Four days ago, I took all the leaves piled out back , added bass wood saw dust, mixed in a bunch of dried molasses, and dumped a 1 to 5 ratio of "tinkle" in hot water on to the pile...This morning, the pile seemed to have diminished in size.. Took a ground thermometer , pushed it in to about a foot. The temp is at 44oC. or 110 o F .. Seems to be cooking. My question is , should I fluff it up a bit with a hay fork, or just let the pile cook...I duplicate carvings and this is the greenest way possible of getting rid of the saw dust...The soil bacteria just love the wood, as do earth worms. I had an "authority" on composting come over some years ago when I was rendering just the wood. He scooped up a double handful, dropped it, and said he had never seen such a concentration of worms.. I understand if the pile gets too hot, it goes out. Any advice?

nadcarves wrote:
Four days ago, I took all the leaves piled out back , added bass wood
saw dust, mixed in a bunch of dried molasses, and dumped a 1 to 5
ratio of "tinkle" in hot water on to the pile...This morning, the
pile seemed to have diminished in size.. Took a ground thermometer ,
pushed it in to about a foot. The temp is at 44oC. or 110 o F ..
Seems to be cooking. My question is , should I fluff it up a bit with
a hay fork, or just let the pile cook...

Fast composting requires air, so turn it if you want it to go quickly.


I duplicate carvings and this
is the greenest way possible of getting rid of the saw dust...The
soil bacteria just love the wood, as do earth worms. I had an
"authority" on composting come over some years ago when I was
rendering just the wood. He scooped up a double handful, dropped it,
and said he had never seen such a concentration of worms.. I
understand if the pile gets too hot, it goes out. Any advice?

The heat of the pile will depend on the ingredients and the size, bigger
heaps get hotter as they have a higher ratio of mass to surface area. As it
warms up the thermophyllic bugs take over from those that like normal
temperatures, this becomes self limiting.

D

In article ,
"David Hare-Scott" wrote:

nadcarves wrote:
Four days ago, I took all the leaves piled out back , added bass wood
saw dust, mixed in a bunch of dried molasses, and dumped a 1 to 5
ratio of "tinkle" in hot water on to the pile...This morning, the
pile seemed to have diminished in size.. Took a ground thermometer ,
pushed it in to about a foot. The temp is at 44oC. or 110 o F ..
Seems to be cooking. My question is , should I fluff it up a bit with
a hay fork, or just let the pile cook...

Fast composting requires air, so turn it if you want it to go quickly.


I duplicate carvings and this
is the greenest way possible of getting rid of the saw dust...The
soil bacteria just love the wood, as do earth worms. I had an
"authority" on composting come over some years ago when I was
rendering just the wood. He scooped up a double handful, dropped it,
and said he had never seen such a concentration of worms.. I
understand if the pile gets too hot, it goes out. Any advice?

The heat of the pile will depend on the ingredients and the size, bigger
heaps get hotter as they have a higher ratio of mass to surface area. As it
warms up the thermophyllic bugs take over from those that like normal
temperatures, this becomes self limiting.

D

And the heat kills of pathogenic bacteria, fungi, and protoplasts. It's
all good.

--
Remember Rachel Corrie
http://www.rachelcorrie.org/

Welcome to the New America.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hA736oK9FPg

Great advice up there!

My other post may not have survived the trip.. I lost the momentum, and the temperature had dropped off. I attribute this to a very low moisture level, and the formation of an air excluding skull cap, made from a layer of saw dust and molasses. I added water, nitrogen, more sugar , tossed the pile and will see if I can't have "steam " coming off .. Thank you for your comments.

In article ,
nadcarves wrote:

Robin Arnold;980671 Wrote:
Great advice up there!

My other post may not have survived the trip.. I lost the momentum, and
the temperature had dropped off. I attribute this to a very low
moisture level, and the formation of an air excluding skull cap, made
from a layer of saw dust and molasses. I added water, nitrogen, more
sugar , tossed the pile and will see if I can't have "steam " coming off
. Thank you for your comments.

Compost at 25 parts brown (C) to green (N) composting material.

Let it Rot!: The Gardener's Guide to Composting (Third Edition)
(Storey's Down-to-Earth Guides)
by Stu Campbell

http://www.amazon.com/Let-Rot-Compos...580170234/ref=
sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1294901182&sr=1-1

p.39

Compostable Material Average C/N

Alder or ash leaves ............................ 25

Grass clippings ................................ 25

Leguminous plants (peas,
beans,soybeans) ............................. 15

Manure with bedding ........................... 23

Manure ....................................... 15

Oak leaves .................................... 50

Pine needles .............................. 60-100

Sawdust................................. 150-500

Straw, cornstalks and cobs .................. 50-100

Vegetable trimmings ...........................25
Aged Chicken Manure**........................* 7
Alfalfa ...................................... 12
Newspaper......................................175
-------

http://www.composting101.com/c-n-ratio.html
--
Remember Rachel Corrie
http://www.rachelcorrie.org/

Welcome to the New America.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hA736oK9FPg