Some girls want diamonds, but not me. No, for years now I’ve been asking Santa, the Birthday Fairy and the Easter Bunny for a composting drum. The Birthday Fairy finally came through!
This dual unit is from Gardener’s Supply Company. The idea is that while one batch is “cooking” you can work on filling the next drum. It sounds simple enough…one part “green” (yard trimmings or kitchen scraps) to three parts “brown” (dried leaves, etc…). There is a “Super Hot” activator powder you can add if you choose to, then just check the moisture level (it should feel like a well-wrung sponge), close the door and give it a few spins.
Temperature inside the composter should reach 120 to 160 F. Spin the drum every few days to incorporate fresh oxygen and keep an eye on the moisture level. If all goes well you should have a batch of compost in about four to eight weeks. Well…we’ll see.
I’ve started my first batch and am gathering materials to fill the second drum. At this point my concern is having enough “brown”; the “green” is the easy part. I’ll let you know how it goes.
February 23, 2013 at 7:30 pm
woo hoo, we started just last week with our two compartment composter too… here’s to deep dark black gold for the garden
mike
February 24, 2013 at 10:18 am
Cool! Many blessings on your first batch!!
March 1, 2013 at 6:37 pm
Being more involved with building a garden is very comforting and lets you forget your worries for a while. I like composters now and look forward to seeing what they produce including the plants and veggies that will come from the compost.
Thank You