Compost Woodchips Quickly - THE UPDATE! Great results!

This video details the process I use for composting woodchips quickly. I compost the woodchips with chicken manure and biochar. It only takes half a cubic yard of wood chips to make a very hot pile of compost that composts down in about 3 months.
0:00 Intro
0:19 Rationale
2:33 Chicken brooder
3:56 Composting begins
5:53 Composting updates
10:00 Mycelium
11:13 The results
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[@patti280]

Feeding composted wood chips to a worm composter will make beautiful fertilizer. Worms are the answer to our composting and fertilizer problems. Go worms!

[@joeeigo9820]

I did some trials with a similar technique. The stuff isn't rly ready for a veggie garden yet. give it another 2-3 years for that, as the mix is still too fungal dominated and bacterial life hasn't been established. I filled a experimental bed with that stuff and grew peas in to fix some more nitrogen and having it covered. Followed up by potatoes, which rly thrive in this fluffy stuff. 14 months in, there are still minimal weeds growing in it, which tells me it's still not ready yet. But yeah, it makes a great Potato Pile 😉

[@manonthemoon34]

great explanation thank you

[@stevesamoffgridsmallholdin5378]

Excellent detailed content just what I needed to study👍

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

Glad it was helpful ~

[@kofrass5730]

Right on. I use biochar frass and em1 solution and have the same results as you.

[@1965Haval]

Hi the secret is to keep it well watered. It was very dry in the plastic container

[@timmartin8191]

Makes me want to try this.

[@lautanasrifishing8138]

Amazing.....very nice👍👍

[@ryanpalmquist4823]

Love it!

[@lokes2]

Great Video. Waiting on my delivery of woodchips now, have my chickens already so this will go in their coop. And I need to get my barrels for Biochar! Good stuff. Keep up the great work.

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

It took me a long time to find an arborist who was willing to drive out to my place to dump. Now I have a guy, though, who would dump a load each week if he could! (We can't take that many, unfortunately.) Are your wood chips coming from an arborist?

[@samidaher6458]

thanks i want to try it.

[@Tygydyk17]

Great video. But for us homeowners with smaller yards there are some other options. You can get your own wood chips by investing with some $500 gas powered wood chipper and run your own yard stick, branches twice through it to produce fine chips. Mixed with used coffe grounds from your local coffee shops will turn pretty quick into beautifull compost for your garden.

[@markoxendine9748]

add more water & temperature will soar up to 160 , it take a ton of water to thermophilic compost

[@tommidrab83]

How about adding a bit of ashes from our fire pit ? Its mostly oak wood ash i think

[@simmonds6063]

That's good stuff! I don't have a chipper or access to clean woodchips, but I could do this with leaves and homemade charcoal from brush burning in a pit. I've been inoculating biochar with urine, but this seems like it would be simpler and provide a wider range of nutrients.

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

Yes, I believe there will be quite a lot of extra nutrients in manure vs. urine. Although, this pile also got plenty of urine, so it has the best of both, it seems :)

[@svelanikolova5776]

I do d have a chipper but me and my mom sit in the yard and chip the smallest branches we can get by hand. For me is like therapy so I love it.

[@AaricHale]

Really great content ! We just made some bio-char today to add to our compost . I joined your channel and will be watching more videos . Thank you for sharing !

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

Nice to hear from you! What method did you use to make the charcoal?

[@AaricHale]

@@BriansPermacultureProject We used the cone pit method . It was free and I could do it in our woods as we cleaned it up . I need to get off my butt and go get it out lol .

[@svelanikolova5776]

If you want great mulch fast chop some stinging nettle dry it in the sun and put it on your plants. You will love it and so will your plants. You can mulch with fresh nettle too

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

This is a great idea! Does it fend off slugs and snails??

[@svelanikolova5776]

@@BriansPermacultureProject I don't know but get a pet duck that does the job

[@ximono]

The same method is used with sheep. In Norwegian we call it "talle", and it's known to be a very high quality compost. I don't know if there's an equivalent English word.

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

Thank you for sharing. I think I'll look this up and read up about it!

[@pa.fishpreacher6166]

Hey Brian, I just got a massive pile of chips but they are either pine or spruce. (didn't know what I was getting but was hoping for hard wood chips) Will this process work with pine or spruce?

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

Hi there. I've been thinking about this question for a while. I can't say that I know the answer. Here are a couple of thoughts: 1. Conifer decomposes slower than hardwood in general, so I suspect there's only so much we can do to accelerate it. 2. Only certain types of fungi decompose conifer, so harvesting some good candidate fungi from the local environment to inoculate the pile could help establish decomposition early. 3. The heat and steam generated by a hot composting process with high nitrogen could help physically break down the chips which could accelerate the process, especially if you have inoculated (either before or after composting) with helpful microorganisms. I hope to hear back with any updates you have in the future ~

[@bloggalot4718]

Very impressive, I use horse manure as a nitrogen source with the wood chips.

[@TigerLilyGzzTLRoars]

I got horse manure up to 172 degrees.

[@mllokie9075]

Have you tried this with cardboard added as well

[@frkifrk]

and wood chips were intact when chickens were on it? :)

[@chadjones4255]

It's hard to get enough moisture mixed into wood chips.

[@imneverwrongsometimestruthlies]

How about tree barks? Especially the decomposing ones? Cz i got plenty and I usually use it for my orchids but I wanted to learn if it was nutritional for other plants, cactuses and succulents? 🙏

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

I know tree bark is used in this way for a variety of species, but each species probably has its own preferences for the type of tree bark it prefers.

[@hands2hearts-seeds2feedamu83]

I got a big pile of wood chips last spring for FREE, they have broken down for the most part. I been adding them to the top of my planting beds, along with leaves & pine needles and rabbit & chicken 💩. I am hoping the beds will grow better this year. The beds are full of clay.

[@hands2hearts-seeds2feedamu83]

I have use a lot of the wood chips for bedding for my chickens and ducks, but for the mist part the wood chips broke down in their pile.

[@sultankalouf8101]

It's been a year Did it improve your soil?

[@curiousbystander9193]

likely not, they really need to age for 2 years@@sultankalouf8101

[@klavspr]

​@@hands2hearts-seeds2feedamu83 please give an update.

[@johnnmartens3067]

Another thing you can do is adding cover crops in the off season when your garden is done add a cover crop then your compost ontop your cover crop seed when the cover crop germinated the roots will active the compost biology and keep it alive until your ready to garden again

[@bonniecarlstrom6014]

👍👍

[@kdak247]

Great content sir. I have a deep bedding system with my ducks. Keep it coming. The bio char idea is great. I added wood ash the other day. Any thoughts on wood ash for addition to deep bedding?

[@DovidM]

I had wondered whether wood ash, being so fine, would cause the bedding to clump together once it got saturated. That doesn’t seem to happen in our dog run. I have read recommendations to add wood ash to chicken feed. When added at 1% per weight, it improves lay rates, extends laying periods and reduce the smell of chicken droppings. My grandmother said that her mother would treat the chickens with wood ash for chicken lice and mites.

[@johnnmartens3067]

I use the same deep litter with wood chips and leaves when I clean out I add wet wood chips leaves Rock dusts home grown dry hay bokashi food waste bone char gypsum powder fish waster insect grass homemade fish Hydrolysate mix it all together and make a Johnson su bioreactor let it compost down for 2 years the end results is a fine compost when your squeeze it turn into clay highly fungal compost

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

Wow, this sounds amazing! I would love to see the finished product!

[@MistressOP]

I wonder if you put a broody hen in with the chics if that would work as well. If you left feed in with her. because if the hen bonded with the chics well they could be out of there in under 4 or 5 days. be out on the range. Even no compost doing this you could just pour the woodchips directly on the pasture.

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

We are actually doing something similar to this with some fertilized peacock eggs. We have a broody turkey, but her eggs aren't fertilized. We have been putting the fertilized peacock eggs under her so she can hatch them. It will be a sight to see a mama turkey raising baby peacocks!

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

You can follow that at BriansPermaculture.com

[@robinham2796]

Could I add chicken manure, Cow Manure, Wood ash, Not biochar, wood chips to the middle of my three composting bins that lost all their heat in the Siberian blast that just came through?

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

I have found that tossing a shovel full of chicken manure in a cold compost pile will light it right up.

[@DovidM]

The inky caps are edible, and you could harvest some for your ducks.

[@geraldhowse8597]

What I see is a pile that's way to dry.

[@lighthope3519]

I just add wood chips on my garden, but I found many carpenter ants in my garden before I put wood chips . Now I am worrying those wood chips would let me have more and more caprenter ants. do you find wood chips attract carpenter ants? if it does, is there any effective and safe way to get rid of it ?

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

My guess (and it's just a guess) is that it may depend on the type of wood chips. For example, conifer vs. prunus, vs morus, etc. Some googling may give you a sense of what types of wood chips won't attract carpenter ants.

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

I would also check to see if they are allelopathic, like walnut or eucalyptus.

[@lighthope3519]

@@BriansPermacultureProject thank you so much

[@tommidrab83]

I have to huge piles of woodchips from trees cut down on our property thata been sitting for a couple of years. There is more soil in some of that than in " sOiL MiXeS " i bought from big box stores 😂 .plus is teaming with life so i feel like a "rich man " at least when it comes to mulchint mu garden hahaha

[@svelanikolova5776]

Try with grass clippings urine cola and beer mix. Mix your woodchips in and soak it well. Urine should be added 2 a week. So basically pee in your wood chips often

[@brandiisbell7746]

Why Cola?

[@melihcan294]

How did you incorporate mushrooms into the compost? Is it possible for you to explain in detail?

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

Hi there, the mushrooms show up on their own. We have only caps all over our property, so the wood chips are likely already inoculated with them when put into the bedding for the brooder.

[@melihcan294]

How long does it take to be completely finished?

[@BenHuxham]

I thought the white stringy strands was Cyanobacteria from a too anaerobic environment?

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

Here's a passage from Teaming with Microbes, by Lowenfels and Lewis: "Actinomycetes are different from other soil bacteria. They actually grow filaments almost like fungal hyphae. Some scientists believe streptomyces species use their branching filaments to connect soil particles so they along with the soil particles become too big to be eaten by their natural predators - the protozoan ciliates which would engulf in ingest them. Actinomycetes are particularly adept at decaying cellulose and chitin - two difficult-to-digest brown carbon compounds, the former found in plant cell walls and the latter in fungal cell walls and an arthropod shells. These are not normal foods of other bacteria actinomycetes are also adapted to live in a wider range of pH than other bacteria from acidic to alkaline." It also says, "actinomycetes produce enzymes that include volatile chemicals that give soil its clean, fresh, earthy aroma. Anyone who has gardened recognizes this smell - the smell of good soil."

[@wordswritteninred7171]

I have been trying to get advice. But seems, no one will answer. Hoping you see my question. Because I see you have lots of experience, and can give me knowledgeable advice. We just moved into a new house. It sat empty for several years. So, there is no garden spot. And, having just moved, I do not have any compost. I am going to start a garden. And, the biggest garden I have ever attempted, because of the state of society! Better safe, than sorry, right? Biggest hurdle, is the soil is very high in clay. Very high! I was so fortunate, because I found two very large piles of chip wood, on the property! They are bigger than a truck bed, and almost three foot deep! I am concerned though, because I do not know it’s history. I would say, just going by sale date of the property, that the piles are about a year and half old. They don’t seem to be very broken down. More on bottom, of course. But not as much as I would have expected. I have seen a few worms. But very few. But, I am in KY. And it has been freezing here, for weeks! The pile, is frozen. So, thinking this is why I see no insects. There was no vegetation growing in the piles. None! But around the base, is completely overgrown. It is in an area, that has not been cut or maintained at all. So, my concern is, could these be signs that it is contaminated with herbicides or pesticides? Or is it expected to look just like a sun bleached pile of wood chips? What would you do in my position? No way I can afford to buy enough compost for the size garden I am planning. I do, have plenty of chicken poo. As I have several chickens. I would love to compost it, and use some of it, to mulch the garden, and some of it for compost, to start mending the soil. Any advice you can give me, would be greatfully appreciated! Oh, and one more thing. There is a huge pile of trees that were knocked down, and piled up. Lots of fungus and mushrooms everywhere! There is, at least one, poisonous mushroom growing there. Galerina marginata should I be concerned with this? The pile of dead trees is right next to the piles of chip wood. Like thirty feet away. Or does it matter? I do not know about mushrooms. Thanks

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

Hi there, congrats on your new place! It's a tough call without seeing the piles in person. The piles could be newer than you thought, or they could be a relatively rot-resistant wood. If I were in this situation, I think I would start by scoping out the property to see if the trees were cuts down on site. From there, you might be able to ID the tree type. Based on that, you might get an idea of whether the wood chips themselves might be suppressing weeds. As an example, walnut is allelopathic, and may naturally suppress weeds. I'd say you might use those wood chips somewhere that you know they won't cause a problem (like a walkway), and bring in other wood chips that you know are clean to use in the garden. Two truckloads of chips is a lot! Buy ultimately they get used up pretty quickly, so you'll need to bring in some soon regardless of what you do with your current pile.

[@wordswritteninred7171]

@@BriansPermacultureProject Oh TY! I had not even considered that. There are no stumps on the property. They literally pulled up the trees, root and all. Sad really, what they did here. Not even sure what their reasons were. One root ball, stands like 25 feet tall. Huge trunk. Sad. But, there are loads of black locust saplings springing up everywhere! Which tells me, there had to be at least one black locust, most likely several, that were here at some point. Maybe that is what the wood chips are! Unfortunately, (although I am happy about this) we live in a rural area. Not likely to ever find some free wood chips. Most people around here would take down their own trees. And not many people around anyway. So really lowers the opportunity for free chips. But, the land was very overgrown. There are many, acres worth!, of dead woody like, weeds, all over the place. Manybe I can make due with those. I gotta figure out something. Maybe just buy round bales of hay. Would be cheaper than buying compost. THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH!

[@nancymathisen9707]

You can get seeds for nitrogen fixing cover crops like alfalfa and clover without spending much money.

[@user-cs1gc5wk2r]

If u put high nitrogen , wont it avoid the fungal breakdown ?

[@user-cs1gc5wk2r]

I Guess not .... Great work

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

Hi there, I think a high nitrogen environment will select for certain types of mushrooms, so only those that thrive in that environment would persist. One thing to consider is that mushrooms are often high in protein, and that protein requires nitrogen for the mushroom to create. Commercial mushroom growers actually fertilize their mushrooms with nitrogen on an as-needed basis. Again, this would be species-specific, since some mushrooms wouldn't thrive in a high nitrogen environment.

[@TV-yj9mh]

I have 4 dogs I put dog poop in and cover with wood chip each time

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

Great use of an otherwise wasted resource!

[@curiousbystander9193]

if biochar reduces smell it reduce microbial activity..... thus there is terra preta around 100's of years after the municiple sewage with lots of charcoal was abandon.... I'd love to see some real science about biochar..... you can do this on your farm, side by side comparisons.

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

Love this idea. I have some ideas like this in the works, but I'm so limited on time... Hopefully I can do some trials like this in the future.

[@curiousbystander9193]

I think any trial should include letting the biochar condition in the soil for a couple months before planting....this is the real condition of the soil with biochar..... not the 1st 2 months after the addition. Good luck....post any observations if you would.@@BriansPermacultureProject

[@oliviawilliams595]

12:37 for doggo

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

Check out the end of my "An Aspiring Permaculturist Attempts Lawn Care" video for a fun scene with her :)

[@user-no6ty3ml8f]

Aaaa

[@claytonlance235]

That white "fungus" is actually burnt off nitrogen, from getting to hot in the center. Need to turn more often.

[@ArthurDentZaphodBeeb]

You weren't composting woodchips. You were composting manure. The woodchips simply allowed in some oxygen and prevented going completely anerobic. The pile could have used a bit more moisture. Fast, hot composting provides bacterial-dominant compost. Most gardens are already bacterial-dominant. Ideally, you want slow no-turn aerated compost to develop fungal-dominant compost. No turn allows fungi to grow - as soon as you turn a pile, you destroy the fungi.

[@yd8104]

I'm not sure he was seing fungi but most likely actinobacteria (like an ashy layer that looks like fungi)

[@curiousbystander9193]

johnson-su

[@BriansPermacultureProject]

Hi there, I can't say that I agree with the idea that I was only composting the manure. The wood chips really do get broken down. Before this process, if I give a handful of wood chips a firm squeeze, it feels like a handful of wood chips. After this process, if I give this material a squeeze, it feels soft and spongy. It feels like an entirely different material. The wood chips are "gutted", and lose a lot of their internal structure. I don't disagree that turning the pile will disrupt the newly forming fungal networks. I think the turning process will favor certain fast-spreading types of fungi, which may not be the most helpful in the garden.

[@geraldhowse8597]

Give it another 6 months. Then post it again. That's not finished compost