T – Page 256 – Crazy About Compost

How to Take Great Photos of Your Vegetable Garden (article)

Nothing says success as a gardener more than when the first vegetables start sprouting. All of that hard work, from cultivating the soil, adding in compost, and growing your seeds indoors has all finally come to a positive climax. However, it doesn't have to end there. With the many blogs, message boards and groups on vegetable gardening, why not share your results with other gardeners with some photos. With today's digital cameras and photo editing software, you can have wonderful pictures uploaded and online in no time. Here are some tips to make sure your shots make your veggies look pristine rather than dumpy. Take a Close Up Even though you might have the latest and greatest super zoom camera, I have found that my best photos have come when…

Interview with Dr. Michael Mulvaney

In response to my video, "You Just Composted WHAT?", I decided to look for a soil scientist to hear their thoughts on some controversial "compostable" items that are often written about: waxed cardboard, condoms, eggs contaminated with salmonella, etc. Who stood out most to me was Dr. Michael Mulvaney. His blog, named "The Dirt Dude", has lots of excellent material about soil and agriculture, and I could tell he would be able to provide some great feedback for my wonderful readers. So here we go: TW: When did you decide you were so interested in soil and pursue a career? Was it an early childhood fascination for you? Tell me a bit about how you got to where you are now. What are your goals as an agronomist, and what…

Compost Tea!

In just over two weeks, I have collected nearly a gallon of compost leachate from my compost tumbler. Pretty awesome, just look at my excitement. Some people have been asking me what compost tea is... well, don't drink it! Simply put, it's the best organic and natural fertilizer you could use on your garden. You can take care of an entire acre with only 5 gallons of the stuff, which is great. To dilute it, I recommend 10 parts water to one part compost tea. If it smells really bad, chances are it's past its prime and not the best for use. If you leave it outside in a bucket, you can hope to make aerobic, but ultimately you will need a small air pump to infuse air into the…