Almost as good as an extra pair of hands!

This new addition to the "workers" here at the AHF has made sifting out the rocks in the new garden beds and harvest compost from the old compost pile.

Remember - if it came out of the ground it can go back into the ground. And no fins, feathers or fur!

Composting 1, 2, 3

No room for a compost pile or bin?

If you have even a small garden area you can compost.

Collect your compostable materials in any water tight vessel. Easy ways to remember what to compost - no fins, feathers or fur. Or - if it grew out of the soil it can go back into the soil.

Grab a shovel or trowel. Dig a hole twice the depth of the amount compostable materials in a spot beside your plants. Toss in the compostable materials. Chop it up 2-3 times with shovel. Put the loose soil on top. You're done. In a very short time all of the compostable materials will be transformed into rich soil your garden will love.

OK, so why compost anyway? Here are two reasons.

The taste of freshly picked vegetables and herbs can not be matched - so giving the plants the best food at a reasonable cost is high on my to-do list.

Most of us have some kitchen prep scrape daily. What do you do with them? Put them in the trash? They could be smelly in a short time. Over a year how much do you think you throw away? Ten pounds? Thirty pounds? Whatever the amount, when you put it in the trash it has to be moved by a car to the transfer station or put in a barrel or bag for curbside pick up. Multiply the amount you dispose of annually by the number of households in your town and that is a lot of compostable material being moved over the country side.

Think carbon footprint here for a start.

Rhubarb & its leaves . . .

Last fall composted manure was added on and around the rhubarb plants, rheum rhabarbarum. Mulch was added on top to keep the winter winds from drying out the soil and to limit soil temperature fluctuation. Early in the spring the mulch was gently pulled back and left in a ring around the plants that were just barely emerging.

The rhubarb is noticeably taller each day now. A pie in a week or two, perhaps? Some of the extra will be shared with family and friends. Some will be made into a sauce for toast, cereal, ice cream and yogurt. If you want a recipe using rhubarb click here and scroll down!

Now the leaves . . .

Rhubarb leaves contain poisonous substances, including oxalic acid. A spray can be made from boiled rhubarb leaves to prevent blackspot on roses and use to control aphids.

To make the spray

• Chop 3 to 5 rhubarb leaves
• Add to a quart of water
• Bring to a boil then simmer for 30 minutes.
• Strain
• Add a tablespoon of liquid, non-detergent, soap i.e. liquid castile
• Fill spray bottle with liquid
• Note: Because rhubarb leaves are poisonous, don't use the rhubarb spray on plants to be eaten.

The remaining leaves are used as mulch around the plants or put in the compost pile.

Working in the greenhouse . . .

Rain this morning. Good day to continue the prep work in the greenhouse beds. The soil is poor. Lots of rocks and some tree roots that need to go.

The key to improving the soil is lots of wonderful compost.

There are several locations around the yard with compost ready to dig from years of not being cultivated. In addition, as I work in the gardens, I have compost piles near by each bed which I add to as I weed, deadhead, harvest and prune. The largest pile is covered with landscape cloth to allow the rain to be added while the moisture is retained. It is amazing how soon the piles become useful compost!

The following technique I learned from my aunt who gardened in a skirt and high heels!

There is always a small container in my sink for any green garbage that came from the earth: vegetable peels, bits of fruit and flowers past their moment. Everyday I take the waste into the greenhouse, dig a hole, put the material in and chop it up a bit. Sometimes I add water. In no time the green waste has become a wonderful part of the soil. Even I do that dressed up on my way out!

My methods may seem a bit random but it works for me. When I need compost in the yard a pile is near by. No long haul from one end of the yard to the other.

For a more traditional approach:
Composting the Easy Way by Michael J. McGroarty from his Gardening articles

Having an ample supply of good rich compost is the gardeners' dream. It has many uses, and all of those uses will result in nicer plants. However, composting can be time consuming and hard work. I place a reasonable value on my time, so spending hours and hours turning compost piles doesn’t qualify as a worthwhile exercise, at least in my book. Nonetheless, I do compost, but I do so on my terms.

I built two composting bins. Each bin is five feet wide, five feet deep, and four feet high. I built the bins by sinking 4” by 4” posts in the ground for the corners, and then nailed 2 by 4’s and 1 by 4’s, alternating on the sides. I left 2” gaps between the boards for air circulation. The 2 by 4’s are rigid enough to keep the sides from bowing out, and in between each 2 by 4 I used 1 by 4’s to save a little money. The bins are only 3 sided, I left the front of the bins open so they can be filled and emptied easily.

Photos of my compost bins are on this page

The whole article by Michael J. McGroarty