Xref: kermit rec.gardens:283453

Well, it takes a little while for things to break down, gardening is not one of
those "instant gratification" things - although growing spinach and radishes
sure come close.

I have taken to perenials! I like the idea of blooms just after or even during
the last snowfall of the season! I haven't tested soil here, but it has alot
of rocks a couple of inches down.

take care
Liz



On 21 Jun 2004 23:09:52 GMT, ospam (Bungadora) wrote:

He said bone meal was necessary for the process to start, and I knew that
wasn't true, but I thought there must be a reason why he would come up with
such a bizarre statement, and soil acidity was the only reason I could think of
for mixing in bone meal.

He also said there are no nice flowers here, which I thought was a bit
presumptuous. There are no bad flowers. Mind you, after a few flings with
exotics, I began to see the benefits of petunias and geraniums. Tough as snot.
Dora

gary davis

Yes, but then what? And then when all the landfills are filled...just
where do we put the 'stuff'?
Oh, send it here, there and the other place...and then what!? Just what
do we do with it? When all the landfills are full?

True enough. It just buys time to turn public practises around. I believe
Toronto's landfills were full about 10 years ago.
FYI The Clean Calgary program: http://www.cleancalgary.com/



'Cyanotic'? What does this mean?


PS: Clay can be good because it holds much of the nutrients that plants
need....

Too much of a good thing then. I need to buy a sack of grit too.
Cyanotic is used in medical terminology to refer to tissues which have turned
blue, usually from lack of oxygen.
Dora

MisNomer

Well, it takes a little while for things to break down, gardening is not one
of
those "instant gratification" things - although growing spinach and radishes
sure come close.

I have taken to perenials! I like the idea of blooms just after or even
during
the last snowfall of the season! I haven't tested soil here, but it has
alot
of rocks a couple of inches down.

This is my first year in this house and the previous occupant didn't do much.
The lawn is half dandilion and first time I cut the grass the neighbors
wandered over to thank me.

Many of my neighbors have perennials blooming away, and then you get to my
yard, which has all these puny little annuals I started from seed except for
some bleeding hearts hijacked from a demo site and a woodruff plant I bought
and planted.

Recommendation: A friend has this gorgeous white tulip which just finished
blooming called 'Calgary'. I found a site with a picture and an explanation:
http://www.theplantexpert.com/spring...p3Triumph.html
Dora

I have found that adding a high nitrogen fertilizer to the mix when
filling a compost bin will make things move along much faster.
I read somewhere that the microbes that do the decomposing use
nitrogen in the process.

Shredding everything first also helps a lot.

I started a batch of old leaves, weeds, chipped twigs, dirt, worms,
and a buncha bugs; with fertilizer. Some things were not there on
purpose - it was their own misfortune. That was a little more than a
week ago. Right now it is almost too hot to hold your hand in the
pile.

It could be done in a couple more weeks.

Joe
Ontario



On 23 Jun 2004 00:01:31 GMT, ospam (Bungadora)
wrote:

MisNomer

Well, it takes a little while for things to break down, gardening is not one
of
those "instant gratification" things - although growing spinach and radishes
sure come close.

I have taken to perenials! I like the idea of blooms just after or even
during
the last snowfall of the season! I haven't tested soil here, but it has
alot
of rocks a couple of inches down.

This is my first year in this house and the previous occupant didn't do much.
The lawn is half dandilion and first time I cut the grass the neighbors
wandered over to thank me.

Many of my neighbors have perennials blooming away, and then you get to my
yard, which has all these puny little annuals I started from seed except for
some bleeding hearts hijacked from a demo site and a woodruff plant I bought
and planted.

Recommendation: A friend has this gorgeous white tulip which just finished
blooming called 'Calgary'. I found a site with a picture and an explanation:
http://www.theplantexpert.com/spring...p3Triumph.html
Dora

gary davis wrote:

On 6/21/04 3:56 PM, in article ,
"Bungadora" wrote:


gary davis

He said "composting doesn't work"??? Of course it does...g!
It works because everything breaks down...except for Toyotas....

but I

digress. In time all vegetation will break down. We can help it along by
doing certain things. The 'thing' we need to do varies depending on this
that and the other thingie!
Get his email address or tell him about this newsgroup and get him to
communicate here. We can't have people saying composting doesn't work when
we know it does and can help by providing corrective information. And more
importantly, if people believe composting does not work then they will send
all the good stuff to land fills...ouch!

Not worth the effort trying to find him again, although he had the personal
characteristics necessary for a lively career and wide readership on
newsgroups: opinionated, prone to misinterpretation and exaggeration, and
easily insulted by contradiction.

I believe the composter sale was sponsored by the City as part of a program to
reduce landfill, although Calgary has adequate landfill space to meet its
needs
for some time in the future.


Yes, but then what? And then when all the landfills are filled...just
where do we put the 'stuff'?
Oh, send it here, there and the other place...and then what!? Just what
do we do with it? When all the landfills are full?



As for me, my soil has so much clay the earthworms are cyanotic, so I almost
have to compost if I want to garden.


'Cyanotic'? What does this mean?

Gary
Fort Langley, BC
Canada

PS: Clay can be good because it holds much of the nutrients that plants
need....


Cyanotic means "blue" from lack of oxygen....

amy

Joe

I have found that adding a high nitrogen fertilizer to the mix when
filling a compost bin will make things move along much faster.
I read somewhere that the microbes that do the decomposing use
nitrogen in the process.

Shredding everything first also helps a lot.

I started a batch of old leaves, weeds, chipped twigs, dirt, worms,
and a buncha bugs; with fertilizer. Some things were not there on
purpose - it was their own misfortune. That was a little more than a
week ago. Right now it is almost too hot to hold your hand in the
pile.

It could be done in a couple more weeks.

Thanks. I've got to get some fertilizer for the lawn anyway.

Wouldn't this work better if there were a lot of browns (carbon) though? This
time of year I have a lot of greens (nitrogen) in the pile.

Dora
(Time to haul the tomatoes indoors.)

On 6/22/04 6:03 PM, in article ,
"Joe" wrote:

I have found that adding a high nitrogen fertilizer to the mix when
filling a compost bin will make things move along much faster.
I read somewhere that the microbes that do the decomposing use
nitrogen in the process.

Shredding everything first also helps a lot.
Yes, common knowledge to those that are in the know. It creates more area to
be consumed...

I started a batch of old leaves, weeds, chipped twigs, dirt, worms,
and a buncha bugs; with fertilizer.

Yes, use a fertilizer but don't use a chemical fertilizer...it will feed
plants but not the worms...use a natural fertilizer like cow/horse/pig or
chicken manure...find your nearest farm or you can purchase it at a local
gardening shop. They all will work well in a compost bin and feed the worms
as well, and worms work 24-7! Neat eh?

Some things were not there on
purpose - it was their own misfortune. That was a little more than a
week ago. Right now it is almost too hot to hold your hand in the
pile.
What temperature is it at 160? My last one I measured was at 145...still hot
enough.

It could be done in a couple more weeks.

At that temperature you are probably right. Wow, and they say there is no
free lunch...just for worms I guess.

Joe
Ontario

Snip

Gary
Fort Langley BC
Canada

To reply please remove...yoursocks...

On 6/22/04 6:27 PM, in article , "Amy D"
wrote:



gary davis wrote:

On 6/21/04 3:56 PM, in article ,
"Bungadora" wrote:


gary davis

He said "composting doesn't work"??? Of course it does...g!
It works because everything breaks down...except for Toyotas....

but I

digress. In time all vegetation will break down. We can help it along by
doing certain things. The 'thing' we need to do varies depending on this
that and the other thingie!
Get his email address or tell him about this newsgroup and get him to
communicate here. We can't have people saying composting doesn't work when
we know it does and can help by providing corrective information. And more
importantly, if people believe composting does not work then they will send
all the good stuff to land fills...ouch!

Not worth the effort trying to find him again, although he had the personal
characteristics necessary for a lively career and wide readership on
newsgroups: opinionated, prone to misinterpretation and exaggeration, and
easily insulted by contradiction.

I believe the composter sale was sponsored by the City as part of a program
to
reduce landfill, although Calgary has adequate landfill space to meet its
needs
for some time in the future.


Yes, but then what? And then when all the landfills are filled...just
where do we put the 'stuff'?
Oh, send it here, there and the other place...and then what!? Just what
do we do with it? When all the landfills are full?



As for me, my soil has so much clay the earthworms are cyanotic, so I almost
have to compost if I want to garden.


'Cyanotic'? What does this mean?

Gary
Fort Langley, BC
Canada

PS: Clay can be good because it holds much of the nutrients that plants
need....


Cyanotic means "blue" from lack of oxygen....

amy

I am a 'sort of' a fisherman and I have found most of the 'dew' worms live
in clay soil. I'm thinking that the impervious nature of clay protects them
from the earthly mole. How a worm could by cyanotic??? I'm not sure. I have
yet to see a blue worm...I have, however, seen a green worm...Irish I would
think...emigrated to Canada!
Gary
Fort Langley, BC
Canada

gary davis

I am a 'sort of' a fisherman and I have found most of the 'dew' worms live
in clay soil. I'm thinking that the impervious nature of clay protects them
from the earthly mole. How a worm could by cyanotic??? I'm not sure. I have
yet to see a blue worm...I have, however, seen a green worm...Irish I would
think...emigrated to Canada!

If they like clay soil, that explains why I hit one every time I dig in. No
moles, although the cats would like that, I suppose. The lawn is very very
bumpy from nightcrawlers, so I topdressed with compost this and reseeded. I
don't think I would do the whole yard again. It's too hard to avoid walking on
the reseeded portion for the length of time it takes for grass seed to sprout.

As for my earth worms, the ones in my compost are definitely pinker than the
ones I dig out of the soil. Just an observation, not a diagnosis.
Dora2