The latest poop...

I mentioned that I scored some manure in an earlier post. Well, that was in late November. It's been aging in a pile since then. When I brought it home, I laid out a weed barrier of newspaper and brown paper bags first. I did this to prevent anything from growing from the ground up through the manure pile. I also wanted to make my pile easy to manage. If there was nothing below acting like a mat, it would be harder for me to stir.

Then I placed a layer of horse manure on top of the paper.

I spread a layer of goat manure atop the horsey poo, and then I continued to alternate goat and horse manure. The finished pile is below.

It's important to stir the pile occasionally. This helps the manure age and dry out. If it's not stirred, the innermost droppings could remain moist, or worse, "hot." "Hot" manure is very rich in nitrogen, and will burn plant roots if the soil contains too much of it. Aging is the easiest way to prevent this. Most manure is considered aged if it's at least 6 to 8 weeks old. Generally speaking, manure that is dry and crumbly is considered safe to use. For the record, I'd much prefer cow or steer manure to horse. That's just my own personal preference. Here in Arizona we have a lot more horses that we do cows, so I'm using "green" principles to guide me. Locally produced manure!

Oh, and if you noticed, I also put some egg cartons in there. I was originally thinking I'd till this manure into the ground to create a garden bed. The fiber from the cardboard egg cartons would help attract worms and build some additional volume and aerate the soil. I've since decided to go with a raised bed, so the egg cartons are unnecessary.

(By the way, the eggs are from local grown farms. When possible, I try to buy organic, local produce and meats. I can't always afford the local choice, but when the price difference isn't too great, that's the choice I make. It just makes sense to support your local businesses. If there were enough interest in local produce and meat, we'd have a wider selection at all our markets. I like local because the meats, fruits, and veggies I consume are brought to me with a smaller carbon footprint, and also because I like to believe that they are fresher. They may not really be fresher, but they do spend less miles--but not necessarily less time--getting from farm to market.)

Working on my wood!

I just had to say that!

But really...I was working on it! Since I came across this wood in used condition, I need to remove the paint from it. If I leave the paint on the wood, it could leech potentially harmful chemicals into the soil of my garden, and that would get taken up by the roots of my plants. That would be bad. So this is how I'll make the wood ready for use.

I acquired an angle grinder to strip the paint off the reclaimed wood, and I got to work on it today. Here is the pile of the wood I'll be working on. (Remember, this wood was free!)

The project of stripping the wood is very slow. I think I'll buy a different attachment for the grinder. I'm currently using a 4" angle grinder equipped with a 120-grit flap wheel. I think the grit count is too high, since this is going far too slowly. The wood is coming out real smooth, but I'm sacrificing time to get such a nice finish. I'll buy a 40- and 80-grit set and see which works better.

The wood is looking fantastic, though. Check out the before, during, and after pics!