Got a truck full of free stuff for the compost pile today. 50# bag of oats - any opinion? How about horse feed with corn mixed in? I like FREE! Got about 300# of assorted feed. Curious of how much to use with stall shavings and manure. Got to mix up a good batch for my first compost tea brew.

Thanks,
Dirt

You must be living right. The only thing I find free is mosquito bites with the threat of 'west nile virus'.

The Captain I ain't, BUT I am the queen bee in my lil hive... that's besides the point.

The point is: whenever I compost horse feed that has corn in it, the stupid corn always sprouts because I don't turn the pile enough.

Just thought I'd pass that on - for some reason I'm annoyed when things sprout that aren't "welcome" volunteers.

-nita

nita,
How's things in San Diego these days. It's a city near and dear to me. My aunt lived there all her adult life and still have 2 cousins there. I was stationed at Pt Loma from 90 to 93. I took up golf there and haven't been the same since. A buddy and I had a goal to try every restaurant in San Diego, didn't make it. It was a great place to live and not to have to pay taxes.

Dirt

Hi Dirt. It's been spring for a month now. Gorgeous weather. We had a hot spell two weeks ago and the beaches were packed like 4th of July. Lots of people played hookie and the news covered it. Too funny.

We're paying about $2.35/g for gas and it downright sucks.

The new Padres ballpark just opened up in what used to be a nasty area of downtown - between 32nd and the Seaport Village area. It has really revitalized the entire East Village of downtown, right next to the Coronado Bridge.

There's new homes being built in South Bay that are about 1,100sq ft that sell for 350,000+. Absolutely no garden space - tiny tiny lots w/postage stamps for front and back. And they can't build them fast enough for people to buy. I shake my head and wonder why they don't buy a fixer-upper like mine for half the price and 4x the lot. c'est la vie

There's a new golf course in Mission Valley between 2 shopping centers - called Riverwalk. It follows the San Diego River (creek) for a bit. Nice pad. You can see it from I-8. I'll tell them you're coming for a few holes.

-nita

Hey Dirt Pit that sounds great!
Congratulations on your tea brewing experiments!

I like to use about 1/2 full container in my tubs or buckets of good compost. Then I add several handfuls of any protein grain meals or feeds into the mix. I usually add just a few tblp of molasses or corn syrup or rotten fruit, for added sugars, starches, and fungi, for extra aerobic microbial action. Then I turn the air pump on for a few days. No more than 1-3 days, until I see a good foiamy top layer or that pleasant yeasty, wine, smell.

Hope that helps.
Happy Gardening!