Watering the Compost Pile

Back in the fall, we started working with Oklahoma State University's office of sustainability to collect some of the produce scraps generated by the Student Union and other dining units on campus.  I wrote a blog entry about it in October of last year.

http://windyacresnaturalfarm.blogspot.com/2013/10/compost-cooperation.html

This has been a hugely successful endeavor for us.  We use the produce scraps to add wet material to our compost piles which, along with the bagged leaves that Tom has gathered around town, has helped to keep our compost "cooking" all winter.  This is evidenced by the temperature of one of the compost piles last week.

Currently, we have 3 compost piles in different stages of decomposition.  The one below is finished compost waiting to be used on the garden.  This one was started last summer.

Next, is the one that had the compost thermometer reading of 160+ in the first picture.

We have stopped adding new material to this one and are letting it "cook".  We turn it with the tractor every couple of weeks to help keep it aerated.  In a couple of months it should be ready to use ... just in time for planting the garden this spring.

Finally, the one we are just starting has a lot of fibrous stalks from tomatoes, okra and pepper plants that died after the first frost last fall.  It is shown below.  Notice all the OSU produce scraps, pineapple tops, citrus peels, etc.  This one has a long way to go.  

One of the things necessary to get a compost pile going is water.  It hasn't rained in a good while and the produce scraps aren't wet enough to supply enough moisture.  So, I recently drug a hose out there and gave it a good watering.

It took two hoses to reach out to the pile from the nearest hydrant.  So, I got a good workout just wrangling the hoses around!