compost tea and composter

Well, my envirocycle composter (the barrel type that rolls on a base with inset wheels) makes a great tea. It has a base that collects compost liquids and I got about a gallon and a half out of it several days ago. I added over a gallon of water and watered my roses with it. I'd transplanted the roses recently out of necessity. Golden Showers is blooming like crazy, and La Reine Victoria has a bloom. It's the tea that did it.

However, I didn't roll it around for a couple of days (I was out of town) and when I opened it up there were toadstools growing in it! I've moved it to a much sunnier spot and tumbled it to within an inch of its life. I'm trusting it will get hot enough to kill the fungus. Any input on this one?

How do you remove the tea from the base? I can not find any information on that anywhere and that is my biggest concern. I do not want to have to pick up the full bin to get to the tea... I am sure it will be heavy.

Tammie

Tammie, it has a screw-on top at the front of the base, about the size of a soda bottle top. You wrestle the barrel off (not as difficult as that makes it sound), then pick up the base from the back (it's not exactly a handle, but it is smaller and really fairly easy to pick up). I empty it as soon as stuff is sloshing around in there -- it would probably weigh 15 pounds or so if I let it get full. I think you can screw on a hose to use, but I don't know how efficient that would be. I empty it into a bucket right there, then reassemble the whole thing and use the tea from the bucket. I dilute it by about half.

If you're thinking of getting one, I'm not positive I'd recommend it. They have removed the air holes at the sides because of critters, apparently, and it's very hard to keep enough oxygen in there. I hate to discourage you, and I'm not unhappy with it -- yet -- I just haven't been able to make good compost with it. But it's only my first try! I probably put in too much in the way of grass clippings. If you get one, roll it daily. I'm thinking of putting a stick or big rock in there to help it mix when I roll it. I'm not giving up on it, and I do like the tea very much (well, my roses do...) but if I'd known what it was really like I most likely would just have done a traditional compost heap or bin. These grass clippings have turned into what looks like dogs' droppings, and though they're not putrid, they don't smell any too good. I've been trying to remedy it, but I think I'll spread them in a hole, cover them up to compost the "old" way, and start over.

Happy gardening!

Ann

would it be possible to drill small holes into the sides to increase the availible oxygen? I was thinking of putting it behind some of my plants in the flower bed up on some cinderblocks with a slight slant so it would be easier to remove the tea. It sounds like a small tube would work to siphon the tea out without having to lift it... maybe an aquarium air hose... very small. I really want one if they work.

Tammie

I'm going to drill holes if my next mixture doesn't work. Aeration is the one real problem. The only openings for air are the door itself (which does let in air when closed) and the slots at the bottom for letting out the tea, which can't let much air in as they're covered with composting stuff. If you're going to set yours up like that, you might think about getting a short garden hose and screwing it on the opening. But putting in an air hose as a bung should be fine, too -- you just would have to drill a hole in it and you know what happens when you drill holes. And it would have to be a very slight slant. Getting the tea out of the base is not that much of a problem, though as you said, it would be if it were full.

I'm thinking if I do drill holes I may try to baffle them with some screen or something. I just don't want flies taking up residence. I'll repost to this if and when it starts working. And I do still have great hopes for it. It cost too much to give up now!

Pour in some hydrogen peroxide. Lots of extra Oxygen in that and maybe some more N or C depending what is lacking. (Green or Brown)

Well, I'd have tried that, Soferdig, if I had read it instead of going home early yesterday and dumping the entire mess. I dug a shallow pit, emptied the barrel, covered it with shredded newspaper and then a shallow layer of dirt. I'll till it under at some point. It just never would get hot. You're supposed to add greens for that, but it was predominantly green to begin with! I think it's the aeration. I'm going to start over again this weekend. I just hope I can figure out a good balance. I want this SOB to work! Partly because it was expensive, but mostly because I'd love to get a few shovelfuls of compost every month. I'm more and more convinced we should compost the way God does.

Any suggestions for what to try this time? I'd welcome them. I don't have any leaves -- Hurricane Rita and the developers took care of those. I have a steady supply of grass clippings (which I'm VERY hesitant to use at all), a reasonable amount of kitchen waste, dried grass clippings (which I think do the same as fresh when they get wet), shredded newspaper, can probably get pine straw --- ??

I think they tell you to add greens to heat up the compost is cause that is usually the reason for failure. Not enough Nitrogen. When you have too much the same happens. Try news paper shredded.

What if I put about 1/3 kitchen waste and 2/3 shredded newspaper? (I don't expect you to guarantee anything!) Then turned it every day and all. I guess it might be worth a try. Or more paper? Less? I can always dig another trench and dump it out again.

Yes kitchen waste is brown (plant material) Coffee grounds are green ( nitrogen)

Ann,

not sure if you are still watching this thread... but i also bought one of those "tumblers" last August.

Did you have any success with it?

I have not used any compost yet, but I used the tea all the time.

Mine did get "really" hot through the summer and fall, and it's shaded half the day.

It's been pretty cold here, 9F right now and getting colder... so I'm not sure if it's frozen or not.

Today I'm going to go dump a lot of coffee grounds and give it a good stir.
I know my neighbor was dumping in it over the holidays....

anyways -- was curious if you like yours or not yet.
I too an undecided... but for what i paid for the darned thing... i'm gonna make it work.

tcs, I'm sure it can work. I just never could find the right ratio and have given up. I use it for mixing soil, and may sometime put compost in there to make tea, but I've given up using it as an actual composter. I have two "hoops" which I constantly turn and they make much better (and much more!) compost than I could get out of the tumbler. I'd love to hear when you do have success with it -- I really think it's a great idea. I just had no success with it.

thanks for the quick reply.

I'll get at mine more this Spring.

I just thought it looked so easy... i did roll mine quite often,
and once found it moldy, but no mushrooms.

I probably put more grass clippings in it than "kitchen scraps" though i will do a lot of coffee grounds as my son works for Starbucks and can get buckets of the stuff -- not to mention what i get just from my kitchen.

If anything else... I'll keep using the tea... my house plants love it.

terese

I went out this morning and took the tumbler off the base and rolled it around for a while to mix in all the shredded phone book and coffee grounds i just added yesterday..... and figuring since it's all defrosted, i'd get the tea out.

thinking there would be A LOT, i took it over to my picnic table and poured from there into a bucket. I probably get 3 quarts.

at least my house plants will be happy.... OH, i do dilute it as it stinks.

Is it making decent compost? If so, TELL ME THE SECRET!!!

It DOES make nice tea, doesn't it?

the jury is still out on the compost. I only got this in August -- so i'll use the first bit of compost this spring.