Chop the leaves with the lawnmower, they'll break down way faster. Just run
mower over them before you rake. I use the mower to windrow them over to the
pile.Unchopped leaves tend to form matts, especially when they're wet, which
take a long time to break down. Gotta get some air in there.
-Curt
From: Andrew Strasfogel via Mercedes <mercedes@okiebenz.com>
To: Mercedes Discussion List <mercedes@okiebenz.com>
Cc: Andrew Strasfogel <astrasfo...@gmail.com>
Sent: Friday, June 16, 2017 12:54 PM
Subject: Re: [MBZ] OT Renewable Energy project in Utah
I mulch my veg garden with grass clippings from the lawn. They practically
combust in the sun and break down quickly. I also use them in the compost
bin - sparingly - and the results are decent. My biggest source is
infinite supplies of leaves in the fall. Unlike Curt's experience, mine do
NOT degrade rapidly.
On Fri, Jun 16, 2017 at 12:43 PM, Dan--- via Mercedes <mercedes@okiebenz.com
> wrote:
> I was of the impression that a lot of grass clippings was a bad thing. I
> can recall dumping grass clippings in piles in our woods when I was a kid,
> and them pretty much remaining in the same state (not breaking down much)
> for a very long time. That and the heat they generated would often be
> visible in the fall.
>
> -D
>
> > On Jun 16, 2017, at 12:13 PM, Curt Raymond via Mercedes <
> mercedes@okiebenz.com> wrote:
> >
> > Depends, a lot of people seem to love them but generally when you talk
> to those people their expectations are pretty low.They're more work, you
> need to monitor your moisture level and keep the nitrogen content right.
> Too much nitrogen bearing stuff (the greens) and you get a slimy nasty
> stink pit, not enough and it works really slow.
> > The marketing is just marketing, you can get compost out in 90 days but
> its a lot of extra work. A pile on the edge of the yard is much more
> reasonable for most folks energy input-wise.
> > -Curt
> >
> >
> > From: Andrew Strasfogel <astrasfo...@gmail.com>
> > To: Mercedes Discussion List <mercedes@okiebenz.com>
> > Cc: Curt Raymond <curtlud...@yahoo.com>; MG <trainpain2...@aol.com>
> > Sent: Friday, June 16, 2017 12:10 PM
> > Subject: Re: [MBZ] OT Renewable Energy project in Utah
> >
> > Anyone have any luck with those rotating drum backyard composters?
> > On Fri, Jun 16, 2017 at 11:57 AM, MG via Mercedes <mercedes@okiebenz.com>
> wrote:
> >
> > Have a friend who years ago got into that. He built a whole big
> production machine where you dump the food waste in one end which ground it
> up and mixed with cow sh*t then transported it up into a hopper which
> distributed it onto a series of belts with a slight downward slope. There
> were something like 7 or eight belts one above the other one each side. The
> belts moved very slow it took something like 4-5 days to go from the top to
> the bottom. At the bottom what was left fell off and got separated into
> worms and worm castings. There was no uneaten waste left. The worms were
> sold for fishing and the rest for gardens. Once the whole thing was started
> it was self sustaining as most of the worms kept eating and traveling
> upward into the new food upslope. The few that didn't were fish food. The
> only problem he had was finding enough waste to put into the input end.
> After proofing it and showing that it worked he sold the patent for a good
> bundle. Also sold some to a collective in China and went over there to help
> them build it and get it going. They never paid him just told him to sue
> them which by the time it went through the courts over there they had
> claimed bankruptcy, closed the place down moved all the machinery to
> someplace else and started again under a new name. Told him that they could
> do that as
>
>
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