Ruth Stout style composting (2 spots) - PEP BB gardening.sand.RuthStout

'Mixing up' a double batch

As I write up the details for this BB, checking the calculations, I realise that I've accidentally doubled what was required.

We collect our compost in a stainless steel mixing bowl. To cut down on the number of trips (and for this purpose, photos), I used our largest mixing bowl. I calculated the volume in the beginning and converted it to US gallons, then set to work.

Converting between systems often invites errors. Somewhere along the line, I guess I thought that the number of bowls needed was for one location rather than both so I kept working on it. I have a 16 sq metre area of wood chip that I'm currently focusing on, so it was just a matter of keeping going.

Anyway, I filled my 10 litre bowl 4 times for each area. Converting this, I find that it is 1352 (US) fluid ounces, or 10.5 US gallons instead of the 5 required for each area  At least this type of mix up made the worms happy! 🤷

40 litres of kitchen scraps, that's restaurant quantities lol.
I'll just do 40 1lt bowls and add them to this post over the next 6 months.

I added two full buckets of compost to a hugel bed at Wheaton Labs in the past few days. These were each as full as reasonable, and it seems like no one minded me dealing with both Bucketfuls.

Here's a photo of Bucketful The First:



I added it to this hole:



Here's the compost in Hole Number One:



Here's Hole Number One, now filled, covered, and invisible:



Here's Bucketful The Second, next to Hole Number Two, also in a hugel bed:



Bucketful is transferred into the Hole:



Hole is filled, soil is replaced, and hay mulch is returned. Nobody's the wiser:



Thanks, volunteer reviewers! :)

Thanks for submitting it, Thomas. To my eye those look like 1-gallon buckets, so you'll need to do a few more to fit the BB requirements (2 5-gallon buckets or equivalent in 2 spots).
Unless you have freaky-big hands or can verify the size of the buckets.  Let me know, you're on your way.

Using the Ruth Stout method, I put 10 dry gallons of kitchen scraps into our mulched garden area.  To ensure that I can reflect on my leaning, I have created a journal that I can add to as I learn more about each skill.

Can we dig a hole in the bed soil and bury the compost scraps? I am concerned rats are going to just feast from a heap on dirt surface with mulch on top. I thought if I buried it and put some dirt and our mulch on top that would protect it from the rats, what do you think? Would that qualify as okay for the badge?