Need advice for a composter

I'm looking for recommendations for some kind of compost "barrel" or container to compost food and yard waste. Right now I have a pile at the edge of my property where I just throw everything. It's unsightly and filled with tree roots, brambles and weeds of all kinds. I am at an age where I am looking for less work and less turning and digging.
It would be great if I didn't have to put it together but I realize that's just a dream.
I see several models of rolling barrels in catalogs but does everything need to be shredded first? I just threw a pile of rose bush prunings in my pile and I know from experience they will be there for years.
Thanks.

Biostack is quite easy to put together. Smith and Hawken carries it and so does Loew's.

It's in 3 tiers and has a hinged lid. When you turn it you take the top tier off, set it to one side, put the contents from the first tier back in, and so on.

I stopped using the big stuff (thick roots, rose stem cuttings) because they take so long to break down. I'd really like to get a chipper shredder one day to make better use of that sort of thing. I save bagged leaves in the fall after shredding them with a blower vac (the vac part) so I have the browns to mix in all through the growing season when most of what I get are greens. Kitchen waste is added too. Lately we've been getting coffee grounds from the local convenience store, but they tend to go right into the gardens.

I agree with Kristi. I had some old bin for 10 or 15 years and it was a crummy, hard-to-use thing and I only got one load of compost per year. Last year I got a Boistack and love it. It's worth every penny. I want another, trying to convince my husband that I NEED it.

The Biostack costs $99 but shipping is around $40 I think. If you have a Smith and Hawkin store locally you can get it there and save the shipping.

http://www.smithandhawken.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=prod21199&categoryId=cat240046p&sku=21199

Karen

Thanks, I'm going to check them out.
Anyone using the rotating barrel types, just for comparison?

Roseone, check out Garden Watchdog before you buy. I seem to remember some complaints about one of the rotating composters.

Thanks Zeppy, will do.

Here's a recent thread with some good info.

http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/700612/

HTH.

Thanks, just throwing it on the ground is beginning to look really good to me. :-)

I have one of these
http://www.cleanairgardening.com/tumcombincom.html
compost tumbler

I purchased it since it's not unsightly
It's come down in price, last Aug i paid $50 more

i just throw the stuff in, give it a few rolls and leave it.
I love using the "tea" too.... though you have to take the barrel off, pick up the base, unscrew the lil cap, then manage to pour it into something without spilling it. (though i've never spilled yet)

yesterday, i was working on one of my beds, so i figured i'd just "roll" it over to where i was working... about 250 feet away... over bumpy grass, through 2 gates, up a hill... then back again.... it was very tiring!! I was even gonna ask the neighbor boys to roll it back for me.....

but -- i do like the composter... would i have gotten something else... possibly.

It looks interesting. Thanks.

Before you buy, consider what you want to do with a composter. The two basic types are "continuous" and "batch." If you just want a place to throw kitchen scraps and a few garden trimmings, a continuous composter is great. You just toss the stuff in there and forget it. Maybe once or twice a year, you can remove a bit of compost from the bottom. It's not meant to be a compost-generating machine. It's more of a place to make your organic debris "go away."

Batch-style composters will make compost much faster. However, it requires a commitment on the part of the gardener. You have to combine ingredients carefully and build each batch. Then, it has to cook and finish before you can add more. Some of the newer models have features that allow you to keep adding new material. But in general, the tumblers require a little more involvement from the gardener.

Thank you very much. I am very much of the school of continuous. I just want to get rid of it and digging some out now and then is a bonus.

I just got the MG BioStack this weekend at Lowe's. I am absolutely thrilled... I had some leaves and small bark chips and lawn cuttings in a garbage can and it was heating up nicely.. SOLD!! Now I have a tiny pile inside my compost bin and I'm happy happy happy! Can't wait to hord all the leaves this fall.. I just know my neighbor's are gonna think I've gone over the edge when they see me gathering leaves and putting them in storage! LOL

ZZ: I think you'll love the Biostack. It's just so much easier to flip and aerate. I never really was able to aerate much with my old bin, but the Biostack is much better. I tend to flip it every couple of weeks.

Karen

Thank you Karen, I am thrilled.. I can hardly stay away from it.. LOL I have never composted before and I can't believe I am so tickled about it. It is amazing how much will fit in there!

ZZ: Yes, it is amazing how much it holds, and also how quickly it breaks down in the BioStack. It was so hard to aerate my old bin that I was never very effective in my efforts, no matter how hard I tried. It's so much easier with the BioStack that I do it often. I started a new batch in early spring, have turned it about every week or 2, re-stacking the tiers next to itself and forking over. Yesterday I removed the now almost finished fresh spring batch and moved the contents to a 32 gallon Rubbermaid garbage can ( with lots of holes drilled) to cure a little more, and I started a new bach in the BioStack. My husband cut the grass yesterday and I filled it full again with grass clippings, leaves, weeds and garden debris. It's full now and my new batch will hopefully start cooking.

Let us know how you make out as you use it for a while. I hope you're as happy with it as I am with mine.

And my neighbors have grown used to my curiosities like taking their leaves and grass clippings, and yours probably will, too.

Karen

Karen,

what do you use for your "browns" ?

not having trees - that is a problem for me.
I have plenty of coffee grounds and grass clipping and kitchen scraps... but not much in the "brown" department.

Terese

Shredded paper works.

OH -- yes, i did the shredded phone book not long ago... thanks, i forgot.
we don't "get the paper" but my MIL does, so i should have her save one for me once per month.

thanks.... i should make myself a list so i remember.

Do you work in an office or know anyone who does? We have a paper shredder in our home (office) and it breaks down well in the composting bin.

i have a shredder at home.... i ended up "jamming" it when i did the phone book (I did about 1/3 of a large book)... took forever to get it unjammed... but yes, i did notice that the paper is broken down already as i used compost last week and didnt see any paper in there, with the exception of my coffee filters.

I've read that coffee filters break down, but it isn't fast. I've stopped adding them. Impatient I guess. :-)

For browns, I hoard fall leaves. I shred them first, sometimes I cut them up twice by vacuuming with the leaf vacuum, dumping out, then sucking up and shredding again. This makes them very small, then they compact well and a lot of them will fit into a small space. Last fall I collected them and mulched all my planting beds with them first, then ended up with three 32 gallon Rubbermaid trash cans to store for compost. Unfortunately I've now used half of them in my lasagna beds and my compost bin, but that still leaves quite a few for compost. Last year I used less to mulch my beds and also saved some in leaf bags.

I also add garden debris, pulled dry weeds and flowers, paper, cardboard, shredded paper, whatever I can find after I run out of leaves.

Karen

I have Mantis and love it. Two sides. One for depositing waste and the other is cooking as you turn it once a day.
Here is a thread.
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/530811/
Linda

This message was edited Apr 29, 2007 9:31 AM

Wow! I just measured the temp in my compost bin. That new batch that I built yesterday afternoon is up to 150 degrees- in less than 24 hours.

The local temp is now 60 degrees.

Karen

This message was edited Apr 29, 2007 10:21 AM