Weeds n Seeds n Worms - roughhouse composting

A couple of posts ago I talked about the compost bin, mowing and weeding, and so the question asked is 'where do the weeds go?' Do I burn them? Thrown the out in the trash?

Nope, I throw them all in the compost bin.  Reading around I see there are folks that are really 'light handed' (for want of a better term) with composting and in particular worm composting. In normal compost they have ratios and don't put things in for want of damaging their end product - and I can see the sense in that... to a degree. For instance I wouldn't put pesticides in there or chemicals, nor would I put meat scraps in because of smell and flies.  But other than that it's all good. Probably the only thing out of the ordinary I won't include, and throw out in the trash, is tomato plants - there's enough empirical evidence for my liking to back up not wanting to pass on tomato based problems into the tub. I haven't personally proven or disproven it, but enough people who's opinions I respect treat it as 'common knowledge'.

Now, what you get out depends on what you put in - and making compost is in some ways like brewing beer.  I understand people wanting a specific 'fast brew' compost for the sole purpose of fast garden use. If you're one of those people, have at it - nothing wrong with this at all.  But if you want a multifunction compost solution, you can afford to be a bit rougher, and still have good results.

The reasoning of 'no weeds in the compost' sorta makes sense. That seeds might come out the other end of the process and go straight into your garden, planted, and make more work. But really lets look at it objectively:

I have a 4 x 4 frame for composting, it's constantly breaking down, and I'm constantly adding paper, grass, leaves, veg scraps, cardboard sheets and lawn scrap (weeds).

• We have to assume that not all the weeds have gone to seed - this will be a varying percentage based on how slack you've been. Even assuming a high percentage, it's still a percentage. Not all the weeds will have seeds to begin with.
• On the top it goes - the plants dry, seeds drop in. Now in your carefully balanced and cultivated garden, does EVERY seed you plant germinate? I have a pretty high germination rate in the garden proper - but not EVERY seed - so thrown into the composter? On top where all the stuff that has yet to break down into 'the gold' is?  No, we are dealing with a percentage of a percentage.
• Birds, Squirrels, and other critters jump in my bin and peck, scratch, and burrow. Some of the seeds that drop will be eaten.
• They get covered and rained on, and hosed down. Too much water and seeds can rot - so out go a few more.
• Some may sprout (may, not in my tub, ever, but may!) only to be covered up by more stuff - blocking the sun like a kids blanket left on the lawn for a week.. they yellow and die before reaching maturity. More seeds off to meet the weed gods!
• They slowly go down into the bin, as things break down around them heat increases. Heat that's trapped in by more stuff going on top, the sun beating down, moisture heats up to a point where it's no longer beneficial to the seed..and now it's waterlogged covering no longer protects it. More stuff on top, more pressure.. a LOT will break down, rot, or just be cooked to the point where they are useless.
• Down down they go, things cool down a little as they get down to the bottom.. whatever few seeds are left now contend with earthworms and other little bugs.. all the while that relentless moisture breaks them down down down.
• In the end the tiny tiny percentage that by some miracle survives the year long break down process to good compost.... they get put into the garden and take root. Well that's when the last line of defense kicks in - Me.. out on a Sunday on my 10 minute weekly weed of the garden. That ain't something I planted? Out it goes... Of all those potential weeds, if any make it back - they get a one way ticket back into the bin to see if they can pull a 'Houdini' the second time around.

It's not the weeds in the compost you have to watch out for, it's the weeds still in the yard.

'Roughhouse Composting' - Nature has been doing this process since the world began, without us babysitting it. Unless you're trying to brew a specialty fertilizer - you're worry and work is better spent elsewhere.

Another one you'll see with regularity is on the subject of Vermicomposting  - which we all know about because I never shut up about it.  'use only plain white unbleached paper' or 'use only distilled water' - I think they're missing a very important part in these statements, and that is they should start with I.

"I only use plain white unbleached paper". - and even then there is rarely an explanation.  For someone that is directly wanting fast processing to end up with a marketable professional product - this makes TOTAL sense, or for someone breeding the worms for product.   But this seems to go through the internet like Moses coming down the mountain and becomes 'THOU SHALT NOT'.

For several years now I've been busting down my junk mail and making good fertilizer without ever renewing my initial investment, or ever having a 'worm holocaust' incident of any kind. I've never had a mass escape/suicide - I've never had a noticeable decrease in population (only in output).

 I can tell you first hand that the amount of pre-sorting you do on what goes into a worm bin will directly affect your clean out.  But only in how much sorting of inedibles (plastic shreds and the like) are at the other end - I can tell you that thin paper will likely be eaten faster than bulky paper - and I can tell you that the ratio of green to brown waste in the tub will directly impact the speed at which the process takes. I can tell you that having too much stuff in a tub will compact it and may lead to a month of bad recovery....

But what I can't tell you is that glossy ink flyers, newsprint, or even the plastic lining over some packing boxes will harm your worms, or that water straight from the tap will ruin your worm bin...

Because that would be bullshit.

In my 'mission statement' posts when I started this blog I said I wouldn't do the 'garbage in and gospel out' of the internet and pass on info I couldn't confirm. But I feel obligated to also do that for misinformation.

But don't take my word for it, I'll show you. As I've documented here I clean out a tray a month minimum from my 2 little worm farms.

 This is yesterdays tray. A day early for April. Originally I was going post this as a 'wow check this out' but I figure it would suit this purpose much better. Underneath is the full tray for last month (March) - its a good display of what I'm putting in on a regular basis. The tray on top has gone through it's process - that is to say that by the time I get to harvesting it, from top to bottom has taken 4 months.  One tray a month, just about every month. It goes from that multi colored mess of junk mail and packaging to the uniform brown compost in the top tray.

Lets have a closer look. It's nearly entirely devoid of inedibles - anything that could be broken down was broken down. In fact in this tub the amount of waste that wasn't reclaimed to castings could fit into a shotglass - I did have a picture, but as I said, camera has been playing up lately. That's 20 odd pounds of start product that 'shouldn't be used' broken down into 10 odd pounds of fertilizer.

It just keeps on going...

The process doesn't stop at the tray though - this is from the bucket I store my castings in - a walmart 5 gallon bucket with sealed lid.  The second bucket I had to buy (as my first was filled over the winter.) with about 1/2 inch filled at the bottom. Looking closely you see worms in that too - even after you sort and separate worms and as much uneaten stuff as you can, cocoons hatch in there and even sealed, worms eat, rise to maturity and breed. Even when stored in a sealed container, they are still breaking down the trash.

For some reason this camera angle looks crazy - and doesn't do the volume justice. At the end of the cleanout today it went from a bit under 1/2 inch at the bottom to over 3/4 full. just doing an 'arm lift guess' it weighs around 30lbs.

One tray wasn't as clean as the first, but it was still very clean. What is in there will be broken down further and I'll pick out bits and pieces as I use it.  But as you can see - tap water and whatever I can fit through the shredder.. absolutely no ill effects.

There's no need to coddle your compost unless you want a specific result. If you're trying to multi-task it (as I am) such as reducing household waste as well as turning it into a usable product for yourself and friends - you really can't afford to.  Nature has been doing it since the start of time, and will be doing it long after we're gone (in fact, we're going to aid the process eventually). If you need specific answers to questions on the subject, the best place to start is by asking a professional (such as Uncle Jims Worm Farm) and getting the info first hand.

Now, if you're someone who is making high grade fertilizer, or raising worms, or doing something a certain way for a certain result - I am in no way denigrating what you do or trying to discredit it.  But for those that aren't - please check your information before passing it off as gospel. If you're putting yourself forward as some kind of information source then have some journalistic integrity. That others may look at what I write and use it as a learning tool, for me, is a deeply humbling thought  rather than an ego boost. I respect my readers too much put something out there that I haven't personally researched, and where possible tested myself.

Anyways - lets put this pile of poo to good use!

Onwards to planting!