Started compost pile today

We harvested our corn yesterday, I had about 90 big green cornstalks 9-10 feet high.

I pulled those out by the roots today and layered them with oak sawdust compost in a compost bin. The bin is 10' x 10' and I filled it about 4' deep.

Using the front loader on my tractor, I started with a big layer of sawdust. Then I laid down 1/3 of the cornstalks, threw about six handfuls of 12-12-12 fertilizer on them, and covered them with another tractor scoop of sawdust compost. I left a sprinkler running on top of the pile while I went and pulled out more cornstalks.

I did that three times until I had three layers of cornstalks - then I covered it with three more tractor buckets of sawdust compost and scattered a few more handfuls of fertilizer on top. Then I watered the pile down real good.

The last time I composted green cornstalks like this, the heat scorched the upended pallets of my compost bin black. That pile is gonna cook!

Woo hoo! BBQ at Ozark's place .... over the compost pile? Well, maybe you could just wrap some of the corn and stick it in the bottom, lol...

After two days, I still haven't got "ignition" in that compost pile.

I looked at it this afternoon, and as much water as I put on it, it seemed dry. I underestimated how much water that sawdust compost can absorb, and I think the thirsty sawdust is pulling water away from the corn stalks. Heck, the corn stalks sticking out of the pile aren't even wilted - it's like I successfully transplanted them.

I'll fix that. I put a hose on top of the pile, turned it on all the way, and left it for an hour and a half. I'd guess that's about an extra 400 gallons of water that pile absorbed, and not a drop ran out. I can't squeeze any water out of the sawdust either.

I'll just keep messing with it until I finally get it wet and start generating some heat.

You might consider starting a smaller pile and as it heats up, add more stuff to it. It could be the sheer mass of what you have is keeping the parts that *are* heating up from radiating that heat out, too.

Pagancat - I hadn't thought about that, but you may be right. I'll see what it's doing tomorrow.

One good thing, I've got three identical compost bins side by side, and the other two are empty. With a tractor and front-end loader it's pretty easy to move the compost around any way I want it.

Hey, don't rub it in.... I want a "real" tractor so bad right now I can almost smell the diesel.

"I want a "real" tractor so bad right now I can almost smell the diesel."

They're sure handy. I restored a couple of 1952 Ford 8N tractors several years ago, and I still keep one of them for brush hogging (I hate to change implements).

But I've also got a Kubota "B" series diesel tractor with front end loader and live hydraulics. It's just right for our six-acre place, and you can sure do a lot of things with it.

Well, I feel better now. I checked the compost pile just before dark. It looked the same, so I stuck my hand about a foot into it. I pulled my hand out in a hurry - it nearly got burnt.

We've got ignition!

That compost pile is working good now. I've been mowing and catching clippings, so I've added more than a pickup truckload of green grass to the pile.

I split it into two bins because it's easier to handle that way. I dump in a big load of grass clippings then use the tractor to put a few scoops of the working compost on top. Then I pick it up and dump it a few times to mix it together. Then, I've been putting water on top.

It's hot and smoking in the middle and kinda smells like an old outhouse when I turn it, so I guess the bacteria are happy.

Ew - shouldn't smell. How often are you turning?

"Ew - shouldn't smell. How often are you turning?"
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That was the first time since starting the pile about 8 days before. It only smelled bad right in the middle, and I think there was a pocket that had no air. It was just so BIG before I split it in half and turned it - several tons I'm sure.

I've got two smaller piles and I'm going to turn it every couple of days now.

I'm tellin' ya, I'm going to have to come and remove some of that stuff..... sounds like you have too much to do. It would be a favor to you, really. I'm only thinking of your health and well being, really!

I just stuck a 12" probe thermometer into those piles in several different places. They're both working at 134 degrees and it's been going on for a couple of weeks now. They're probably hotter at the center.

None of the green stuff I mixed in, grass clippings and corn stalks, is visible anymore. I think by mixing and turning the piles I got a microorganism going that's now breaking down the sawdust.

Both piles are getting smaller as they "cook". I think it's going fine.

Excellent! How did you get them to burn cooler than the outside air?

"How did you get them to burn cooler than the outside air?"
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That's about the truth right now. What a heat wave!

By way of comparison, I stuck the thermometer in the big pile of straight oak sawdust I'm not composting yet. 104 degrees, about the same as our air temp right now - so I'm gaining 30 degrees in the compost anyway.