Andy Jackson

You'll be fine. Just be careful when digging.

Metallic lead forms a thin oxide upon exposure to air, essentially preventing any further decomposition of the bulk of the metal underneath. What contaminates the soil are usually lead compounds, like lead chromate in paint. Test the soil to ease your mind, but I strongly doubt you've anything to worry about.

Ahh, the Berkeley Method. Perfect for when you have everything you need at your disposal at the right time. You and I live in the real world, where you use what you have on hand. Our method takes a little longer.
As for the mesophilic, fungal phase, just leave the pile sitting after a thorough mixing. A turn every month or so will suffice until the consistency is what you desire.
And as for the bones...I have no idea. I avoid animal residues in my piles (excepting eggshells). I would advise caution, however.

Dale Hodgins wrote:
This website gives a run down on various manures. Consider dairy cow manure vs coffee --- http://www.plantea.com/manure.htm

Cow
poo
N .25 --- Coffee has 8 times as much
P .15 --- Coffee has twice as much
K .25 --- Coffee has 2.5 times as much --- I rounded the figures

Coffee has almost twice as much nitrogen as chicken manure, yet it can be spread without risk of burning. I think the woody nature causes nutrients to release slowly. Are these manures also not considered good fertilizers?

The coffee acts more slowly. When I scoop up a hand full of my coffee mulch, there are always sow bugs, worms and other critters in it. It always disappears, so I asume that they eat it. These creatures poop and they eventually die. When this happens, nutrients become available to plants.

At 0.25, the manures are obviously "worse", but neither are "good" fertilizers. They're weak, in other words. Still excellent additions, but weak nonetheless. If you bought a commercial fertilizer with a NPK of 2-30-10, you'd consider it low in nitrogen.

Rick LaJambe wrote:
I assumed that my piles would finish up if I left them to sit for a few months. The part that confuses me is that most sources tell you that the end product of an 18-day compost pile should not resemble any of what went in to begin with. This leads me to believe I am still not getting the correct proportion.

If adding more green material to my cooled pile causes it to heat again, does that not mean that there was enough carbon to support a greater nitrogen load in the first place?

I'm going to need more information here. Are you stirring the pile at all?
Eighteen days is not nearly enough time to break down everything. The initial thermophilic stage in my piles (~3' dia., 3' tall) lasts nearly that long by itself! Thermophilic bacteria do not break down the tougher materials well; fungi do that, and as stated earlier, they need the cooler temps of a post-thermophilic stack to do it. That, and plenty of time (think months).

And no, it wouldn't be a good indicator, as a pile of greens by itself will usually heat up. In other words, heat generated by the further addition of greens will indicate only that you added more greens, not that your initial C:N ratio was off.

If you're in a hurry, just buy it bagged.

You certainly can pile the leaves in order for them to rot, but what you'll be left with is known as leaf mold. It's an excellent soil additive. I've read that people use it as a substitute for peat moss in their potting mixes.

Rick LaJambe wrote:
I remember hearing (perhaps incorrectly) that the presence of this bacteria in the compost was an indicator that the temperature is too high in the pile. Is that incorrect? Since I don't have a compost thermometer, I have no idea what the exact temperatures were that my piles reached. I did the arm test after a week or so on some of them and immediately had to pull my arm out before reaching the center of the pile. The piles got roaring hot but they didn't break down all of the straw. I'm not satisfied with it as a compost product, but it is probably superior to a pure straw-mulch. I'll find a source of manure to boost my nitrogen for my future piles.

Its presence merely indicates high temerature. Notice that it tends to be everywhere around the core, including cooler outer layers as long as they are moist and warm. Thermophiles, like this one (Actinomycetes) break down certain materials fast (relative to fungal activity at ambient temperatures) and are absolutely desirable.
Personally, I don't think a properly formed stack can overheat. Sure, the core can soar to temperatures that inhibit or even kill certain mesophilic bacteria/fungi, but the thermophiles are raging. And keep in mind that this extreme environment only exists in the core of the stack, not the majority of the mass that composes the stack which is still full of the mesophiles that started the conflagration in the first place. What I have found, however, is that this superheated core dries out quickly, leaving the "ash" that some people describe while causing the core to cool. This is when (and why) you stir (and add water). After a few of these cycles, the pile will fail to heat like this, but that does not mean composting has completed, just the thermophilic phase. The remaining straw that you saw (and other material as well) require cooler temperatures and fungal activity to break down. This simply takes time. If you keep adding stuff, you're essentially restarting the process.

A few notes:

1) Steam - The presence of steam does NOT indicate loss of nitrogen, as suggested. It's merely water vapor driven off the pile due to heat. As long as your pile doesn't overheat or dry out, it is a desirable indicator.
2) "White Fungus" - This isn't a fungus at all, nor is it an anaerobic bacteria. It's a type of thermophilic bacteria known as Actinomycetes, and while it is a bacteria species, it grows white/grey filaments that are often mistaken as a fungus. Also a desirable indicator.