Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Compost aeration

When we moved here last year one of the first things that came with us was our compost bins.



We thought that spot by the fence would be great - and in fact it was pretty much the only available spot. But then we put a chicken coop on the other side of it and the two enormous trees leafed out and we realized our bins were not getting near enough sun.

So last week I dug out all the compost and we moved the bins over to the garage. And these are some heavy bins. Think about lifting seven large pallets at the same time! We managed though and then there was a bunch of repair work - slats of wood needing to be nailed back in and I put on some mesh in some areas to keep compost from falling out through the sides. This spot gets very warm so it should be a nice compost-generating place.



I had to temporarily pile all the compost next to the chicken coop while we moved the bins and the girls were pretty excited about this. They really wanted to get their beaks on some of that tasty stuff!



So now we have this big open spot were the bins once were. We're planning to make a little enclosed chicken run between the coop and the fence and let the girls go crazy with whatever is left from the bins.

3 comments:

Ann said...

I love doing my own composting and adding back to the soil. It's good, hard, satisfying work. Plant and Garden Blog

carolynagain said...

Thanks for the photos of the pallet composter. It's a handsome thing--great idea. I don't have a spot for this now, but this is another idea I will borrow from you when (if?) we ever find a place to live. I'm so glad you write for the Farm Hub!

Aimee said...

Good luck finding a place to live! And not just a nice house - but nice, garden-loving neighbors too! =)
Thanks for your support too - it has been fun writing for UFH. =)