Tator Tower Experiment UPDATE

[lighthawk]

My garden space is limited so the idea of a tower seems to be one that could free up a lot of that space. I only started my compost pile last year so what I have in there that is usable wouldn't be enough to fill a tower. I really need that compost to build the soil in the garden. One commodity I do have an abundance of is Grass Clippings. I grow a monster crop of them every year. I am curious if anyone has ever tried filling a tower or bag using this precious commodity instead of straw or compost.

 

[thistlebloom]

Might work, lighthawk. 'Course they'd have to be pretty dry or they'd heat up too much. I always leave mine on the lawn so I never have any to use as mulch.

 

[lighthawk]

I have two stone beds that I built last year and I filled them both with clippings. They have sat now all winter covered with snow. My concern is that when I pull back the top layer of clippings there appears to be a milky white dusty coating on the clippings below. Mold maybe?
Just a natural part of the decomp process?
Might be worth the cost of a few seed potatoes to try it and find out.

 

[thistlebloom]

It's probably mycorrhizae, a fungus that is super beneficial to plants. It aids the decomposition process, and helps plants withstand stress. It also helps plants uptake of soil nutrients and resist drought.
I wouldn't worry about it, it's something you want!

 

[lighthawk]

That is good to know. I think I will give it a try this summer. Unless someone chimes in that it would be a total waste of time. Thanks.

 

[thistlebloom]

One potential problem I can think of 'hawk, is the matting you get with straight grass clippings. They have a tendency to clump, and I don't know if that would keep water from moving through the bed (?)

But hey! Experimenting is what it's all about right? I say give it a try on a small scale and see what happens...and let us know. We're willing to let you be the guinea pig

 

[lighthawk]

 

[boggybranch]

Well, it's threatening rain so I covered the tower. Thought you might like to see what I use and how it looks. Definitely don't want to water log the crop.

 

[lesa]

That should do it, boggy! A nice covered crop! Your tower was featured in Organic Gardening magazine, this month. I thought of you, right away! They had good results with it!

 

[Collector]

This idea seems better than the 55gal drum method.
You can stack it up as you go instead of having to reach into a drum to place material. I am very interested in seeing how well it produces. I would like to build one also, but I have large to do list at this time, plus my DW honey do list is keeping me as busy as a bear in a bee hive at this time. keep posting so we can watch how it progresses.