October 24, 2008 in high plains of Colorado.

I really love my ComposTumbler compost maker. I use it year round to make quick compost out of all my garden materials. It is so satisfying to empty out the finished compost and have to decide what I am going to do with it. Since there is usually a new bed, pot or raised bed to amend, none of it is ever wasted, I never have too much, but sometimes I have too little. This year I made two very narrow, long row beds in an area that wasn't getting any use inside my garden room. That spot is on a slight slope, so I terraced the rows. Now it is easier to navagate the slope, and the rows are narrow enough that I can step over them if I want to. I planted low growing vegetables in them so they don't shade each other as they run N-S.

My soil is nearly pure sand, very high in minerals, but absolutely no water holding power. It's great for growing onions and carrots, but it does need compost added to it to help feed the roots and hold some moisture near them. I put one wheelbarrow load of compost into both of these new beds, which are about 12" wide by 20' long. They need more. Behind the onions you can see another board under the legs of the rabbit hutches. I catch the rabbit pellets and compost them to add to the beds also. It is a good source of manure to have handy for adding to the composter in order to create the balance of 'green' material to 'brown' material. Fresh manure is a 'green' material to use if you have no fresh grass clippings or prunings to put into the mix. Since I compost year round, the fresh grass is not always there for me, so we use manure. If I run short, I also have a pile of cow pies to use.

This picture shows a late planting of sweet peas after most of the beets are gone, and it looks pretty dry and in need of more compost sprinkled over the top, which was done, by the way.

My ComposTumbler is like a good soldier, always standing at the ready. It is the destination point for garden debris, sits near the water hose, and in the sun. The little shed outside the garden protects it from most of the harsh north winds. I just planted some trees on the northeast side of the garden border for more winter protection eventually. Even most winter days get sun and warm up the composter.

For me, composting is part of the gardening cycle.