tuffy
Leafing Out
Dumb question of the day~ Can all my garden weeds go in the compost pile or will that make the compost really sprout weeds next spring when I use it in the veg garden?? thanks
can I put all my weeds in the compost pile?
- Thread starter tuffy
- Start date
hoodat
Garden Addicted
I put everything but the kitchen sink in my compost pile. If you can get the compost to get really hot it will cook most of the weed seeds but I can seldom acccomplish that so I usually end up cold composting. We may as well face it we will always have plenty of weed seeds in any garden. If they don't come from the compost they will arrrive by air, on your clothing or the sole of your shoe. If they don't get there any other way they will arrive special delivery by bird express.
One big advantage to cold composting is that you can raise red worms in it and they will enrich it no end.
One big advantage to cold composting is that you can raise red worms in it and they will enrich it no end.
patandchickens
Deeply Rooted
IME it is a lot smarter to make a separate collection of anything with perennializing roots (thistle, quack grass, etc) and anything gone to flower, even if not seeding yet, and make sure to look *closely* at things like bindweed as the flowers are very very inconspicuous). Spread them out on a sidewalk or driveway or whatever to bake for several days or a week in the hot hot sun. (In poor weather, leave them out longer).
Leave them there to bake til they are quite brown and crispy. THEN you can compost them reasonably safely, even if their part of the pile doesn't heat up real well.
Weeds that have gone to actual seed I would suggest getting rid of in some other manner entirely. "one years seeding, seven years weeding" is about right; no point in intentionally adding to the problem!
Good luck, have fun,
Pat
Leave them there to bake til they are quite brown and crispy. THEN you can compost them reasonably safely, even if their part of the pile doesn't heat up real well.
Weeds that have gone to actual seed I would suggest getting rid of in some other manner entirely. "one years seeding, seven years weeding" is about right; no point in intentionally adding to the problem!
Good luck, have fun,
Pat
NurseNettie
Garden Ornament
I compost it all. I know the seeds are just adding to the weeds the next year, but we are just never going to be without a ton of them. So much grass and so many hayfields in the area, and a lot of breezy wind year round send everything right back into my garden. I do let the chickens clean and dig it all out in the fall, then in the spring- so they get a lot of them, but not all. I dont' have the time or energy to sort my compost or weeds, so pulling weeds is something I"ll always do.
Not to mention.... I do a bit of weeding every day-- fill up a couple 5 gallon buckets, and dump them in the chicken runs. That way they get fresh, green, leafy stuff every day when they're banned from the garden areas.
Not to mention.... I do a bit of weeding every day-- fill up a couple 5 gallon buckets, and dump them in the chicken runs. That way they get fresh, green, leafy stuff every day when they're banned from the garden areas.
