Adventures in Composting. The Hot, the Cold and the Vermi

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "Adventures in Composting. The Hot, the Cold and the Vermi"

Clara Andrews
5 years ago
Views:

1 Adventures in Composting The Hot, the Cold and the Vermi

2 Anne Donahue City of Eugene, Solid Waste and Recycling Program Planning and Development Department (541)

3 readings The most comprehensive book on backyard composting

4 readings the best book on backyard hot composting available in pdf free download

5 readings USDA publication available in pdf free Great publication for getting acquainted with soil biology Free Download pdf

6 readings Delve further into the microbiology of the soil

7 What is composting? The biological reduction of organic wastes to humus The process by which we transform organic wastes into a soil-building substance for farm, orchard, or garden. -The Rodale Book of Composting

8 Why Bother?

9 What can compost do? Improve soil structure Conserve water Cycle Nutrients Replaces artificial fertilizers Make soil nutrients plant available Protects plants from pathogens and parasites Clean soil and water Sequester carbon from the atmosphere

11 Aerobic Anaerobic

12 Hot Compost Cold Compost Vermicompost

continuous method of composting Cold composts are more

13 Cold Composting Does not kill seeds A slower, more gradual process Requires less attention than other methods A continuous method of composting Cold composts are more effective in controlling plant pathogens Finished compost in 1-2 years

14 Cold Composting Windrows/Piles Piles are Are easy to build No bin expense but are Dry out or get soaked easily Undefined Don t evenly heat Take more time to compost

15 Cold Composting Bins Recipe: 1part carbon 1part nitrogen

16 Carbon Sources browns Leaves (avoid oak, walnut, chestnut, waxy leaves) Rotted Straw Shredded Paper, Cardboard, Paper Towels, Junk Mail Sawdust (high carbon, slow release) Coffee Chaff

17 Nitrogen Sources greens Kitchen scraps Fruits Vegetables Bread, pasta, grains Tea bags Egg shells

18 High Nitrogen Sources greens Manures (Cow, Chicken, etc.) Fresh grass clippings Alfalfa hay/meal Blood Meal Feather Meal Flour Coffee grounds Nitrogen fertilizers

19 In Situ Bury organic discards Cover with 12 of soil to protect from vermin and other pests

20 Trench Composting Utilizes pathways for composting. Excavated leaf compost used to build beds. Utilizes large amounts of free city leaves.

21 Sheet Composting Alternating 1 2 inch layers of green and brown material directly to the planting area. Always cover with a layer of brown to reduce pest attraction.

22 Hot Compost Cold Compost Vermicompost

materials quickly Process destroys weed seeds High

23 Hot Compost Also known as thermophilic compost Piles heat naturally, ideally to F Break down materials quickly Process destroys weed seeds High temperature destroy pathogens Compost in as little as 8-10 weeks

24 Hot Piles

25 Hot Bin Composting Bins help maintain mass for even heating. Bins help contain composting materials. Bins help deter pests. Bins don t determine success or failure, but they can help. Bins can reflect your style.

26 5 Compost Control Factors Moisture Particle Size Volume/Pile size Aeration/Bulk Density C:N Ratio

27 The Grass Roots Garden Recipe 2 1 1( 1/2) 2 Parts Nitrogen 2 buckets produce 1 Part High Nitrogen 1 bucket manure or coffee grounds 1 Part Carbon Dry shredded leaves ½ Part Structure

28 Turning a Pile Step 1 Prepare a site next to the compost bin. Lift the bin off from the top. Note the volume reduction

29 Turning a Pile Step 2 Scoop the material into your five gallon buckets. Take note of wet spots, dry spots, anearobic smells. Adjust your mix accordingly.

30 Turning a Pile Step 3 Dump your composting material back into your bin. Fast and easy It s always more fun when you have help!

31 Composting Cautions Do Not Compost Cat and Dog waste Invasive weeds Diseased plants Meats Dairy Fats/oils

32 Compost Problems Pests? Smell? Not Hot? Never enough compost?

33 Hot Compost Cold Compost Vermicompost

34 Vermicompost

35 Microbes Elaine R Ingham

38 When we kill off the natural enemies of a pest we inherit their work. - Carl Huffaker

40 Oregon Soil Corporation Continuous Flow Reactor

41 There are identified species of earthworms divided into 3 categories. The differences between most species is undetectable to the casual observer

42 Eisenia fetida Aka; red wiggler, brandling, manure worm, red worm, tiger worm, California super red, stink worm, etc.

43 Anatomy

44 Reproduction

45 Bedding Usually Carbon Sources Shredded Newspaper or Junk mail Dead Leaves Shredded Cardboard Rotted Straw Aged manure*

46 What do they eat?

47 Good Idea Apple Cores Onion Peels Tea Bags Coffee Grounds with Filter Spoiled Vegetables And Leftovers (Unlike Many Humans) Not So Good* Citrus* Meat and Dairy Products* Bad, Bad, Bad Salty Foods Oily Foods or Nut Butters Pet Wastes Pesticides, Toxins *Only in small quantities after you are thoroughly familiar with the operation of your bin

48 and more hair finger nails tissues paper towels?

50 Potential Problems Under Feeding/Over Feeding Too Wet/Too Dry Hot Bin/Cold Bin Worm Crawl/Worm Wander Rain (barometric pressure) A Nasty Environment Wanderlust

51 Potential Problems Critters Ants Rodents Slugs Raccoons Sow Bugs Bears Centipedes

52 Why Vermicompost? Space saver Little or no odor Forgiving process Vermicompost is more biologically active than other composts A worm s digestive track naturally selects beneficial microbes Will not burn plants

53 Austin s Rule 1. It s okay to be amazed; stop look and listen 2. Have fun (don t make composting a chore)

temperature Psychrophiles 5 60 Mesophiles 68 113 Thermophiles 113 252 The cooler the pile, the more

54 temperature Psychrophiles 5 60 Mesophiles Thermophiles The cooler the pile, the more diverse the organisms Pathogen Kill 131 Seed Kill 145 Maximum Temp Tolerated 160 Run the coolest temp needed

55 hand squeeze quick step for pile moisture rules of thumb for estimating moisture material feels dusty 42% or less material feels mostly dry with a hint of moisture 42% 47% material feels tacky and sticks together 47% 52% material feels moist, but no water comes out 52% 58% material leaves a wet sheen on your hand 58% 63% if one to two drops of water come out during squeezing 63% 68% if many drops of water come out during squeezing 68% 73% stream of water from material when squeezed or pudding texture 73% or more

56 bokashi rodney bloom compost specialist master recycler volunteer

57 fermentation aerobic (oxygen rich environment) facultative anaerobic (oxygen deprived environment) facultative organisms can live in the presence of oxygen or in a total lack of oxygen changing their metabolism as necessary to match their environment fermentation is achieved in an anaerobic environment

58 the system 55 gallon drum 4 gallon home sized

59 bucket method add bokashi inoculant to materials when adding to container compress materials added to eliminated pore spaces when container is full cap tightly and set aside in warm area for 3 4 weeks for full fermentation

60 use cake (solid matter) dig into ground and let break down before planting side dress plants add to compost bin (do not add to worm bins) tea (leachate, liquid runoff) dilute no less than 50:1 (as much as 100:1) and use as a soil drench or foliar spray

61 why not just bury the waste? (good question) effective nitrogen storage system odor free and fly free process animal proteins possible insect repellent many uses for leachate less material necessary for a build

62 john ely bokashi tea results john has seen: accelerated breakdown of woody materials in compost revived plant starts absence of aphids in kale bed

63 almost a trial tomato plants in soil amended with just compost tomato plants in soil amended with compost and bokashi cake

64 buy it

65 make it fermentation is all around kombucha yogurt whey?

66 Make it the bran innoculant* 1 cup culture 1 cup molasses 5 gallons dechlorinated water 50 lbs bran** mix culture, water and molasses add mixture slowly to bran, do not over moisten mix thoroughly bran should be just moist (take a handful and squeeze it and it should hold together but should break apart immediately when poked with your finger) pack bran tightly into airtight and opaque plastic bag or bucket leave undisturbed in a warm area to ferment 3 4 weeks when opened bran should have a fermented odor, may have a little white fuzzy mold on top. the mold is okay and grows on the edges where it has had oxygen to feed on use as your starter culture good for several month s storage. If dried it can last for a year or more *recipe can be reduced in linear fashion, i.e. cut all ingredients by half, by a quarter, etc for small batches **other dry carbon sources work well; saw dust, dead leaves, shredded paper, coffee chaff, etc.

67 gil carandang the father of phillipine organic gardening indigenous microbes back yard variety applied as tea can accelerate compost and decomposition remediate plant disease

68 Make it the starter/mother culture Make your own FREE bokashi starter. [This is a summary from one of the pages in Google cache, of http : / / bokashicomposting.com/, now gone, replaced by just another site selling buckets and bran] Well, nearly free.. Making your own bokashi starter culture in place of commercially available EM is incredibly easy. My goal from the start was to produce bokashi compost without the use of expensive EM, bran or fancy buckets. Step one: The most important component of the commercial EM in relation to bokashi is lactobacillus bacteria, the others are secondary (if at all necessary) and can be cultured in the bucket when conditions are favorable. I culture my own lactobacillus serum starting with a rice wash water solution. Making the serum is amazingly simple. I mix one part rice thoroughly with two parts water (1/2 a cup to one cup). Mix thoroughly and vigorously. Drain. The resulting water should be cloudy. Place the rice water in a container with 50 75% head space allowing plenty of air to circulate. Cover lightly (air should be able to move in and out of the container) and place in a cool dark spot for 5 8 days. At the end of the wait the mixture should smell mildly sour. Strain out any particles. Step two. Put the finished rice water solution in a bigger container and add 10 parts milk (I use skim). DO NOT seal tightly, the gases must be able to escape. Allow 14 days for a complete ferment, most of the solids in the milk will float to the top revealing the yellowish serum. Strain off the solids. You now have purified lactobacillus serum. your own free bokashi starter/

69 extension service the bokashi method is yet to be officially approved by the extension service

70 thank you for composting! Rodney Bloom

71 Always Remember Try Compost First! and thank you

Master Composter COMPOST FOOD. Who Does the Work. Basics of Composting. How is Compost Made. Needs for the Composting Process

Master Composter COMPOST FOOD. Who Does the Work. Basics of Composting. How is Compost Made. Needs for the Composting Process Basics of Composting Master Composter April 27, 2013 Joe Van Rossum UW Extension - Recycling Specialist Why Compost Waste Management Yard waste banned from landfills Responsibility for your waste Reduces