Gardening – Page 3 – The Cottage Wife

With the Great FoodCyclerTM Experiment underway, I'll be posting updates and observations here. Now that I've got my 4 samples running, I'm not too sure if this will work at all. I'm a bit concerned that my sample sizes might be too small to be relevant and it might be too late in the season. But ... we'll see how it goes! Week 1 - Observations & Comments Sample NameObservations & ActionsAerobic - No StarterObservations: - Big condensation drops on top cover- Furry mold-like development on the food product layerAction taken: - I gave the jar a shake to begin combining contents and aeration.Aerobic - With StarterObservations: - Similar condensation on top as with the sample above- Contents seem more consistently damp throughout - More mold development in the food-based layer than the previous sampleAction Taken: - I tried to shake up the contents to combine and aerate but they didn't move as much as the sample without starter.Anaerobic - No StarterObservations: - Small amount of tension in the cover indicating some form of gas is being created inside- No other significant changes in the material insideAction Taken: - I shook the contents well without opening the lid.Compost TeaObservations: - Some condensation on the top but smaller droplets and not as many as the aerobic samples- Definite scum layer developing on the top of the sampleAction Taken: - I swirled the jar to mix the contents up without opening the lid. Week 1 Notes: At first I was a little concerned that everything was simply going to go moldy and be a total waste of time. Then, I learned that there are these little things called Actinomycetes that help begin the big job of composting. These actinomycetes look like grey threads that start to weave within the compost pile. That's kind of what I have going on as you can see - sort of - in this picture. I'm also starting to think that maybe the aerobic samples aren't getting enough air like they would in an open compost pile. So, my plan is, after I make my observations next week, I'll give the aerobic samples a good stir and improve the covers so they can get more air. Even if this grand experiment is a total flop, I still think there's value in some applications for using the FoodCyclerTM. More on that soon! That's about it! I'm going to let the experiment go another week or two and see how things progress. Week 2 - Observations & Comments Sample NameObservations & ActionsAerobic - No StarterObservations: - More mold-like growth but more orange/yellow than the grey it was last week. - Smells like rotting vegetables- Food bits were clumped together and easily discernible from the topsoil parts- Newspaper strips were damp but still intact. Action taken: - Removed lid/covering and straw- Dumped contents into a bowl and mixed them- Put the contents back in the jar and replaced plastic covering with cloth.Aerobic - With StarterObservations: - Same amount of condensation on top of jar- More of the grey, mold-like threads- Crumbly texture but still some food pieces visible- Earthy, wet newsprint smell- Newspaper strips were wet but not breaking down.Action Taken: - Removed cover and straw- Dumped contents into a bowl and mixed them- Put the contents back in the jar and replaced plastic covering with cloth.Anaerobic - No StarterObservations: - Absolutely no discernible change from the previous week.Action Taken: - I shook the contents well without opening the lid.Compost TeaObservations: - Bubbles in the mixture signalling fermentation had begun- A good layer of mold on top Action Taken: I decided to call this one a failure so I removed the lid … OH MAN! It smelled like vomit! There was no way I would put it down our septic or into any garden area. So I took it to a remote, rocky, barren spot and dumped it. Aerobic - No Starter Aerobic - With Starter Anaerobic - No Starter Compost Tea Week 2 Notes: We’ve had a great round of lovely weather so the experiment is progressing pretty well except for the Compost Tea sample (BLECH!). After reading a bit more about making Compost Tea, I’ve learned that there are two main ways to brew it: Steep your raw, plant-based food waste in water overnight, then strain and use the water directly on your plants. Discard the food waste. Using a cheesecloth, steep your finished compost in water for no more than 24 hours. Then pour the “tea” as you would to water your plants. Discard the steeped compost. Clearly I was WAY off base on that one! As for the remaining samples, so far the Aerobic Compost with Starter seems to be taking the lead - if for no other reason than the lack of smell and fewer visible food scraps. One down and 3 more to go! Stay Tuned! Week 3 - Observations & Comments Sample NameObservations & ActionsAerobic - No StarterObservations: - Lots more grey strands throughout- Earthy - not offensive smell- Still quite damp- No other notable changes to texture or decomposition level.Action taken: - I gave the jar a good shake to mix contents and facilitate aeration.Aerobic - With StarterObservations: - Some grey strands weaving through more of the contents- Lots of more moisture compared to the sample without starter- Stronger scent than the "no starter" sample, earthy but not offensiveAction Taken: - I gave the jar a good shake to mix contents and facilitate aeration.Anaerobic - No StarterObservations: - No visible changes to contents, no apparent decomposition- Same tension in lid/coverAction Taken: - I shook the contents well without opening the lid.Compost TeaFAILED - See Week 2. Aerobic - No Starter Aerobic - With Starter Anaerobic - No Starter Week 3 Notes: It would appear things have come to a bit of a halt in the process, perhaps the cooler evenings are impacting the overall temperature of the samples. I'm going to let things go for another week and see if I can observe any changes worth continuing to track. Week 4 - Observations & Comments Sample NameObservations & ActionsAerobic - No StarterObservations: - Newspaper shreds are only just starting to break down.- Nice, earthy, healthy, soil-like smell. Thank goodness the smell of rot has stopped!- Some bits you can see were food but not what they were- The soil and food product have combined to make a quarter to loonie-sized "crumble" textured product.Action taken: - See notes below.Aerobic - With StarterObservations: - More moist than the "no starter" sample- No food scraps you can identify remain - Even less smell than last week- Crumble texture was more fine than "no starter" sample- Newspaper shreds were more broken down than "no starter" sample- Clear Winner so far!Action Taken: - See notes below.Anaerobic - No StarterObservations: - Same amount of tension and moisture on the cover- Removed the lid for the first time and it smells terrible!- When removed from the jar, the contents in the centre were quite warm- Virtually no change in paper or FoodCycler product compositionAction Taken: - See notes below.Compost TeaFAILED - See Week 2. Aerobic - No Starter Aerobic - With Starter Anaerobic - No Starter Week 4 Notes: Well, this was a great week for results! The beginning of fall has ushered in warm days and chilly nights. Even so we had good progress on the remaining compost samples; I wasn’t expecting that at all! I was sure my samples had stalled out (died) back at Week 2, apparently a little bit of patience pays off. I think after this week, we can declare a winner and get the compost samples into our new compost bin for finishing. Our New Compost System is Ready! Experiment Results! Aerobic Compost with Starter Makes Better Compost Faster As you can see from the observations above, it appears that both aerobic compost methods work well with the FoodCycler (and I imagine any electric composter) product but the sample using the Compost Starter was the clear winner overall. In only one month this method has created a finer crumble vs. the sample without starter. I think too that the lack of odour, should be less likely to attract animals in a normal compost setting. That means a lot here in the woods where bears could show up! OH NOOOOO!!!!! I forgot to test my compost samples before tossing them into the big composter! Well, I’m pretty sure that even though the aerobic compost samples were well into the compost process, they’re not finished enough for me to add to soil yet. I’ll have to come up with another way of testing and comparing amended soil when the compost is well and truly finished. What do I think of the FoodCycler now? You’ll recall that the whole point of this experiment was to learn the best ways of using the product of the FoodCycler process and to determine if it’s worth the investment. I can definitely see some merit to using one, especially in colder climates or more “wild” settings. In my next post, I’ll give my final assessment of the FoodCycler and if it’s worth the investment now that I have a better understanding of how to make use of the product.