a 3 ft light bag had about a gallon of heavy finished compost. It was the only kind of composting that was able to kill the perennial weeds and keep weeds from growing on the pile. The compost mostly anaerobic since very little air gets in through the holes. You fon't want to open the bags too soon because the smell is overpowering while it is cooking, but goes away when it is done. Anaerobic compost is acidic.
Most used two bags, but I only used one contractor bag. They are not environmentally friendly, but I use the bags more than once if I can.
https://crazyaboutcompost.com/tag/garbag ... omposting/
I have 2 of these big guys and they work wonders
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Lifetime-80- ... er&veh=sem
I would not recommend buying one unless you can get them on sale, as they are quite pricey. They DO hold quite a bit, but not as much as you'd expect. When you add a lot to the bin, it gets too heavy for the door to hold closed when you are turning it. The weight slams against the door, the latch can't hold and you are left with semi done compost piled up underneath it. Not fun.
Another downside is that sometimes water can become trapped in one of the panels. Making it very heavy and almost impossible to turn. The solution is to get out your drill and put in some strategic holes.
Keeping the compost wet inside can be an issue. I keep a jug or two of water along side them to sprinkle the compost as needed. Normally, it needs some measure of water every day.
Now for the plus's. There is NO smell for the neighbors to complain about. No mess. No bugs (I did have a gnat invasion once). No wild critters digging thru. I am very urban, so those positives are very positive for me.
Compost finishing time is pretty good with using two bins. One sits and dwindles down, one is being built up by me. By the end, one finished tumbler will net me three large buckets of compost. Best thing is, I know exactly what's in it. No mysterious ingredients on the label.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Lifetime-80- ... er&veh=sem
I would not recommend buying one unless you can get them on sale, as they are quite pricey. They DO hold quite a bit, but not as much as you'd expect. When you add a lot to the bin, it gets too heavy for the door to hold closed when you are turning it. The weight slams against the door, the latch can't hold and you are left with semi done compost piled up underneath it. Not fun.
Another downside is that sometimes water can become trapped in one of the panels. Making it very heavy and almost impossible to turn. The solution is to get out your drill and put in some strategic holes.
Keeping the compost wet inside can be an issue. I keep a jug or two of water along side them to sprinkle the compost as needed. Normally, it needs some measure of water every day.
Now for the plus's. There is NO smell for the neighbors to complain about. No mess. No bugs (I did have a gnat invasion once). No wild critters digging thru. I am very urban, so those positives are very positive for me.
Compost finishing time is pretty good with using two bins. One sits and dwindles down, one is being built up by me. By the end, one finished tumbler will net me three large buckets of compost. Best thing is, I know exactly what's in it. No mysterious ingredients on the label.