Want to compost but space is an issue

I haven't composted yet because of space and time limitations. The Mantis twin tumbler sounds great, but looks too big - I don't have a place for it. Should I consider biostack or composting with worms?

I saw this one one of the threads as an option
http://www.seattle.gov/util/stellent/groups/public/@spu/@csb/documents/webcontent/spu01_001992.pdf

I love my Biostack bin.

Karen

Karen,
It sounded very nice. Can you share you real life experience?
How long does it take for the scraps to compost? Where do you have your
Biostack bin in the sun, shade, half-shade? Do you add browns regularly?
How do you get the compost out of it? It seem a bit tricky to work from
the top of a large bin, but it must be very to just pull it out of the ground and dump
out.

Here's my "bin." It measures about 2 ft. wide by 4 ft. long. Filled with a layer of shredder paper from work, then alternate layers of grass& leaves. I make a trench down the middle and fill it with coffee grinds and table scraps. It has a TON of HUGE earthworms down in there. And I just started out with a few scrawny worms... Doesn't take much space.

Oh, and I keep it moist, sprinkling each layer as I add it.

Awsome!

enya: Here is the Biostack bin. Click on "more views" to see how it works.
http://www.smithandhawken.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=prod21199&categoryId=cat240046p&sku=21199

It's composed of 3 bottomless tiers. After filling and putting into a hot cycle, I let it sit until it cools off, then I flip the pile. You do that by removing the top tier and placing it next to itself, then transferring with a compost fork. It's easy because you don't have to lift so high in the air (I'm only 5'3", so tall bins are tough). I add moisture as I build the new pile.

I'm not composting food scraps because rodents (squirrels, rabbits, voles, field mice) have become a major issue in my neighborhood this year. My compost is yard waste- grass clippings, leaves, straw, weeds, deadheaded flowers, etc. The rodent issue could be avoided by using hardware cloth under the bin, I'm thinking of doing that if these stupid rodents don't leave soon.

Karen

If you dig a trench deep enough and cover it over, there will be no odor to attract rodents of any kind. I have a yard full of squirrels, and not one has bothered my compost pile...also, keeping it moist will satisfy the worms and discourage the ants, although I understand ants (other than fire ants) do help to aerate the pile, which is a very good thing.

Trust me, these critters love my lasagna beds, and they don't stink. I've gone to great lengths to try to combat the field mice and chipmunks this year. They're everywhere but especially fond of the lasagna which was built a couple of months ago. I wouldn't fool myself into thinking that go for those but not the compost bin.

The miserable rodents are everywhere this year.

I too find that moisture does make it less attractive to rodents. Once mulch dries on the surface after a rain, they start digging a lot, but find drier places until then.

Quick, down and dirty way - stick your kitchen scraps in a blender (add water if necessary to make it pourable,) dig a small hole in your garden, pour in the stuff and cover with soil. Waa-la. Insta compost.

Pagancat,
You are right on the mark! I don't have a spare blender just for the "trash," but what I did by accident was put my chopped up veggies in a large plastic container with a tight lid. I kept it outside near my work area for the last two months. The stuff inside started breaking down into a liquid form. No bugs got into the container. Well, I reached for it a coupla weeks ago and poured the liquified remains down the center of the trench, realizing that most of the breakdown work in the process had happened in that container! It's not the food but the organisms that eat the food that contribute to the compost process. And, the worms don't eat the food -- they eat the organisms that eat the food. Great Suggestion.

I might need to scrounge up an old blender from somewhere! HMmmmmmm. The resale shop on the corner, perhaps??

There ya have it - or freecycle.com .... craig's list.... K-mart!

I'm a novice, so please forgive me. Aren't the liquified remains high in ammonia? Wouldn't this be similar to just adding veggie food scraps directly into your garden - which I seem to remember was a no-no because it caused ammonia.

Although the stuff you're throwing away in your kitchen has a nitrogen content (and ammonia is a byproduct of nitrogen breaking down, yes?) I can't think of much that would have a content so high that it would cause a problem. Even then, any water (assuming that it's fairly neutral) and the soil are going to buffer the effects, too. You probably don't want to put anything directly on the roots of any plant, but that has more to do with damaging the roots.

I used to have access to a table that gave the relative carbon/ nitrogen content, but they've closed the site, unfortunately. But some of the stuff that would be very high in nitrogen are freshly cut grass - or grasses like alfalfa, clover....

The diff between this and adding it directly is that it takes more time for the breakdown of items - probably why more people don't use cardboard and newspaper for their "browns" - you have to tear it up pretty good for it break down with any speed. Lasagna beds seem to do an excellent job of it, I'd guess because the moisture is held in well.... I had problems with lasagna beds in Phoenix until I figgered that one out >smile< .

DWeber,
I've read somewhere there's a composting technique (I think called "hole composting?" ) where actually you dig a hole in your flower/garden beds and bury the tablescraps and cover them over again. It breaks down over time, right there in the hole and becomes compost right in the bed. dig as many holes as you like, if you don't want or can't have a compost bin!

I'm gonna do this with another flowerbed I have that's full of mulch that's taking forever to break down. I want nice fat worms to set up house in that bed, so I'm gonna transplant some of them into there once I start digging and filling some holes. The worms will find the scraps organisms and start feasting, reproducing, and aerating the hard soil in the bed under the mulch. And, since I'm collecting scraps faster than I can use them in my one little compost bin, I'll start hole composting in other areas of the yard!

I'll let you guys know how this turns out.

Interesting idea! I tried making a lazania bed last fall, but did not get far. It requires more organization than I mastered. I'll try what Gymgirl suggested with watermelon peel. We eat lots of watermelons in summer, and those peels are very moist. I figure they'd disintegrate fast.

Enya_34 et al,
Here's a link I found that discusses trough or hole composting. Yep, that's it all right!

http://www.lewisgardens.com/compost.htm

Thanks so much for all the good information. I'm learning lots. I like the idea of hole composting. I've got lots to learn.

DG is the best place on earth to learn anything you want to know about gardening!

I can't thank you and everyone enough. There's so much to read out there. Sometimes all you want to know is just the answer to your question(s). It can be overwhelming. I spend more time studying a topic - when I actually should making things happen.

What's the next gardening thing you want to make happen? I'll encourage you along.