New To the Garden

[Badtxmofo]

Hey guys I am relatively new to the garden but i love it already. I have done japs the past two years at my father in laws and this year i tilled a garden in the back yard at my house and i have a buch of stuff goin on. ANyhow I am wanting to know about composting. Can someone give advice to a composting beginner on the best way to go about it? Thanks, Kevin

[TightenUp]

around here its mainly grass and leaf debris. i was able to find a rabbit farmer who throws out rabbit poop mixed with the rabbit bedding(hay). i took it home and threw it in a bin and added some water. i just keep fluffing or turning it over and adding water when it looks dry. when its broken down i will add to the garden.

you can also use kitchen scraps and newspapers. do some research using google. you need brown(newspaper, hay, dead leaves) and green(fresh cut grass, manure, kitchen scraps) stuff mixed together

[Badtxmofo]

thanks. My mom and dad have a horse, but from what i have been reading on this site i am not sure i want to use horse manure. I also have abundent access to field fed cows.

[babice]

Well, I would advise to first test your soil. It's really quite easy. You can buy a soil testing kit at the store. Use that to see how your soil is faring. Also, it might be good for you to do a test to see how well your soil is currently draining. I believe they give that easy test in one of the articles I posted a link to below. It's just good to know these things as you're starting out.

Don't use any kind of fresh manure. Never use cat, dog, human or pig manures. As this article (http://gardening.about.com/od/soil/a/GardenSoil.htm) says, animal manure must be aged for 6 months to a year before you apply it because it will burn your plants when its fresh. And read a lot to educate yourself before you decide what you're going to till into your soil. Here's another good article: http://www.ehow.com/how_7719150_till-flower-bed.html

Good luck! Welcome to the world of gardening and to tomatoville as well!

p.s. I tilled in buffalo compost, mushroom compost and some chicken poop in various parts of my flower and herb gardens this year, along with some perlite and spaghnum peat moss to help with drainage.

[babice]

Wow - I just saw the pics of your garden. You're doing great! If you're talking about that plot you posted pics of, maybe you should think about just tilling in some manure and/or other nutrients in the fall before you put it to bed for it's long winter nap? Oh, btw, just re-read your first post and realized you didn't say anything about tilling. Just compost. LOL! Are you looking for suggestions on mulch?

[Crandrew]

Originally Posted by ChefJeff

around here its mainly grass and leaf debris. i was able to find a rabbit farmer who throws out rabbit poop mixed with the rabbit bedding(hay). i took it home and threw it in a bin and added some water. i just keep fluffing or turning it over and adding water when it looks dry. when its broken down i will add to the garden.

you can also use kitchen scraps and newspapers. do some research using google. you need brown(newspaper, hay, dead leaves) and green(fresh cut grass, manure, kitchen scraps) stuff mixed together

This pretty much sums it up.
You need a balance of Green waste to brown waste, layered and properly moist not wet. I would suggest turning it every 3-5 days. the only amendment i add is coffee grounds and filters since they act like catnip for worms. Seriously worms LOVE COFFEE!!!!

I have stopped adding my kitchen scraps to my compost because I just began "bokashi compost" and Im in love Look under green gardening for the thread about it.

I will amend my normal garden plants with the outside compost pile and use the Bokashi juice and bokashi compost to add to my vegetable beds.

[Badtxmofo]

The spot i am using now is A previous spot that the man who lived at the house before me used. However, I am going to extend it over another 20+ feet and all that has never been tilled or used.

[babice]

Originally Posted by Badtxmofo

The spot i am using now is A previous spot that the man who lived at the house before me used. However, I am going to extend it over another 20+ feet and all that has never been tilled or used.

SO awesome! I'm excited for you! Well, the pics show that you seem to already have a knack for this. I'm quite certain you'll do great!