Battling the Compost Monster

The Pile

Prior to an open house there is a lot do around the barn such as cleaning corners, vacuuming cobwebs, and organizing tools. These chores I wait until I have a deadline to complete. Now that all those things are done, it is time to really work, i.e. pasture management, soil erosion and the compost pile.

The minis are really hard on the paddocks. We have mostly sandy soil in our area which is great when you want to dig a hole but not so great when you want to grow grass. I reseeded the mini pasture last week and put straw on top. We had quite a bit of rain and now I can see a bit of growth. Hurray! I moved the minis, of course, to another paddock for the winter. So one chore down!

I also have some serious soil erosion issues. The alpacas are much easier on the pastures. They don't have upper teeth to yank the grass out by the root, as minis do, and their necks apparently are not as strong as the horses. Their padded feet don't destroy the growth. Even tiny horse hooves are treacherous to established grasses.
That being said, the issue is a hill in the girl's paddock. For some reason grass will not grow on the side and it is slowly eroding. So I have decided to use some of the gianormous manure pile that is accumulating at the back of the barn. I am also competing with the chickens to keep the soil intact around their fence. They love, love to peck and scratch at the fence line which of course leaves gaps under the fencing.
Fence Line for Chickens

The compost pile, beneficial in that I can use it where ever I am losing dirt, is a monster of a thing. It has out grown the space where it is supposed to be and is now a huge, enormous pile. In spite of my hard work to turn it with a tractor every few days it won't go away. It grows and grows. I think part of the problem is the hay that I shove into it. All that carbon off sets the balance of the pile. So maybe it is a good thing that I have erosion issues. I can just toss it about and maybe it will get smaller. Ha!

The compost house

So as October approaches I will not be doing fun fibery activities for a while, but battling against rain, chickens and a compost monster.