Wonderful Worms

May 22, 2009

...alous because I wanted to be the first to come out with a snazzy, hip worm compost bin. The Target bin is cute but unlike other prefab bins it is not made from recycled plastic. I still kind of want one. Mr. Homegrown has encouraged me to share my failures because apparently readers of this blog love to hear about projects gone awry. I’ve only had one problem with worms but it was a doozy. I had been composting with worms for several years without...

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Mulch, mulch, mulch!

Mrs. Homegrown

May 14, 2015

Back to the Garden, Garden Design, Gardening, Permaculture, Soil

11 Comments

...something more like 8 inches (20 cm)). You can also mulch fruit trees with compost instead of wood-based mulch, to give the soil life there a boost, or lay down an inch or so of compost, and then top with mulch. When mulching your trees and bushes, be sure to leave a couple of inches between the mulch and their trunks. You don’t want the mulch creeping up the trunk–it’s not healthy for the wood. Mulching your paths, seating and play areas This is...

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How To Manage a Compost Pile Using Temperature

Mr. Homegrown

February 22, 2013

Composting, Gardening, How-to

7 Comments

...cubic yard of material to start with. So I save and scavenge materials that I can use to build a pile all at once. The small trickle of kitchen scraps we generate each day goes into our worm bin. Despite the geekery with using a compost thermometer, I’ve found that this method saves labor. Back breaking turning only happens when it’s necessary....

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Should I Put Coffee Grounds in a Worm Bin?

Mr. Homegrown

May 3, 2016

Composting, Gardening, Vermiculture

8 Comments

...gest pre-composting coffee grounds for three weeks before adding to a vermicomposting bin. It should be noted that the study was looking at worm bins where the feedstock was entirely made up of spent coffee grounds. Adding a few coffee grounds to a home bin made up of a diversity of feedstocks is probably not going to kill the worms. But, in a discussion thread on the Garden Professor’s Facebook group speculating about what percentage of coffee gr...

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Kent’s Composting Tips and Secret Weapon

Mr. Homegrown

October 27, 2006

Composting, Gardening, Vegetable Gardening

...re are more correct procedures, but this is what I’ve found works. I use a compost bin that has direct soil contact. I think this allows the introduction of soil organisms and serves to drain the pile if it gets too wet. I’ve done this same process with free standing piles as well. I start with a small pile of dry leaves and add a load of kitchen scraps. I also add a couple shovels-full of rich soil to get things started, particularly with some wo...

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