Allotments 4 All

I had some manure delivered a few months ago and it's got lots of sawdust in it (more sawdust and straw than manure)... I've turned it and watered it when it looked a bit dry, but was wondering if there's any way to speed up the rotting down... I want to use it on my plot later this year.

if you could get hold of lots of clean grass clippings you could mix this in, should help to give it a nitrogen boost.

got anyone who can pee on it, that will activate it, or mix in some chicken pellets, they'll hot it up  ;D

Thanks both of you...  a nitrogen zap it is.

Any idea how long it takes to rot?  And should I wait until all the sawdust has completely rotted to put it on my plot?

the advise is 2 - 3 yrs for rotting down but i got some mixed with rabbit waste in 2007 and applied it to my heap in layers of grass clippings then bag of spent sawdust bedding (which i watered generously with a free activator i got from the council when i bought my first plastic bin from them some years back) then another layer of grass and so on.....

this year i found that the bottom of the heap with the first layers although with partially rotted sawdust still very visible it was interlaced with lots of lovely crumbly compost i assume from the grass clippings. so with this in mind i used it in trench type holes under my squashes, pumpkins, courgettes, tomatoes, sweet peppers and the aubergines. I'm hoping next year it would be even more rotted so i could spread it more generously around (after using some this year, i did turn the heap once this year incorporating lots more grass clippings to continue to help it break down). oh and i leave my heap covered as i find the sawdust drys out otherwise.

As I understand it, wood isn't broken down by the bacteria that make compost, it's broken down by fungi, so the usual rules for compost don't apply and the process takes a few years.

I used sawdust compost and it was the worst year I ever had, takes ages to break down and robs the plants of nitrogen. Burn it, is my advice   :'(

I'd suggeest getting it in the soil now but chuck some bonemeal in there too to help with the nitrogen situation. Sawdust in the soil will help hold in moisture and break up clay structures too so it will all be good..... Does depend a bit on your soil though...

chrisc

If you want to speed up the procces of your compost heep get some Garrota ( not sure about the spelling) or some Amonia Sulphate and spred it on you compost pile this will help it break down.

NITRAM!

Urine!! (free at source)

adding fresh grass cuttings will deplete the nitrogen even more!

per bob flowerdew - pee in a bucket  - its free!

dont waste your money on shop bought chemicals

dax

Compost accelerators are just nitrogen sources, and as people have already said, you can supply your own. Save your money for something worth buying.

I made some raised salad beds last spring - about 12" deep and added loads of manure, compost material (peelings etc) then loads of leaves and saw dust, then cardboard and then about 6" of good soil.  Essentially I was making hotbeds - all that composting happening deep down supplying heat to the bed and trapping in lots and lots of moisture.  maybe thats the trick - bury it deep down and make use of all that it brings.

Psi

PS by the way, it was very very successful - lots of quick salad still going strong now.

Quote from: chriscross1966 on September 09, 2009, 00:39:52
I'd suggest getting it in the soil now but chuck some bonemeal in there too to help with the nitrogen situation. Sawdust in the soil will help hold in moisture and break up clay structures too so it will all be good..... Does depend a bit on your soil though...

chrisc

bonemeal won't help the nitrogen situation much if at all. Bonemeal is high in phosphorous for root development for example Arthur Bowers is about NPK 3-17-0.

We get horse manure with lots of sawdust delivered (free) to our allotments.  Last year I made a big heap of it in the area where this year's pumpkin would be grown.  I didn't add anything to the heap but I did enclose the sides in some plastic sheeting. 

The pumpkin loves it  :)



I found in the past that if I spread it on the soil without composting it I got loads of grass growing so I don't do that any more. 

We have a few wood pellets in the rabbits droppings but this is minimal compared to the straw and hay thats in it. Mixed with the other household waste and stuff from the plot it has made good compost. I have left it for 2 years though. Used it last week and its great.