Search
Latest topics
» Onions. Walk on?by sanderson Yesterday at 6:02 pm
» Bokashi
by OhioGardener Yesterday at 8:13 am
» New to SFG and in Virgina
by sanderson Yesterday at 1:38 am
» Compost bins: Open vs. closed
by Scorpio Rising 3/27/2024, 10:38 am
» Recommended store bought compost - Photos of composts
by sanderson 3/26/2024, 5:56 pm
» 6 metal trellis frames
by docachna 3/25/2024, 4:31 pm
» N & C Midwest: March and April 2024
by Scorpio Rising 3/24/2024, 3:01 pm
» What Have You Picked From Your Garden Today
by OhioGardener 3/24/2024, 1:28 pm
» Senseless Banter...
by OhioGardener 3/23/2024, 6:02 pm
» Joann's fabric bankruptcy
by neefer 3/23/2024, 12:33 am
» New gardener from Santa Fe NM
by CantersVary 3/22/2024, 7:50 pm
» Kiwi's SFG Adventure
by KiwiSFGnewbie 3/22/2024, 5:07 pm
» Heat Mat Temperature Test
by OhioGardener 3/22/2024, 2:09 pm
» Victory Garden Reboot
by Scorpio Rising 3/22/2024, 11:53 am
» Mark's first SFG
by sanderson 3/22/2024, 11:43 am
» Commercial (bagged or bulk) compost question
by Mikesgardn 3/21/2024, 7:09 pm
» Think Spring 2024
by Scorpio Rising 3/20/2024, 10:34 am
» Fire Ring / Round Raised Bed Planter
by sanderson 3/19/2024, 4:51 pm
» Galvanized Fire Ring for Rhubarb Raised Beds?
by OhioGardener 3/18/2024, 10:34 am
» Happy St. Patrick's Day
by Scorpio Rising 3/17/2024, 5:54 pm
» Happy Birthday!!
by Scorpio Rising 3/11/2024, 10:28 am
» What are you eating from your garden today?
by Scorpio Rising 3/10/2024, 8:38 pm
» Why I love Oregano in the garden.
by OhioGardener 3/10/2024, 8:16 am
» Comfrey
by OhioGardener 3/9/2024, 6:07 pm
» Sealing Barrels Flowers Struggling-Need Ideas
by Turan 3/9/2024, 3:09 pm
» Hello again from a slightly different part of Central PA!
by sanderson 3/9/2024, 1:46 pm
» Chicken manure compost
by Oopsiedaisy 3/8/2024, 7:56 pm
» Chinese Broccoli
by sanderson 3/7/2024, 10:28 pm
» Heat Mat Lifespan
by Scorpio Rising 3/7/2024, 9:33 am
» Now is The Time To Take Seed Inventory
by OhioGardener 3/6/2024, 4:36 pm
Google
Is it true that grass helps the pile heat up?
5 posters
Page 1 of 1
Is it true that grass helps the pile heat up?
Since end of last fall I've been collecting leaves and kitchen waste. I noticed the compost I turn weekly has been developing, but I never noticed it heat up.
Now that yards are being mowed, I have been able to get a lot of grass. I noticed today for the first time since I started that the pile was hot! Is this a coincidence?
How long will it stay hot, and is it ok to turn the pile weekly and disturb the furnace?
Now that yards are being mowed, I have been able to get a lot of grass. I noticed today for the first time since I started that the pile was hot! Is this a coincidence?
How long will it stay hot, and is it ok to turn the pile weekly and disturb the furnace?
bvarbel- Posts : 48
Join date : 2013-01-15
Age : 47
Location : Victorville, High Desert, Southern California
Re: Is it true that grass helps the pile heat up?
bvarbel wrote:Now that yards are being mowed, I have been able to get a lot of grass. I noticed today for the first time since I started that the pile was hot! Is this a coincidence?
How long will it stay hot, and is it ok to turn the pile weekly and disturb the furnace?
It's not coincidence - grass clippings are high in nitrogen, to balance out all of the carbon (leaves) you have in there. I don't have any grass so I have been using alfalfa pellets from the feed store. Same principle.
It will stay hot as long as there is nitrogen to fuel the microbes in there that are decomposing everything. I have a tumbler, not a pile, but I don't turn it until it starts to cool off - turning it more frequently seems to make it lose some of its oomph! I use a thermometer to monitor it. Right now one chamber is finishing up and it's only around 80 degrees; the other side just got a bunch of stuff piled into it, so it was 140 degrees yesterday and 130 today!
If you have an e-reader, this book is free. I'm almost done with it and have learned a TON from it - much more than you'd think from a book about compost. It's pretty fascinating. The author is the founder of the Territorial Seed Company.
http://www.amazon.com/Organic-Gardeners-Composting-ebook/dp/B004TS8ZFG
Coelli- Posts : 300
Join date : 2012-04-30
Location : Los Angeles foothills
Re: Is it true that grass helps the pile heat up?
Yes it's true. Check out the Composting sub forum and all the stickies there. Also the threads 'Composting 101' and 'Are you a Hottie'
43 years a gardener and going strong with SFG.
https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/t3574-the-end-of-july-7-weeks-until-frost
There are certain pursuits which, if not wholly poetic and true, do at least suggest a nobler and finer relation to nature than we know. The keeping of bees, for instance. ~ Henry David Thoreau
https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/t1306-other-gardening-books
Re: Is it true that grass helps the pile heat up?
Thanks for the link Coelli, I love Kindle books, especially free ones.
bnoles- Posts : 804
Join date : 2012-08-16
Location : North GA Mountains Zone 7A
Re: Is it true that grass helps the pile heat up?
Thanks for that book recommendation. Also thanks for pointing me toward links. I'm just very happy that all winter without grass, my pile was slow moving, and now with grass its really doing something.
Brian...
Brian...
bvarbel- Posts : 48
Join date : 2013-01-15
Age : 47
Location : Victorville, High Desert, Southern California
Re: Is it true that grass helps the pile heat up?
Can you find out if the grass you are getting the clippings from has been treated with herbicides or insecticides? That would be my main concern.
Lindacol- Posts : 777
Join date : 2011-01-23
Location : Bloomington, CA
Similar topics
» How I Make Very Fast Compost
» So confused, why won't my pile ever heat up
» Heat In Compost Pile
» COMPOST
» tomato disease or high ph?
» So confused, why won't my pile ever heat up
» Heat In Compost Pile
» COMPOST
» tomato disease or high ph?
Page 1 of 1
Permissions in this forum:
You cannot reply to topics in this forum