chocolate crusting, not caking
Okay, new thoughts on this soil...
I tried an experiment: I put soil on a corner of the last milpa bed, bending the alfalfa down so that it was buried beneath the soil - in order to see if it would increase nitrogen content in the soil and offer the corn a place for advantitious rooting. Nothing has changed so far; in fact, I have noticed that the appearance of Haddad's soils change when they are spread out in that way. They appear to be more cakey - harder, less permeable, drier. Or maybe cakey is the wrong word ...I think more like chocolate "crusty" would be the more accurate term. I think that this is a soil that gets good drainage - which is NOT what we want for the milpa beds. For this soil to work, it would need to be enriched with mature compost first. And we do not have enough matured compost for that right now.
I really need to go dumpster diving at Food Bin, and soon. We need to reinvigorate the compost system fast, so that we'll have enough resources during the school year. I have contemplated starting mini-bins (like the allitoration?) all around the garden, in cardboard boxes, with simple layering: Haddad's soil, food scraps, shredded newspaper, food scraps, shredded newspaper. Then I would tie each of them up in a black trashbag (if I could find one that's big enough) and leave them to rot for a few months. If I had them, I would throw in worms as well. I could buy them from the SC Worm Doctor, I suppose ...someone actually claims that they're free. But then, Marley said I should ask Dave Shaw if they have any at the Farm. Mike said that Dave wants to talk to us about it. So maybe I should wait...
Or at least clear it with Karen. Free worms are free worms. But if I waited, then I might be able to get some good ideas from Dave. Mike is very interested in what I myself have to say - a pretty high compliment. Word must have spread that I've worked with vermiculture before, on a home-scale. Combined with Dave's knowledge of larger scale tasks, we could create, to quote Marley - "a worm compost amusement park!!!" :-D I am so down.
I tried an experiment: I put soil on a corner of the last milpa bed, bending the alfalfa down so that it was buried beneath the soil - in order to see if it would increase nitrogen content in the soil and offer the corn a place for advantitious rooting. Nothing has changed so far; in fact, I have noticed that the appearance of Haddad's soils change when they are spread out in that way. They appear to be more cakey - harder, less permeable, drier. Or maybe cakey is the wrong word ...I think more like chocolate "crusty" would be the more accurate term. I think that this is a soil that gets good drainage - which is NOT what we want for the milpa beds. For this soil to work, it would need to be enriched with mature compost first. And we do not have enough matured compost for that right now.
I really need to go dumpster diving at Food Bin, and soon. We need to reinvigorate the compost system fast, so that we'll have enough resources during the school year. I have contemplated starting mini-bins (like the allitoration?) all around the garden, in cardboard boxes, with simple layering: Haddad's soil, food scraps, shredded newspaper, food scraps, shredded newspaper. Then I would tie each of them up in a black trashbag (if I could find one that's big enough) and leave them to rot for a few months. If I had them, I would throw in worms as well. I could buy them from the SC Worm Doctor, I suppose ...someone actually claims that they're free. But then, Marley said I should ask Dave Shaw if they have any at the Farm. Mike said that Dave wants to talk to us about it. So maybe I should wait...
Or at least clear it with Karen. Free worms are free worms. But if I waited, then I might be able to get some good ideas from Dave. Mike is very interested in what I myself have to say - a pretty high compliment. Word must have spread that I've worked with vermiculture before, on a home-scale. Combined with Dave's knowledge of larger scale tasks, we could create, to quote Marley - "a worm compost amusement park!!!" :-D I am so down.
posted by Yvea at 5:58 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home