Posted by Sue Wefel on September 24, 2008 at 6:27am
My first endeavor in composting after taking Jim Muir's class....bought a bin from City of Phoenix. I put in alot of palo verde "needles", and as this was before I got my chipper from Harbor Freight, they were not chopped up. Along with kitchen waste, hand chopped yard clippings. It is breaking down, but very slowly, and isn't heating up too much. Is it because of the palo verde in the mix? Also, can oleander safely be added? Can you aerate too much? I shift the pile daily as I'm so excited to see what's happening!
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I had a pile I have been haphazardly adding clippings and kitchen waste to for the past 9 months and allowing to build up inside a wooden box-like structure with lift off layers and a lift off roof my husband built. It was frustrating that it seemed to be taking so long and I couldn't turn it because of the small confines of the box. Last weekend we built a more open compost area and moved this pile, removing one layer at a time. I was shocked to see about 2 feet of beautiful, rich compost at the bottom and more critters (bugs) than I have seen anywhere else in my yard, including the garden! It does work but it was slow going and this time I will layer more diligently, turn it frequently and water more. Still, pretty awe-inspiring to see that rich dirt teeming with good bugs...:0)
Sue Wefel > Julie NorgaardSeptember 25, 2008 at 1:44pm
I never thought I could get so excited, opening the lid of a bin and looking in at sticks, and clippings, and kitchen waste teeming with bugs, slowly turning into something so rich and useful. I look forward to turning the pile and seeing what's on the bottom! And smelling it, it smells so good. I can't wait to spread it around my plants and watch what happens!
I would never add oleander. I have eliminated oleander and african sumac from my yard because they are too hard to control and can't be used for food by any species in Arizona, so I don't think they belong in the compost heap either.
Wow. that was a major amount of research...I knew it was poisonous, there was a story of a scout troop that used the branches to roast hotdogs, not a good result. I think it killed them. I figured composting would not destroy the "poison-ness" of it........thanks so much.
The chipper we got is electric. Was on sale for $129. It will chop up to 1.25" dia. sticks, but it does have to work at it. It does a very good job with normal "trimmings", green wood is fine as long as its not too fibrous, the fibers tend to wrap around the blades. The length of the branches isn't really an issue ,you just keep feeding them in. Hubby said it was alot less expensive than carpal tunnel surgery!
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The chipper we got is electric. Was on sale for $129. It will chop up to 1.25" dia. sticks, but it does have to work at it. It does a very good job with normal "trimmings", green wood is fine as long as its not too fibrous, the fibers tend to wrap around the blades. The length of the branches isn't really an issue ,you just keep feeding them in. Hubby said it was alot less expensive than carpal tunnel surgery!