Questions tagged [compost]
Compost is organic material which has undergone decomposition by microorganisms and is used as a soil amendment.
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Planted chili seeds in regular garden compost: should I dig them up and start again?
I ordered a variety of types of chilli seed (habanero, jalapeno, anaheim) because I can't buy these types of chilli here. I've never grown anything from seed before, so I think I approached this a bit ...
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Bokashi with little food waste
I am new to composting and I have so far failed 2 batches of bokashi. I have a 20l bokashi bin which lasted about 3 weeks in my 2 attempts before they started to smell rotten. It usually takes me ...
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2answers
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Composting Citrus Leaves
I have three mature citrus trees. One orange, one tangelo, and one really productive lemon tree. These trees produce a ton of leaves as you might imagine. Will composting so many citrus leaves "...
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2answers
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Are grubs helpful in decomposition?
I have a small decomposition box made out of improvised plastic machine oil tubs. I have been adding kitchen wastes to it for the past couple weeks along with dry leaves.
Recently I added okara to it ...
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1answer
35 views
How to check quality of vermicompost?
I know it must be really hard without proper equipment to check the quality of vermicompost, but is there, still, another way to test the quality?
To me, this doesn't look like vermicompost at all. ...
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1answer
55 views
How to use worm castings indoors?
My wife and I have a worm compost pile in our workshop that processes a few pounds of food waste a week. Up until now, it has been used in outdoor gardens.
Now I am starting some indoor plant gardens ...
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1answer
56 views
Heavy wet clayey soil - grit, sand or perlite?
I live in a rented house with a garden in North East of England. Last year I attempted to create a small bed for growing herbs and some vegetables but the soil appears to be very clayey and wet all ...
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1answer
36 views
How to root basil cuttings without putting them in water?
I tried several times to multiple my basil using the cutting method, however they don't root and rot everytime, even if I put a piece of charcoal in the container fil with water.
So, is there other ...
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1answer
61 views
Is this some kind of moss?
When I took the lid off of a large container of my composted soil that I had stored in the garage, I found this! Small whitish little balls all over the top of the soil and growing up the side of the ...
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1answer
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How long should I leave potted roots to rot down before reusing the soil?
I have a number of pots I grew tomatoes and cucumbers in through the he summer. These have now died off but I want to reuse the soil (mixing it with compost etc to get nutrients back) for other plants....
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2answers
60 views
Could one grow mushrooms on processed food waste?
I'm wondering if the processed food waste (PFW) output of an electric composter, like this one, could be used to grow (oyster) mushrooms on?
The PFW is supposedly sterile, so the idea is to lightly ...
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Rat proofing compost bin but allowing worms in
I've found a rat this morning in my compost bin :-(. It burrowed into in.
It's a small compost bin with solid plastic sides, a lid with an open bottom. In retrospect it was a potential rat haven. It ...
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Seeds That Grow in Decomposing Scraps
Are there any seeds that will tolerate growing in decomposing scraps of food? My city collects organic waste, but I thought I'd try to put it to use myself. I have a can of sweetened red bean paste ...
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1answer
89 views
Small white worms in the garden compost
It's been a couple of weeks that I've started to recycle our kitchen scraps (vegetables, fruits, coffee grounds, paper towels) in our garden. I've been reading various instructions over the internet ...
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2answers
86 views
Can the bacteria in compost bin be dangerous for kids?
During the process of composting, is it dangerous for kids to play with? I mean to say is it okay if a child plays close to a compost heap or touches the material with their bare hands? I heard about ...
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2answers
42 views
Are my compost bin bugs ‘good’?
I have a closed compost bin and when I took the lid of today to put something in it I noticed lots of bugs, a bit like flattened wood lice... I am just wondering if they are good for the compost bin ...
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3answers
97 views
Cooked rice and peanut shells?
Some background: I’m a beginner gardener (and that’s being generous) with a rooftop and a balcony, so everything I grow, if it survives, is in planters and pots. But I know almost nothing about ...
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Can you easily see mycelium when it's conquering territory?
In my stropharia rugosoannulata mycelium piles I tried looking for some mycelium when digging, but it was undetectable. Why was I unable to detect the mycelium with just my eyes?
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1answer
61 views
Moldy apple core in potted plant
Put an apple core in the pot with my plant and now it’s getting moldy and the mold is spreading to the soil. Will the mold hurt my plant? Or is this all part of the composting process?
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2answers
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do wood chips insulate better for cold than heat?
I noticed that my wood chip compost pile that I never turned has ice still about 1" below the surface, so that got me to wonder if wood chips are better cold insulators than heat insulators.
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1answer
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Making emulsion out of slaughterhouse waste
I have previously made fish emulsion to fertilize a small greywater garden; pretty much sealing fish waste (entrails, bones, skin) into oxygen-free plastic containers and leaving it for 6 months to a ...
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1answer
25 views
Why do compost piles warm from the outside in during the springtime?
I started moving my composting wood chips this spring, and noticed that the middle of the pile is still frozen, but the outside is workable, why is that?
I can tell you that when we had no snow on ...
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2answers
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What is the difference between replacing soil and amending soil?
I came across this article and I find that it goes against everything that's said about soil amendment before planting. I've copied bits of it down below.
You are planting a new tree, and you want ...
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1answer
61 views
Can I put mealybug-infested kale in my compost?
I have a huge infestation of mealybugs in my kale. Am I able to compost these plants or will I risk contamination?
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2answers
56 views
Burying large amounts of burgen
I need to dispose of a very large amount of Burgan (kunzea/tea trees) that I am removing from a part of a rural property it took over and is posing a fire danger.
The current pile is about 3x3x10 ...
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1answer
59 views
Can I throw a plant that has white flies into the compost pile?
I have a bunch of dead leaves from a plant that has white flies. Can I use them for compost?
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2answers
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Can the filter papers in coffee K-pods be used for composting?
I already know it's a lot of trouble to remove them for composting, but does anyone know if the paper filters inside the K-pods are actually biodegradable? We no longer use the old fashioned coffee ...
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2answers
53 views
Bury Rodents Compost
Is it safe to bury a rat, approx 12" deep in my vegetable garden? I grow tomatoes, cilantro & peppers. Does it pose any health hazard?
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Is composting just stacking organic waste together?
I read a few sites, http://decompose.co and how to compost and a few other sites
is it really that complicated?
Is there anything else I need to learn?
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1answer
39 views
Fresh cowdung and baggase in lasagna gardening
I am an apartment balcony gardener. I have access to a lot of fresh cowdung and baggase. However, I have no place to dry it or let it mature properly. I could dry it in my little balcony but the smell ...
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2answers
117 views
Which kitchen and garden scraps can be scattered on a vegetable garden soil?
I'm trying to make the switch to adding natural instead of synthetic fertilizer to my vegetable garden (and stop tilling while I'm at it). Besides compost, I'm curious whether I could use some kitchen ...
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3answers
7k views
Does anyone know the reason potatoes should not be added to the compost pile?
There is a list of at least 13 things that do not go into the compost pile. Most I know and understand. I just found a list that included potatoes.
Potatoes do what to a pile of compost? Feces, ...
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2answers
427 views
Is it sensible to do composting in a grow bag or pot which already has plants planted in it?
I've taken a half liter soft drink bottle, cut off the bottom portion of it and created holes at the bottom and created top-vents like the ventilation that pipe composting needs.
The blue arrows ...
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1answer
72 views
Do I need to throw away my compost if it has had a mouse living in it?
I found a mouse in my compost a little while ago. Whilst the mouse doesn't seem to be there any more, I have been told that I should throw away this compost as the mouse could have brought some ...
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1answer
42 views
Would a Jean Pain heater work well for heating in a USDA Zone 4A?
I'm considering digging a 300' (distance to the compost pile) trench 2 ways to heat constantly on a closed system as it's cheaper/easier to get a pile of wood chips than split wood. Would a wood chip ...
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0answers
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What will fungi do in an aerobic environment?
This winter I'm considering adding another foot to my wine cap bed so it has a nice thermal environment all winter. That would make it under 2' (wood chip dimensions of 10'x100'x2') of wood chips/...
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2answers
79 views
Are hops bad for compost?
I brew my own beer and as such have a relatively large amount (2KG dry weight) of spent malt grains and a small amount (100g dry weight) of hops that go in the compost once a month or so.
Hops are ...
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1answer
35 views
How thick of a layer of wood chips will I want to keep the soil warm in a USDA zone 4A environment during the winter?
I'm currently building a 10X100 fungal/garden bed, in a USDA zone 4A environment, and am going to want to keep the soil warm enough to keep fungi spreading. How deep will I want a layer of wood chips ...
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1answer
512 views
Can I compost vermiculite?
I've read online that you can compost perlite without a problem, and it actually has some benefits. I couldn't find information online that says that composting vermiculite is okay.
I know it is ...
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1answer
53 views
what is the liveable temperature range of winecap?
I'm trying to promote wine cap growth, and am unsure if I should leave a black tarp on it, or take off the black tarp.
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3answers
84 views
Is it possible to compost living grass?
I'm trying to kill off a large area (30'X30'X4') of living grass that has been established for hundreds of years. What would be the best way to kill off this grass? I do have a 30'X30' grain plastic ...
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1answer
55 views
Insect Identification: What's this insect
Recently i found an insect very rapidly multiplying itself in the compost heap at home. I took some blurry images of the insect since they were very brisk and not sufficiently static. I am concerned ...
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4answers
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What are the obstacles to wide-scale commercial composting of human feces?
I hope this isn't too broad.
I'm talking about large scale industrial composting. So you take a city's sewage, treat it (irradiating is one method I've seen mentioned) and modify it as needed. Then ...
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0answers
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What treatments would “balance out” what's in dog poo on my lawn, to not kill the lawn?
Criteria:
I do not want to MOVE the poop.
I just want to keep it from killing the grass
I'm ok with it taking 1-3 weeks to break down.
I'm looking for easy not perfect :)
I know: we should be ...
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1answer
28 views
What do I need to add to turn (or offset) dog poop into fertilizer?
We end up with dog poop in our yard.
I'd like to put pour something on it that would break it down/compost it (even if it took a month). I'd rather not have to pick it up :)
Bonus points if there'...
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2answers
186 views
How should I deal with garlic rust after the harvest?
I've grown garlic that got infected with garlic rust. I had some luck in that the infection started late in the spring so the bulbs are actually pretty big - around 60g, cleaned.
The garlic stems and ...
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0answers
37 views
should water going through compost come out sudsy (like soap suds)?
I have a composting chamber (similar to a miracle grow container but goes in 1 side and out the other) be sending out water that seems a little sudsy on the output side?
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2answers
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Is this underground compost system likely to work?
I live in an arid area with strong winds and very hot summers. I've tried a regular compost pile but have had problems with pests (migratory rats that seem to be attracted by the smell) and the heat: ...
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0answers
25 views
Chopping old vegetable/fruit to the ground as compost [duplicate]
Sometimes I have vegetable/fruit that's gone bad and it's going to be thrown. I was thinking about chopping it and mix it with the ground of the plants I have (not so many).
Will it be helpful for ...
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1answer
65 views
How can I care for my euonymus japonicus president gauthier?
I bought a cheap supermarket mixed planter pot about 3 years ago. I left them outside in a damp, sheltered area with little direct sunlight. The plant I now believe to have identified as euonymus ...
