Composting Corn Cobs

Corn cobs are wonderful in the composter but they take a very long time to break down. The smaller the materials you place in the composter the faster it will become usable for your garden. Many items like apple or melon peal can be easily chopped nice and small. Some even use an old blender to liquefy as much as possible, a good item to look for at yard sale. Cobs can be sliced but it is not easy. I take my cobs outside to an old patio stone or the stump used to chop wood, and I get a hammer. I then lay a cob down and beat the bejeeses out of it. This can be especially useful during times when you need to rid yourself of a little extra stress.

Buy corn from a farmers market and include the cobs in your composter. If you have a stressful job but you don’t have a composter it may be a beneficial time to start one.

Tea Leaves and Coffee Grounds in the Garden

Tea and coffee have long been acknowledged as beneficial for the garden.

There is an old flower garden here which was long neglected, the previous owners were elderly and yard maintenance declined over the years. I can envision the couple stepping out on to the deck in the early morning and dropping their tea bags over the rail directly into the garden. I discovered many tea bags in that little garden for the first couple years. This seems like an easy and good practice, when it rains the plants will get a little weak tea water. However, for the leaves to become a part of the flora community you need to rip those bags open. The leaves need to be able to combine with the soil and compost which they can’t do unless the bag is opened before adding into the garden.

The same practice goes for coffee pouches. These are pre-measured, great and easy for a quick pot of coffee but again, rip them open before adding to the garden or the compost bin.

We take great enjoyment in our gardens and sometimes a little extra step can have an enormous benefit for the garden and therefore for us.

Check Your Mulch or Compost for Pesticide Residue

The merits of mulch are well known but how do you know if the mulch you are using is safe?

The benefit of using straw or hay as a mulch has been questioned. Unless you know the farmer and can ask what chemicals have been used in the fields how do you know the mulch you are using on your organic fruits and vegetables is pesticide free?
Clopyralid and aminopyralid, of the pyralid class of pesticides, are commonly used on hay and straw fields. Traces of these chemicals can be found not only in straw and hay but also in manure and compost as it comes through the food chain.

To test straw/hay mulch place equal parts of mulch and water in a clean container and soak overnight.

The next day, take ten 4-inch seedling pots and if it is a cool time of year plant peas if it is a warm time of year plant beans for quick germination. Label the pots into two groups, one, mulch water and the other clean water. Next, strain the mulch and water mix and use only this water on the five pots in the mulch group. If there is pyralid residue in the mulch material there will be poor germination and those that do germinate may be deformed or have curled leaves.

To test manure you want to use in your garden, pot up peas or beans as above. Next mix equal parts of manure and water and mix well until fully blended. Strain off three cups of liquid and use this on half the pots and clean water on the other, again, make sure the pots are labeled into the two groups. Watch for poor germination rate and any sign of deformity or leaf curling in the manure water group.

To test compost set up the ten pots into the two groups with five pots containing the compost you want to use and the other five pots containing regular potting soil. Water both groups the same.

Peas and beans germinate quickly and any sign of a tainted medium should be visible within a few days.

Whether you use compost, manure or straw it is best to test the medium for pyralid residue before using on your prized vegetable and berry gardens.

Healthy Food…. Healthy People

Egg Shell Precautions for Compost and Birds

Calcium is a beneficial nutrient in your garden, a lack of calcium can result in deformed or curling of new leaves and poor root development.

Brassicas – cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower…- benefit from the addition of calcium. A good source of calcium not to overlook is egg shell. Whether using egg shells direct to the soil or in the compost bin they are a benefit to the garden. Tomatoes and peppers like crushed shells worked into the soil around them.

Wild birds also are attracted to a calcium offering when they cannot get it naturally from the soil surface. During the winter months I often put crushed egg shells on the bird feeding platform and they love it.

Before you start to toss all shells out for the wildlife or into the compost bucket there is a precaution. Egg shells are good for the garden, but not eggs, whether raw or cooked. Unless they have been thoroughly washed egg shells still have egg white inside, and raw egg breeds salmonella. This is not good in your garden and certainly not healthy for the birds.

All residue must be removed inside and out of the shell before using. Washing fragile shells can be quite a task so an easier method is to bake them. Place the shells on a cookie sheet and bake at 250o for 30 minutes. This will sterilize the shells and make it safe for garden and wildlife. Let the shells cool down completely and if you are feeding them to the birds the pieces should be broken to under ¼”.

For the garden, direct or composter, they need to be smaller still. A simple way to crush the shells is to place them between paper towels, wax paper or newspaper and using a rolling pin or a can crush to a fine grit. This will speed up the breakdown for plants to absorb and when sprinkled direct around the base of a plant the small shards inhibit slugs and many other crawling pests.

A few simple steps and egg shells are a great enhancement in your backyard for healthy plants and birds.

Short Cuts: Planting with Easy Compost for Small Spaces

Gardening is forgiving, if a plant is not growing well in one area you can move it to another, but to have time to relax and enjoy your garden nothing beats a little planning and organization.

When you are thinking of adding a tree or shrub to a garden preparing the area in advance will make the transplanting go smoothly, lowering the trauma to the plant and yourself. It takes time and attention to add larger varieties successfully; this is the time to make sure the mature plant and the location are a good match, for both the plant and you.

Compost is so beneficial to transplants. Having a good nutritious hole to pop it into will save you a lot of work later on. Compost in the bottom of the planting hole will help to maintain moisture as well as provide vital nutrients to the new root mass. Many people do not have a compost pile in their yard to access for transplants but that does not mean you have to go out and buy it by the bag.

The summer or fall before you plant, pick the location for the new addition keeping in mind light and space requirements of the variety you have chosen when mature. Dig the hole. Make it larger than it will need to be, this will be your new in ground compost pile. Layer the bottom of the hole with composting materials: vegetable kitchen scraps layered with grass clippings, fall leaves, soil, sticks and twigs broken up small, any “brown” composting materials, water to keep damp but not soggy. You do not have to maintain a huge composting deposit, just enough for 12” – 18” of materials so they will compost down to a good 6”-10” for the spring planting. If you have pets who may be too interested in the new lovely scented hole, place a wire screen and couple baseball size rocks on top of the compost pile, you don’t want to squash the contents or block the air, just enough to be a bother to animals. This usually deters inquisitive creatures since the compost is in a pit and they can’t move the rocks or screen out of the hole to get down to the kitchen scraps. Late fall give it a good final mix and turn to aerate, make sure it is damp, then top with a layer of leaves or grasses and your screen and rocks again. If you have clover in your yard grass clippings this is especially good for the compost as it is high in nitrogen and wonderful for plants. Leave it over the winter, but plan on turning the contents when you are able to as spring approaches. No need to add more to the contents as you want these to be fully broken down to friable soil for your new addition.

When you are ready for your lovely anticipated tree or shrub, the hole is already dug with wonderful nutrient rich compost in the bottom. This also has given you time to assess the location. You live with the hole for a while so you can be sure of its placement, if not, dig another in a better location, shovel the compost out of the original hole and into the new. It is a lot easier to do it at this stage than relocating later.

Another tip for tree or large shrub planting: place the tree on a large piece of burlap. Some plants take two or three people to maneuver them into place, when it is on burlap you can pull it around or lift it with less trauma to the plant, and yourself. Next: fill the hole with water before you pop it in. If you put the tree in a dry hole it stays where it’s put, float it in water & you can give it a quick spin. So often I find a plant in a great location but the “better” side is facing the fence!

Some jobs are big but with planning they can go smoothly. A job is well done when you have time to sit and enjoy your work.

Happy planting.