1/02/12 Compost Still Cooking...

**llama momma** 1/2/2012, 5:37 pm

Current Outside Temperature 21 degrees, wind chill 15 degrees. Compost thermometer reading is at 50 degrees. cheers

Ok we call this cold or slow composting. It's nice to sit here and ponder springtime planting as those composting microbes are out there working for future garden benefits in these frigid temps.
Life is good!

**RoOsTeR** 1/2/2012, 5:42 pm

Mines frozen solid as a rock Shocked

**llama momma** 1/2/2012, 5:53 pm

2 days ago while temps were in the low forties I turned it over and added water and manure. So I was curious to see what it would do in 48 hours.

plantoid 1/2/2012, 6:15 pm

If you cover your heaps with a decent covering of old carpet with the pile down wards it will hold tiny pockets of heat at the surface of the pile and the inner temps will climb and help the speedy decompositon of your heap.
It's not cold here this side of the pond , my bins have sweated nicely and everything is progressing as expected.

I hope to collect several large 56 pound feed bags of strawed horse and chicken manure tomorrow to kick start a new Dalek .

**RoOsTeR** 1/2/2012, 6:27 pm

Yep, but when you get about 2 foot of snow on top of about 6" that was already there, plus constant temps well below freezing during the day and into the single digits at night...it's hardly worth the effort to keep it "hot". Throw in a few days here and there with massive winds, with gusts well into 60-75 mph. Eh, Nature can take over till spring. Very Happy

**llama momma** 1/2/2012, 6:37 pm

[quote="plantoid"]If you cover your heaps with a decent covering of old carpet with the pile down wards it will hold tiny pockets of heat at the surface of the pile.

I have leftover new carpeting rolled up in the basement. Tempting as it is I can't bring myself to put it over the compost! As Rooster said above, I will let nature do its thing for now. If it warms up at all I can go back and toss the heaps around some more.

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1/02/12 Compost Still Cooking...

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