Meg - Wow! It sounds like you have the composting thing down to a science!!! I have all sand here, so we have to amend the other way... send me some clay! LOL

Mountainman is our expert on ponds.. you may want to pop down to the NHGC thread and talk to him or send him a PM. I know they just put one in and he has A LOT of clay soil.

99:

I used to tease my DH about having created a monster. He had no experience with gardening when we got married. I began showing him how garden without lots of backbacking work. Next thing I know he is building bins for composting behind the garage. A tornado could flatten my house and those bins would be unscyathed. He has the uprights buried in concrete about three feet into the ground! Do you think he has a bit of Tim Allen in him? Must be a guy thing!

Agent99-There is one part about ponds that MTNMN doesn't understand-how to keep water in it!
Ohiorose-YEP-it's a GUY thing.

Oooooooo ouchie Ned...lolol...that was HARSH (re:MM’s pond)...lolol He's gonna get you!
Just because it’s your BIRTHDAY TODAY doesn’t mean you get off light...lolol
HAPPY BIRTHDAY NEDSTER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hehe...now they know in here too! hehe

Agent 99
I’d love to learn more about composting too, but with our healthy oversized families of raccoons running around here I’m afraid it would be little more then a tempting smorgasbord for them...and then Yanna would be going more insane over them then she already does!

Meg
“A tornado could flatten my house and those bins would be unscyathed.”....THAT IS FUNNY! We need a photo of those!!...lol

Ned

LOL about the composter.
I'd like the kind that turn. Right now we've got vole that borrow into our compost and a neighbors cat that uses it for a litter box. I like cats but not this one. I also kills the birds I put seed out for and doesn't kill the voles. The cat leave dead birds in the yard.
We got 3 inches of snow last night. Very pretty. It really stalled my spring fever.LOL
Good night everyone, Jill

Jill,

I talked to Master Gardeners who have one and are not happy. Says it is difficult to turn. Just thouight I would pass that on. Maybe you can find someone locally who has one and try it out. They can be pricey, would be a shame to invest so much and be disapppointed.

Meg,
Thanks. I knew they were pricey, but haven't they were hard to turn. Thats a go thing to know.
This summer I'm going to keep all my compost in converted trash cans and not pile any up in the corner of the yard.
We had some beautiful weather today and I was finally feeling better. So James & I spent some time outside.

Take off the bottoms of the cans so the worms can get up in there and do their thing. Can you tell I am big on worms? Just as long as I don't have to pick them up! LOL Even have to wash my gloves frequently so the worm slime doesn't build up on them! LOL Am I the wussiest gardner that ever lived? LOL because we have so much clay, when we prepare new beds, we sift the soil as they do in many Eurpoean countries. If I see a worm on the screen, all work halts until DH picks it up and puts it in a safe place! LOL

Meg,
Our composter is on blocks for air circulation. But I think I'll try putting it on the ground. I bet that would help it not dry out so quickly.
My son loves bugs. I don't like to touch them but he always wonts me to catch them so he can hold them. LOL Worms don't bother me. Just a little moist.