ISO help/tips making compost

[Leolady]

I should have mentioned in my first post, that year round mulching is called by some -- sheet composting.

The mulch material -- leaves and hay [yes, I use hay] over time, and with help from the multitude of earthworms they attract are transformed into compost.

I keep a foot or so of leaves and hay over my garden beds winter and summer. Over time, it settles to about 4 or 5 inches.

This is a photo of my mulched garden last summer.

 

[blissful]

I should have mentioned in my first post, that year round mulching is called by some -- sheet composting.

Your garden looks lovely.
I've heard it called flat sheet composting too.

I have one of my garden's like this too--lots of mulch. We call it the lasagna garden (google that), because it is made of layers of mulch and no rototilling is needed.

We started by laying down heavy cardboard over the lawn (yes), no staples or tape. Then we added bushels of evergreen prunings (branches too), sprinkled with lime. Then brought in soil on top and compost (including manure) corn cobs. Topped that with straw, let it start to break down over winter.

In spring, we added more kitchen waste and soil, and put wood sides on it--so now it's a raised garden, paving blocks around it.
Planted all sorts of things, mostly lettuces and things to use in salad, so we should have called it the salad garden.

This spring we'll plant more salad things and I already have some lettuces growing right now--and some leeks. (and here--we could still have snow to come for another month)
The branches that were in it for composting have taken 2 years to break down but that didn't hinder things from growing like crazy last year.

It's my favorite garden because it is close to the kitchen (right behind the garage), I go to it everyday to pick something starting much earlier in the year than the other gardens. No tilling!
Last year (the first growing year) I was able to have all the lettuce, onions, beets, peas and more that I wanted or needed and still give bags of it away to the neighbors. A few stray tomatoes were put in there too and they did beautifully. As I get older, I know I'll convert the other gardens to this type of garden because it is easier to maintain (little weeding) and with all those mulches and compost, they do so well. I'm very happy!

 

[Leolady]

Your garden looks lovely.
I've heard it called flat sheet composting too.

I have one of my garden's like this too--lots of mulch. We call it the lasagna garden (google that), because it is made of layers of mulch and no rototilling is needed.

As I get older, I know I'll convert the other gardens to this type of garden because it is easier to maintain (little weeding) and with all those mulches and compost, they do so well. I'm very happy!

If I hadn't started my gardens this way, I would not be able to handle the work. Arthuritis is kicking my butt!

My sister calls my gardens "hay piles" because everything is mulched with first a layer of leaves, then a topper of hay. My rose garden, my herb garden, my small orchard of fruit trees, my grape vines, and my vegetable raised beds all are heavily mulched.

Here is my rose garden the first year.

Here is a photo of my rose garden last summer.

My asparagus bed the first year. It is now 3 years old. See the big round bale of hay in the background!

My herb garden the first year [3 years ago].

 

[blissful]

My sister calls my gardens "hay piles" because everything is mulched with first a layer of leaves, then a topper of hay. My rose garden, my herb garden, my small orchard of fruit trees, my grape vines, and my vegetable raised beds all are heavily mulched.

Call it HAY PILES, call it sheet composting, call it lasagna gardening--who cares what you call it. It's GORGEOUS. You have some amazing stuff going on there!!
I would have never thought to do the rose garden--it's fantastic! I love the idea of grape vines too--I may have to try that.

You are now my gardening idol.

 

[Leolady]

Call it HAY PILES, call it sheet composting, call it lasagna gardening--who cares what you call it. It's GORGEOUS. You have some amazing stuff going on there!!
I would have never thought to do the rose garden--it's fantastic! I love the idea of grape vines too--I may have to try that.

You are now my gardening idol.

Thanks so very much! My sister thinks my landscaping is ugly.... But I disagree, and I am glad you do too.

All I do know is my rock strewn heavy clay soil is gradually turning into some nice rich humus this way.

I owe my knowledge to a little lady named Ruth Stout. She wrote several books starting in the 1950s to the 1970s. Google Ruth Stout and mulch gardening and you will see she was a fantastic lady. Her books are out of print, but you can get lucky on Ebay or Amazon. They are a worthwhile read let me tell you. I have read and re-read her for decades and because of her, all of the gardens I have had over the years were great successes.

Thank you!

 

[taxlady]

Thanks so very much! My sister thinks my landscaping is ugly.... But I disagree, and I am glad you do too.

All I do know is my rock strewn heavy clay soil is gradually turning into some nice rich humus this way.

I owe my knowledge to a little lady named Ruth Stout. She wrote several books starting in the 1950s to the 1970s. Google Ruth Stout and mulch gardening and you will see she was a fantastic lady. Her books are out of print, but you can get lucky on Ebay or Amazon. They are a worthwhile read let me tell you. I have read and re-read her for decades and because of her, all of the gardens I have had over the years were great successes.

Thank you!

I agree, your landscaping is lovely.

Thank you for the info on Ruth Stout. She, and her system, sound very interesting. I have set a reminder for myself to read up on it in May, as soon as tax season is over.

 

[Dawgluver]

Thanks so very much! My sister thinks my landscaping is ugly.... But I disagree, and I am glad you do too.

All I do know is my rock strewn heavy clay soil is gradually turning into some nice rich humus this way.

I owe my knowledge to a little lady named Ruth Stout. She wrote several books starting in the 1950s to the 1970s. Google Ruth Stout and mulch gardening and you will see she was a fantastic lady. Her books are out of print, but you can get lucky on Ebay or Amazon. They are a worthwhile read let me tell you. I have read and re-read her for decades and because of her, all of the gardens I have had over the years were great successes.

Thank you!

Very nice, Leolady!

 

[FluffyAngel]

Very nice indeed. Also thanks for the info on Ruth Stout.

 

[Leolady]

Here is a photo of my rose garden which I took yesterday. It really has grown hasn't it?

 

[taxlady]

It's gorgeous Leolady!

 

[Leolady]

Thank you!

I think it is doing so well because of the thick hay/leaf mulch has really enriched the soil. The worms are thriving.

Do you see the tall green things in the middle of the roses? They are wild garlic which I planted there when I planted the rose garden to repel aphids and for the kitchen. I dug them from the side of the road out in the country.

I just took an old screwdriver and punched holes in the soil and set the plants inside, then mulched and watered them.

On the first year's photo, they don't show up because it looked like they had died. The second year's photo did not show them either [bad camera angle?].

But last year I harvested every other plant and got about a bushel of garlic bulbs from them. I left the other half to grow, and that is what you see in the latest photo. This year I will harvest half of them, and so on.

 

[taxlady]

I was wondering what that green swathe was. How well they work to repel aphids? Just curious - I'm not going to start growing roses. My mum used to grow them and I always think of the thorns.

 

[Leolady]

I was wondering what that green swathe was. How well they work to repel aphids? Just curious - I'm not going to start growing roses. My mum used to grow them and I always think of the thorns.

I think the garlic repels aphids pretty well, I haven't seen any.

And I know you are wondering what I did with a bushel of garlic bulbs aren't you?

I washed, and cleaned them before sticking them in zip-lock bags in the freezer!

All winter long, I enjoyed being able to just take out a few cloves for the beef stew, or the chicken tetrazzini, or whatever. No peeling for me, cause I had done all the work before!

I found out recently that the wild garlic I have is a Rocombole variety and what to do with the scapes!

All garlic varieties produce a stem, but it's the hardneck Rocombole garlics that send out the curling scapes that gave them the nickname ‛serpent garlic'. There are many types of Rocombole and the flavor of the scapes can vary considerably from variety to variety, just as with garlic bulbs. But if you have a favorite variety of garlic that grows well in your garden, you will probably enjoy its scapes.

When to Harvest Garlic Scapes

When the scapes are just starting to poke up above the leaves, they are tender enough to eat fresh. Garlic scapes get tougher, the longer they grow. Although they twist and turn and look wonderfully exotic as they grow, they become hotter and more fibrous, requiring some gentle cooking before eating. I tend to cut mine as they are starting their first circle to get the most balanced flavor.
Cut, don't pull, the scapes from the plant. The plant will probably ooze a bit, but that will stop when the sun warms it and seals the cut.
Keep in mind that you do not have to cut the scapes at all. Your garlic will still form a bulb, it just won't be as large as it might have been. Some gardeners argue that leaving the scapes on results in a longer storing garlic bulb.
How to Use Garlic Scapes

If you harvest your scapes young and tender, you can chop them into salads or use them as a topping, like scallions. More mature scapes can be sauteed lightly and used over pasta, with eggs, mixed with cooking greens, pickled or pretty much in any dish that would be complemented by garlic. My favorite way to use them is to make a garlic scape pesto. I've listed some great recipes to get the juices flowing, below.

There are a lot of scape recipes on the internet too!

What are Garlic Scapes