Compost Pile

Not a very appetizing topic, but a very important one for gardening.....and also it is a 'green' thing to do and I am trying to do my part. I started composting last year....dumping everything in the compost pile, grass clippings, ash from the stove, egg shells and lots of food scraps. Every so often it is important to take a pitchfork and 'stir' it up. By spring I had a huge mound of compost....I cleverly decided to put the garden right in front of the pile, so I knocked over the compost and worked it into the ground, with the rototiller....it was the blackest richest dirt you have ever seen, it made a composting believer out of me...

This is the rich dark soil after knocking down the compost and working it in, way in the back of the garden behind the little tree you can see the compost pile....

Everything grew ever abundantly with all the nutrients in the soil....holy cow!

This is my compost taken today, it has not been 'stirred' all summer, and yes it should have been but see at the top of the picture, the most beautiful, hugest, nasturtium plant ever.......

The sweetest volunteer plant ever, I have enjoyed picking the flowers all summer, the fragrance is so heavenly. I didn't want to discourage it's growth and so it is still there, and I will wait until it goes to seed to mix up my compost, I will keep dumping my waste products off to the side and give it all the time it wants to keep on living, and giving.

Today I rototilled the garden area, (easier said than done) mulching up all the dead vines, I will spread some compost on here and turn it over a couple more times this winter..I am thinking next year I will move the garden spot and plant berries in this spot....It seems I spend the most money in the summer on buying local berries...I might as well grow my own. I just had a thought though, how will I keep from eating all the raspberries right off the vine as they become ripe? "Well, miss Scarlett we will worry about that tomorrow!"

ok just 1 more picture of the nasturtiums and then I am finished.



Late October and they are still
'King of the Compost Pile'

Cheers to Happy  !!