It’s garden time again, and I’m going to post a three-part series for you on stuff we’re doing of have done around my house this season.

1. Building a Compost Bin using Home Depot lumber and a couple of screws
2. Installing a RainBarrel to catch downspout water for garden and pool re-use
3. Organizing a “square foot” garden

Today, let’s talk compost.

Susan & I had a small compost bin I made with some old 2×4s a couple of years ago.  It was a basic design - called a “one-chamber” because that’s all there was.  I’ve really loved not having to put the grass clippings out for 2 years!  Also, everything organic from the kitchen has gone out to the pile daily.  We got a great compost harvest the second spring but this year didn’t go as well.  The pile had gotten too high and was a bear to turn (which is required for the stuff to decompose properly) with the pitchfork.

Solution: Rip the thing out and rebuild.   I built a new compost bin (level two)!  It’s a “two-chamber” design which allows me to turn the piles more effectively by going from one side to the other, and pulling out the finished compost as it happens.  I would have preferred to have done a “three-chamber” so I had a pile for only finished compost, but space did not allow for that.  So far, it has produced a good amount of working compost for our garden.

I did the  Home Depot thing and picked up some fresh 2×4s (the last ones rotted) and 1×4’s for the side slatting.  I also bought some green-coated chicken wire in 24″x 25 ft (one roll – I already had 25 foot – you’ll need two rolls to build this compost bin design).  I used 2″ deck screws to fasten everything together.

I sunk the posts using a post-hole digger and an iron ”digging stick” with a tamping end to pack the posts in place.  Lots and lots of measuring with a tape measure and level…The screws tightened the whole compost bin up nicely.  Took me an afternoon and a half (with 3 kids in tow).

Right away I noticed how the extra 4 feet really helped separate the materials.  Note the difference between the more recent deposits and the almost-ready compost on the left.  My nagging problem had been the lack of consistent aeration – the stuff stunk! Now with the ability to turn more often without the hassle factor I’ll get better aeration, which means lots of good compost to spread on mama Geoghan’s vegetable garden in the fall and spring!

Look for my next piece – on putting together a rainbarrel using a local Lancaster PA barrel source and easily-available plumbing parts.