Ultimate composting guide

This is a very detailed composting guide to help you decide what type of composting you want to do. This guide will link to 5 other guides in the video, which can help you learn more about some of the various types that I personally use.
Now just because I don't use any given type (bokashi for example) doesn't mean it's bad. It just means it's not for me. But it could be for you. I am going to mention some of these other types, but since I'm not an expert in them (because I don't do them), I am going to be fairly brief on them - for good reason. I don't want to steer you wrong. However, I will give you some starting advice which can maybe pique your interest.
There are a few topics I was going to include, filmed sections on them, but this video was WAY too long. I may include them in a second part if there is the desire. These are: Black Soldier Fly Larvae composting, Leaf mould, deep trench method - basically like a food-grave (good for meats/bones), chicken compost systems (tractors etc), as well as more details on Biogas (methane) digesters, and bokashi. However, I cut the latter because I didn't like the quality (because I'm not an expert). I left some of it in, just enough to maybe let you know it exists.
For Hot Composting (Berkeley method), there are many different bin setups, from open piles, to lockable bins like mine, the pallet-bay system I show, chicken fence rings, etc. I cut a section discussing each of these, because I felt it was just too much info on Berkeley method.
It's always hard to try to compress a topic that I could speak on for literally 10 hours, into a short(ish) video, so some cuts had to be made. Similarly, for Berkeley, I didn't talk about stuff like composting bones, meat, cheeses, fats, etc.. because the other video (which I link) discusses that a bit. My favourite thing to do with bones is actually turn them into biochar. Because I consider biochar a composting method (turning wood, bones, food into charcoal and inoculating it inside compost), I also included a link to that video.
Thanks, and I hope you enjoy.
Timestamps:
1) 00:30 - In-situ methods like chop and drop, in-situ worm farms, mulching, etc.
2) 09:10 - Berkeley method - i.e. hot compost (bacterial)
This one ended up quite long, because it's fairly prescriptive.
3) 16:18 - Cold composting (macro-life compost). Similar to Berkeley, but also VERY different. COMPLETELY different soil microbiology .
4) 25:30 - Tumbling method - very strong personal opinion on this one.
29:45 - Container based indoor composting:
5) 30:20 - Vermicomposting
6) 33:17 - Bokashi (very brief, just telling you it exists)
7) 34:45 - Biogas Methane Digester (again, fairly brief, this is essentially just a sealed container where there is a pipe at the top which collects the offgas (methane).
8) 345:40 SUMMARY of every type. Pros and Cons discussion. What each one is good for, when to use it, and what it's shortfalls are.
___
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[@rjviereckl1321]

Do you need to establish a bacterial decomposition before starting the fungal decomp? or could you run a straight fungal compost? What would that look like?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Going to pin this. It is a great comment. That's basically a slow compost. Same general process (stuff in a pile), but just add more browns to it. Still try to turn it once and a while, but give it a long time between turns to allow mushrooms to move in (along with worms and beetles etc). But if you have anything close to resembling an ideal ratio (4:1 browns to green by volume, or 25:1 browns to green by mass), then your pile will get hot and be bacterial dominated no matter what you do. Bacteria will just take over as the heat rises, and mushrooms cant stand that much heat. Another way to think of it... a pile that "is going", "is working", "is hot", rhars a bacterial pile. A pile that isnt looking like it's doing anything, that's a fungal pile. People think its not doing anything, but it is... just slowly. If it's way too green and not doing anything (and stinky and slimy and gross), then it's an anaerobic bacteria slow cold mess. Those are really the only 3 possibilities. Every single pile, from anyone (even if they know nothing) will fall into one of those 3 categories. 1) Hot, well balanced, managed and cooking like mad. 2) Cold and overly brown - fungus and worms and beetles. Slow but good. 3) Cold and overly green - disgusting rotting mess. Note, this is where 99% of people who know nothing end up. They just throw nothing but greens (kitchen waste) into the compost, and this is the result.

[@Leeofthestorm]

RJ Vierecki you might to check out Johnson su bioreactor. The longer you leave this system to bio-react, the more fungi you get. kzbin.info/www/bejne/eqm4eJ5na5Z_r5o

[@Leeofthestorm]

an even better than the original version (less work/materials/plastics) was designed by Diego Footer here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oZ7PZYWBj9B2aKc

[@williamhubel4643]

My compost tumbler is literally just a place where I store fresh organic waste from my house before adding it to the main pile so I don’t have to walk all the way down there, and so the odor can dissipate. But it’s useful for that

[@christopherhorn5274]

Pros of bokashi: you can use it to compost meat, eggs, dairy, prepared food; Cons: the end result still needs to be composted using one of the other methods before it can be used.

[@Carhug2012]

Could you just feed the end result to livestock? It'd be like fiancy sour krout? Also, what about the juices extracted. I know Bokashi is anaerobic. I've been pulling the juices once a week, mixing w/ water and then watering plants.

[@sunlight8299]

@@Carhug2012I'm going to try feeding bokashi to worms. Hopefully it isn't too acidic and they get used to the taste. I'm going to use a worm bag for continuous vermicompost harvesting

[@c.b.1542]

Re: in situ worm bins. This works really well in Europe. However, in North America red wigglers are invasive species and might destroy the eco system for your native forrests that are not used to such quick decomposition processes. Don't think, in situ worm bins are an eco friendly idea in Canada.

[@miqf914]

I really like the idea of a holed, buried bucket for worms. I need to try that out.

[@richlijacanacua]

Wow! This is good for Nitrogen food for plants and trees! Awesome! Thank you!

[@Crashbangable]

I compost in one large pile and cover it with a big piece of Astroturf that keeps my wife happy.

[@d.w.stratton4078]

Build the shed on skids. That usually sidesteps most construction permit regs because it is then not considered a permanent structure. To be fair, that's in America: no idea if that works in Canada, but worth looking into.

[@emilybohner1560]

I do have a tumbler and agree, it’s a pain in the butt to empty. (Probably my biggest complaint) I will say there are a couple pros, biggest one being that in an urban environment it’s nice and compact (fits in our tiny yard) and keeps the critters out. It has lots of holes and flies get in so we do get “life” through it. It also gets very warm (I haven’t taken temp but by feel I’d say well over 100 degrees F) and processes pretty quick. (If I’m turning it often I can get some good compost inside of a couple/few months) I do also agree though that the “hot zone” is small so often seeds make it though and volunteer in the garden-not always a bad thing but slightly annoying at times. If/when we have more space I’ll definitely be building a different system like you’ve described.

[@sandrabrown4993]

I'm a senior and can't really contemplate the work involved in a hot compost system. But I've purchased and set up a SubPod vermicompost system that is working great. It gets partially buried in the garden or in a raised bed so the worms can go back and forth through the holes in the sides of the SubPod. Being buried regulates the temperature for the worms as well. I highly recommend it.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

That sounds perfect.

[@Queensthief195]

Awesome, be careful if you're in North America though. Red wigglers are invasive here. They destroy forest floors.

[@foreverofthestars01]

I just want to say your video description is amazing. Thanks for taking the time for us readers! Oh, and by the way, your channel is awesome. Thanks for the valuable content. Greetings from Argentina! 🙋🏾‍♂️🌱

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Thank you so kindly :)

[@safabee]

Thank you so much for this info, I’ve used the compost tumblers before and wondered what I was doing wrong since I just seemed to be spinning rotting food endlessly. This video has been super helpful.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Great 👍:)

[@lynsmith2698]

What a great video. I love my compost. I get excited when bears pooped in my yard I can add it to my compost. I have a open box like your pallet bin….except made out of regular wood. I have only had a bear rummage thru it once, then another time a small bear use to sleep in it. But on the whole it it never bothered by animals. Next year we are adding on another section cause it is only 4x6’…hahahaha thank you so much, this is such a great channel. 🇨🇦🐝

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Thanks as always Lyn! Thanks for all the amazing comments too. It's people like you who keep me going. I love knowing you all enjoy so much to leave such awesome comments. It makes it feel like a community, even though we've never met in real life. I know we'd be great friends.

[@VickiSchwarz]

Challenge-Suggestion: Grow a pretty hedge around your compost area Grow a guild of plants.. Blocking view from house, dedicate it to birds. Create a mini park/utility area by working with the appropriate plants to accomplish your goal

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Great ideas.

[@jamesr.beddome6085]

I find that my tumbler is useful as a primary stage composter, but you do need to compost it further to finish it as outlined below. I am in the City of Winnipeg, so it keeps the kitchen scraps locked up and keeps critters out. I keep it close to the house, so it is easy to get the kitchen scraps to the bin. I spin it every time I add, and it has two sides, to age one half. This helps to break down the kitchen scraps with paper, garden waste that is not chop and dropped, and shredded paper added as appropriate. Then I either take the partially composted matter to the vermicimpost bin in the basement, or I bury it in the front yard garden with wood branch trimmings as hugokultur hills. But the tumbler is useful as a primary to store extra compost over a long cold Winnipeg winter, and also with lots of extra garden cuttings in summer. But you are correct that it is hard to get it to finish well.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

I can definitely get behind that.

[@theuerlings1342]

I have a total of 3. I find them very helpful. I do add worms.in summer to help.

[@kcoker9189]

Your thought process Jenga about the compost bin sounded so familiar I had to laugh 😂 I guess you could call it Adults 1st law: For every solution there's an opposite and larger problem haha

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Haha

[@joeohalloran9309]

Yea I have 2 tumblers and they are as big as drums. Yes you don't the heat but you do keep the rats and mice away. I'm a baker and put lots of unused bread in it with some scraps I don't give to worms. My heated piles mount which 1 is currently at 150F made up of horse manure and shire jungle mulch and another finished pile of horse manure and wood chips. So no vermin to worry about there.

[@deviatefromthemean]

I have a Box of Life vermicomposting box - made in Ottawa and perfect for indoor composing of food waste. I love you videos, thank you so much for the content

[@BaskingInObscurity]

In California it's illegal to even flush cat poop. The litter is terrible for the sewage pipe system and some diseases like toxoplasmosis survive all the way to the ocean where they infect wildlife. The sea otters suffered some pretty severe population setbacks due to cat-feces-born disease. So imagine what it's like raw for our garden life and ourselves.

[@incanada83]

BaskingInObscurity, I've never heard or know of anyone flushing cat litter (cat/dog poop). You probably know there are many eco-friendly cat litters on the market. Perhaps some people are not aware of those or...they may not like the price (more expensive), or... just don't care? I would like to think that "thanks" to pandemic, something good has/is coming out of it; more people want to garden, learn about the best ways to do it, while learning to be conscientious about environments, since growing anything "green", successfully, one can't be without the other. :-)

[@BaskingInObscurity]

@@incanada83 It's true that there are much more ecofriendly cat litters. Paper is a renewable resource, so those are okay. Pine has natural chemicals, oils mostly, in it that are harmful to cats (in fact they're harmed by nearly all aromatic vegetable fats, so concentrated aromatherapy oils and "natural" bug repellents are no-nos. No orange, geranium, rose, etc, allowed). Silicone litter that has NO ADDITIVES are fine, but if it's colored it has toxic additives-BUT be careful to get a brand that has an excellent record of being very low dust lest you risk silicosis. Even clay is fine if it has no toxic additives, but good luck even finding one of those. Historically, sanitation departments demanded clay never be flushed because it clogs pipes. Until the turn of the millennium or so, it was believed that sanitation cleansed the sewer effuse sufficiently to eliminate pathogens. However sleuthing the cause of die offs of certain animal populations along ocean coasts (e.g: www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2002/12/021223084339.htm) researchers traced problems to both treated and untreated runoff. I grew up and continue to live by the Monterey Bay, so was heartbreaking to see our beloved, once-thought-extinct sea otters dying in droves; and then the local marine labs identified Toxoplasma gondii as one of the principal culprits-a parasite best known as a danger of cat feces. So yada yada, we've all been trained to be way overconfident in ordinary water treatment systems. It IS also possible to compost cat poop just like it's possible to compost steer and chicken poop, but it requires high heat and care with cross-contamination avoidance to prevent E. coli, salmonella, T. gondii, or other pathogens from ending up in our food and ground water. It's difficult enough that the vast majority of us should probably just skip composting to pasteurize given it takes space, heat, time, and patience. All that said, chemicals can be long term harmful to us and everything else, while pathogens can be killed with care; so buying and growing organic is still the better plan.

[@raqueliatheimpatientgardne8196]

OMG What a great idea!! Plant a pot and put food scraps in it! OMG I am so excited to know that I can do this.. Your a life saver! I am starting my permaculture area and have dug holes and put pots in them for my trees coming in the fall and instead of just doing cover crops now I can really utilize them by putting in food scraps! Even though I don't eat much what a super idea!

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Just a heads up on this technique though, because it's a cold composting process driven by the larger soil organisms like worms, it takes much longer to finish. It's very likely any food you put in there won't be turned into soil before you need those holes for trees again, and the decomposition process will rob some nitrogen from the soil as it happens. This isn't a problem in the long term, but may be in the short term. I would actually suggest to dig new holes next to the holes where the trees will be going, bury the pots there and do your in situ worm castings there instead.

[@raqueliatheimpatientgardne8196]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy Yes you make a good point. The trees aren't coming till December & having worm bins it does take a long time for scraps to turn over so thanks for that suggestion & will implement that instead! I learn so much from you & can't thank you enough except by asking do you have a place where I can go to make a onetime donation? or do you have to do the joiny thing? I am more a spur of the moment person & maybe there are more like me that would do this? Just a thought & if you have a place let me know, you deserve it!

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

If you go to my channels main page and hit the "about" tab, there is a link to my PayPal, and patreon. Either of those work, but PayPal has less fees. You can also etransfer to [e-mail]

[@karinvanspaendonk9917]

Thanks for this great summary!

[@kitty_765]

I adore your channel and have been learning such an incredible amount. Thank you for sharing your labour of love and dedication!! I hope to one day see the same beauty in the land I buy. Love from Ontario!

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

You are so welcome! I'm sure you will make it happen. We have a wonderful slice of this fine planet here in Ontario.

[@LittleGardenSK]

My rhubarb leaves are huge this year - been putting them around my newly planted dwarf cherry seedlings.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

I've got another great useful thing you can do with Rhubarb leaves, courtesy of a tip from ol'Poppy. Part 1 should be up today.

[@LittleGardenSK]

Canadian Permaculture Legacy just watched it. Great idea! Thanks for sharing

[@beautybuffet101]

Brilliant, loved this!

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Thanks 😊

[@Lochness19]

Finally getting some steam coming out of the core of my pile now when I'm turning it. Don't have a soil/compost thermometer so not sure what temperature that's equivalent to, but I guess it's a good sign. Most of it is still cool with all sorts of bugs living in it. I think my pile is still a little on the small side, about a cubic yard.

[@gregbell2117]

If the pile's dry, but your C:N ratio is already good, it might be a better idea to add water, rather than more N. Also, mice chew holes in my compost bins, so all the fancy locked lids don't end up mattering much! Great info all around - matches my experience perfectly.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Definitely agree there. Dry with no smell, but have good heat in the pile? Turn it and add water. Dry with ni smell but pile has gone cold? It's probably because it's too brown, add greens and water and turn. Great point, thanks for making it. :)

[@growinginportland]

Oh, this explains why my compost bins have a dormant for nine months. I’ve probably been created methane. I’ll start turning it and adding more browns. See what happens.

[@growinginportland]

Good News I emptied out half the bins. Looks like some cold Compost was going on. I will turn them every 3 days and add water. Hopefully they start producing compost. Cheers.

[@micaela6915]

This is great video thank you.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@barbaranewerla]

Thought about a compost tumbler. Time and money saved. Thank you! But what I do now for some years: I do chop and drop with almost everything. Even kitchen scraps (raw fruit or vegetable) go directly onto my garden beds. It does not look very nice but works fine (your wife would not like it, that' for sure ;-)). Pros: minimum effort, cons: maybe I am feeding the voles. No problem with other animals. The largest problem for me with a hot compost is the amount of material needes, hard to get for me at the moment. But I think I will try worm compost.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Yeah, biggest concern would be attracting raccoons and maybe rats, depending on where you are.

[@redredwine1277]

Thank you👌🏽

[@mordyfisher4269]

I put together a tumbler system for creating an approximate 30% bio char compost mix. I made three tumblers with 85 gallon drums that i alternate every two weeks filling and using. Its mostly a digester system as it stays minimum 70 percent full, every week i add about 5 gallons of kitchen scraps 5 gallons of 2 year old mulched leaves and 2 gallons of crushed bio char. Every two weeks i pull out 10 to 15 gallons of the most consistant perfect soil i think possible... I could pull out way more but thats all the waste we produce in my household. To initiate my system i first filled each barrel with 15 gallons each of bio char, fresh horse manure, swamp mud, and lawn clippings.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Hey, I would be super interested in you making an video on your process if you ever get around to it. You are the first person I know who enjoys this method. I also very much respect your opinion, based on other comments you have made on my other videos. You certainly have a great setup and are very knowledgeable in growing food and gardening in general.

[@mordyfisher4269]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy Thanks, that actually means alot to me. Im actually working on it right now, ive been taking videos all spring, im going to continue throughout the summer and fall and put them all together during the winter. Im going to start posting next spring in a relevant time frame and itll work out nicely because ill be able to show the time lapse. Theres definately not enough people up north showcasing permaculture in any real capacity. Not enough for a rich knowledge cultivating community anyways.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Awesome! Let me know when you do and I will give your new channel a shoutout.

[@Jim-uj3ty]

I took a metal trash can, drilled holes all around the sides and on the bottom, and have been putting kitchen scraps and leaves in it for about 2 years. I only recently took about half the can and put that on top of some leaves. After watching this video I realize I should have been turning it. Can I salvage the contents of this can and try to fix it? It's probably more anaerobic ; but after getting down to about half of the can it started to look like darker soil. So maybe there's hope. BTW, I haven't been doing a garden yet. Wasn't sure I could do this. But this method (permaculture), and your approach has inspired me to believe that, maybe I can do this. Thank you for that.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Thanks! Indeed, you can re-convert the microbes to aerobic microbiology by turning the pile for a few days. Some acids may still linger in the pile, but they can be beneficial also.

[@chaveraoh]

From what I know, ou should not eat rhubarb raw. It must be processed, eg in cake or as kompot. It has some elements leading to stones. Greeting from Poland where we used to be permaculture by nature but we were americanised into mono/sterility as most of the world. Now trying to recover.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Thanks for watching from Poland. You are also correct about the kidney stones thing. There is more info on that in this source here: Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31

[@krzysztofrudnicki5841]

I think in my situation composting chicken run would be the best idea. Compost for me, free feed and entertainment for birds.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

That's really the ideal setup if you have the option to do it. I know it will be my main way I go in the future. Just need a slightly less busy life first, so that I can be a good steward to the animals.

[@bennywalsh2038]

Just found you in an old Edible Acres video. Love what you are doing and the thought provoking info. I've been very interested in the Johnson Su bioreactor and Diego Footer's modification to that design with air columns running through the pile. I'm definitely giving that a go with the two loads of wood chips that I've had delivered plus all the clean horse manure I've just sourced. Leaf bag collecting starts in a couple of weeks here in Georgia. BUT, as I hot-ish compost in a row of pallet bays, I've been wondering about incorporating a JohnsonSu/Footer style ring of chicken wire in the centre of the piles, with all compost within one foot of the air. Any thoughts?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Yeah, it's hard to get exactly what you are proposing but it kind of sounds like a slightly tweaked version of a bioreactor. I think a lot of experimentation is valuable.

[@bennywalsh2038]

​@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy LOL. Sorry. Basically using the idea from JS that material being composted is no more than twelve inches from air. So, to avoid turning but still compost quicker and avoid any anaerobic decomposition occurring, in the centre of a four foot square pallet bay place a vertical rigid tube with the compost material around it, with access to air. You're right, it's a small version of the bioreactor and therefore avoids my old rear end having to flip it. Been watching your vids all morning. Love 'em. Jerusalem artichokes you say! Okay. Thanks.

[@johnphoenix1175]

Have you seen the Dirt Locker product for terracing a bank or hillside. Awesome product! I'd like to see what you'd do with it.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Interesting. Not really needed though. A shovel can make a swale or terrace just as easy. No need for plastic in this application.

[@denissesheartyhomestead]

i will look in your new videos to see how you do it. just to watch you do it really. if you haven't made a video in fall chopping and dropping please do to see and example.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

If you go to Arcadia Farm youtube channel and watch their video on my food forest, I do it in that video about 5-10 mins in.

[@melanieallen8980]

interesting!!😊

[@mamoe3]

I highly recommend the Gardens of New England channel for in-depth bokashi and vermiculture videos

[@Malumbrus]

That is the most Canadian outfit ever, eh bud

[@andrewrussell3796]

Phteven You should see his Maple Leafs pajama pants!

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

This isn't even my final form!

[@Malumbrus]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy Hahaha

[@francislaper1777]

Question: I started a winecap mushroom bed under a huge pine tree out front. Layers of sawdust and straw, nothing came up. What am I not doing right? Also: one of your videos started with "ask and you shall receive" I want to make and install a "bat box", will you do a corresponding video? The thing I appreciate/respect the most about your work, leadership by example!!!

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Its hard to say from the description, but did it dry out? Its also likely there and doing fine, have you looked to see if the mycelium is there? It looks like white fine hair strands. Remember that the fungus is the mycelium, the thing we call mushrooms are just the fruiting bodies. Sometimes a mushroom needs time to get established before it will fruit. Bat box video is a good idea. Last season was super busy with the pond, but I can do more projects like this in the coming year.

[@theuerlings1342]

I love my tumblers. They are so much easier on my back. I have 3 black ones that are about 1.5 feet of the ground. Sorry I don't have a picture. I throw in some worms. Rotate every day or so.. the one you have is not anything I would use either. There are plenty of videos showing better ones

[@cvandenhoven7929]

I think your buried kitchen compost buckets is interesting but I am concerned about adding red wrigglers as they have the potential to become invasive...worms are having destructive impact to forest floor.... Why not just bury the scraps and let earthworms that are already there do the job...rather than adding more potential invasives.?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

I didn't know that. We have them everywhere so it seems they are already here. Good comments thanks for adding it.

[@susanbradleyskov9179]

I wonder if using the tumbler to aerate bokashi would make the thing useful? I bought one, ran into all the problems you mentioned, and now it’s just sitting there. 🤔 I do make bokashi, but I’m not happy about digging trenches and throwing it in there to become aerobic, which is what the bokashi bin people advise. I’m not really happy about throwing it in my aerobic compost. It’s hard enough to keep that aerobic as it is.

[@ThomiBMcIntyre]

You mentioned wanting a bigger bin - check out my father-in-laws design Covered Bridge Organics. I have been using them for years and they are simple and effective

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

They look awesome.

[@Jim-uj3ty]

I think I would like to try that Vermicomposting for all the kitchen scraps. Maybe set it up my basement (no way my wife gonna something worms in the house). Are there any commercially made products you can recommend that you think are good?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

There definitely are, but I would be googling them myself, since I don't have one yet.

[@muppelmuh134]

I heard about biochar and actually saved some left over charcoal from the winter wood stove, but then what stops me from putting into my compost and my soil is that I am no chemist and don`t actually know what it would do to the pH of my soil. Do you have any info on that? Also, as charcoal takes such a long time to really break down in the soil I understood it is acuumulative. Do you have experience with how much biochar percentage is just right or too much? I have been scared to try.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

This is great article on it. www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2019.01321/full I'm not sure how deep you want to go, but there are links to some really good papers in there. You can get lost in the research for sure, it is very much at the cutting edge right now, and is experiencing a flurry of excitement. From that paper, the part you are looking for is that it can raise, lower, or not effect pH, depending on the biochar and the soil, and it tends to move soils towards neutral. This makes a lot of sense because its basically a bunch of carbon bonds that can bond excess stuff to it. So it either bonds excess H ions or OH ions, and balances soils. It's the great balancer.

[@boppingbetweenworlds8309]

I've just bought a house where the previous occupant used a yard area for vehicles that he would buy and sell. Easily 6 or 7 parked at anytime. I'm yearning to transform this area into a garden, but I'm concerned about the toxins in the ground. I've been watching these kinds of videos for ideas on detoxing the land. So far I think the plan is bring in more soil and plant things like comfrey, mustard, Hydrangea etc to draw toxins from the ground, and then hopefully one day, I'll be able to plant food. Any advice? How long will it take to heal the plot of land? I'm in Alberta.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

I wouldn't plant anything in that soil. No way. Trees would be fine, but not veggies. If it were me, I would create a wildlife pollinating guild there with things like black locust, serviceberry, dogwood, staghorn sumac, linden, and tons of flowers. Then mulch heavily with woodchips to build mushrooms to detox the land (but don't consume them). Anywhere you want food, use raised beds, and isolate the bed from the native soil (but be sure to include drainage on the bed, at the sides of the bed at the bottom, so water can drain out).

[@boppingbetweenworlds8309]

That's kind of a bummer. But, it is what it is. Thank you for giving me the hard truth.

[@boppingbetweenworlds8309]

Can I plant fruit trees or bushes, but not eat anything from it for like 5 years?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

I think that's probably fine, but keep in mind I'm not a specialist in this area, and the science between pathway from toxins in the soil to fruit in a tree isn't clear. Some research says that the tree won't take up toxins because it doesn't need toxic chemicals in the fruit. I'm not sure how much research has been done to back that up.

[@boppingbetweenworlds8309]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy Cool, so there's hope. I'll keep my ears open for more information on this. Thank you, again.

[@Slipping_thru_the_Seams]

from what I've learned lately(on KZbin lol) a vermicomposting setup producing leachate is actually less than ideal cuz thats a sign its going anaerobic

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

leachate is just water getting into the compost, which can happen in aerobic or anaerobic conditions. It's just water diluting and carrying out nutrients and microbiology.

[@dr.c2195]

Comfrey is indeed known for being very medicinal in teas. I wonder if that has anything to do with comfrey being very nutritious thanks to it's roots.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

It certainly is

[@susan.l.foulds3475]

I have a question about utilizing urine for nitrogen. With the prolific use of pharmaceuticals, from OTC's to birth control pills to whatever , wouldn't the chemicals be left or incorporated into the compost? I understand there could be leaching of the substances later but wouldn't there be trace amounts?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

That I have no idea. I suspect that yes if you are on meds of any kind, that some of it would get urinated out, and if they are stable enough would last in the compost pile, or possibly react with other things.

[@jessicajansson1203]

In Sweden we regler to a big test where they made the conclusion that Earth bacterias broke sön traces of medicine. So as long as you don't get treatment for cancer it should be ok to use urine as fertilizer.

[@jennifferhurlburt642]

Looking for comfrey in southern Ontario, where did you get your first plants?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Richter herbs in Uxbridgr

[@jennifferhurlburt642]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy Awesome thanks

[@OG_Chocobean]

how does a hot compost bin get that hot in Canada? :\ even at this time of year? or does it only work during our short summers?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Its plenty warm now. Even if it is just above freezing, the active zone can get to 80C no problem. It's only when it gets down to below freezing that the bacteria can't get going and the pile slowly stops, then freezes.

[@sergesamson76]

Any concerns with the adhesives that make up basic brown cardboard? I heard a report earlier today on the ceeb suggesting adhesives generally are pretty toxic and most are made from petroleum. Thoughts?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

None if you just use basic cardboard with soy ink (black ink). I would avoid anything glossy or with stickers. Everything I've read online says that it's perfectly safe if it's just basic cardboard.

[@TylerDurden404]

can we bury kitchen scraps in the soil + garden/veggie bed (to improve soil) instead of using a compost pile/bin/wormfarm etc (which then involves putting that compost back into the soil? Basically we skip the second step when we just bury it into the soil directly.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Yes it will tie up nitrogen as it breaks down though. A slight way to bypass this is to run it cold (which involves doing it in small amounts) and through worms. See "in situ worm composting" videos. Geoff Lawton had a good one. However, I would avoid just buying kitchen scraps, as it will rob nitrogen from the soil. It will all eventually be okay, but it just sends your soil chemistry through a loop. In small amounts its okay. In small amounts even just dropping them on the ground is fine (but the risk is attracting raccoons, mice, etc).

[@Redhackle]

Question please. I just got 9 cubic yds of mushroom compost. I covered it with a tarp. We get a lot of rain here in Ontario in October then, in November extreme cold and snow. Is it alright to cover it ?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Yes. This isn't mushrooms but mushroom compost. The bigger concern is not having rains leech out all the nutrient, so covering it until you use it is a good idea. Even better though is to get it into its final place before the winter hits. That way it can spend all winter breaking down.

[@Leeofthestorm]

in addition to what Canadian Permaculture Legacy has said, if spread in the desired locations, the rains and winter melt will not just let it break down but it will allow the smallest particles and molecules to filter downwards into your soil and begin to really work their magic.

[@Lochness19]

You were mentioning how comfrey takes its nutrients from deep down where it's not competing for nutrients with other plants. But you also said in another video that you shouldn't worry about plants competing for nutrients?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Yes, both are true, generally. However if your entire food forest guild is all shallow rooted plants, you can get some pretty tight topsoil, ajd mostly you aren't taking advantage of 3d space beneath the soil. It's always good to have deep rooted plants mixed with shallow rooted plants.

[@tomtenkiller]

Surely you have a better fire drum by now. -Search for an oil drum in steel -Put a BIG steel bar in the bottom center that is hollow -Drill hole on top of hollow steel bar -Now you have airflow

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Shrug. This one still does a fantastic job. I love it.

[@elodiemercier2502]

Hmmm question about deep tap root Does a PawPaw tree fits that role?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Absolutely. I hear they have VERY deep taproots. However, if your question is regarding using "deep taproot nutrient accumulators", their purpose is to build soil by chopping and dropping them multiple times per year. A tree isn't going to be a good option for that role, because it won't survive constant cutting. You want something in the herbaceous layer for that (dandelion, comfrey, mullein, etc)

[@elodiemercier2502]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy Thank you :) Although it won't survivre a constant cutting, I'll find somthing else for that, it means the autumn leaf fall should be good. I'll try to find an herbaceous for the summer long one

[@kescah]

Deep down nutrients from comfrey leaves; is it actually good soil down there?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

You mean under the comfrey plants? They were planted on basically gravel backfill from the house construction. They being said I have had the area mulched for about 4 years, so the soil is slowly getting better. As far as the deep taproot nutrient dredge thing that plants like comfrey does, it's not great soil down there but it's still something. Any nutrient taken from that far down would be gone forever. So anything is a bonus.

[@ditapoenaru1660]

How would you discourage bears when you have compost and Food forest ?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

They make heavy duty garbage bins and composters specifically for people in bear country. Basically bank vault sized locks lol

[@njione]

What a gorgeous guy whoever gets with him is a lucky girl if he isn't already with a lucky girl

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

I'm fully taken by the love of my life! Thanks for the compliment though :)

[@DisdainusMaximus]

You need to fix your volume levels.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Definitely getting better at this. Some older videos I was using a really junky video editor. Videos were always good quality until uploaded to KZbin, then audio got messed up. Happened so often. Better now.

[@Lochness19]

How does having a tarp over the pile help with nutrient leaching? Don't the nutrients leach out from the bottom rather than the top?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Keeps rain off it which is a big factor in leaching. I don't mind nutrients leaching into the soil, I don't want it leaching as surface runoff into bodies of water.

[@Lochness19]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy hm ok. I keep my pile under a spruce tree. The tree shelters it from the rain somewhat but also I don't really see run-off anywhere here. The soil is rather sandy so it can take in quite a lot of rain.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Yes, the better your soils are the less this is a concern. I also put them uphill of a swale, so I actually want the leachate runoff. I want it going into a swale and then soaking into the soil for the trees. It's hard when I comment, because I don't know if someone is a complete beginner or not. If their soils are dead or not. Based on your recent comments, you are no beginner, and your soils are likely a healthy loam loaded with organic matter.

[@Lochness19]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy I would still say I'm a beginner on a lot of things. This year is first time I'm trying to do a lot of things differently, although I have been doing a lot of research in the past few months. But it will be the first year that we don't rake the leaves off the lawn and take them to the curb for example. I'm still trying to figure out how to do the compost pile correctly, mine is still cooler than ideal. I think it's a bit small - about 5 ft wide and 3ft tall. I'll be adding a lot of green leaves stripped off a tree I'm pruning heavily for the next flip though. Would those count as green or brown material? Also, do you know if thicker plant stalks (ex sunflower, burdock) and rhizomes (I've been clearing out goutweed) are more on the carbon rich side compared to other green material? (and back to the soil, I really do think it's the fact that it's sandy leads to low runoff, there's about 1.5 feet of sandy soil before reaching some clay lenses, and even then it's still about 80% sand, 20% clay lenses)

[@VerboseVindication]

How do you feel about burying scraps? I've seen it done before and it feels like the easiest way to get a lot of nutrients deep down into your soil invisibly. Like a slow-release drip of extra nutrients you can bury beneath a plant for it to use over the span of a season. But it's an immense disturbance of the soil, since you're heavily tilling everything above the hole you drop things into.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Yes this is called trench composting. It's actually a decent method, especially in the winter due to thermal insulation of the earth. The cons with it: It ties up nitrogen in the soil as it decomposes, and because its buried, the affected zone is actually in the root zone of plants. It tends to decompose anatomically and release methane. This is reason enough for me to not do it. But as far as getting rid of garbage and eventually turning it into "not garbage", it definitely works.

[@chaveraoh]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy it will not cause methane production if you collect the waste in a bucket and after a week of collecting all the kitchen scaps incl the liquids like eg coffee or tea cup residue bury it to a hole or trench. I have been doing it for years and have not noticed any disadvantages.

[@TravelNP]

@@chaveraoh I have an insanely small but very productive garden and use the same method plus I have a composted and tiny worm farm. I’ve not had negative issues because the trench is far away from existing plants and after a few weeks, usable for new seeds or seedlings. It feels the most natural of all the methods to me.

[@incanada83]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy Well...If burying scraps (plant based) release methane, than I wonder if making "scrap smoothies" and pouring those around plants, covering with dirt is any better? I make those throughout growing season on- the-go every 2-4 days. I don't have huge vegetable/fruit garden. In Winter, I have a designated area where I just dump all greens in a pile to rot whenever that may happen. Thank you for your time and for sharing your knowledge.

[@gintmurphy8365]

My wife wants a more expensive blender but we have a fantastic expensive blender so I plan to break our kitchen scrap using the expensive blender. This sounds....sound. Is a frothy treat something my garden wants?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Yep, blending it will help it break down faster. The entry point of the blended scraps into your system should still be the compost pile though.

[@gintmurphy8365]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy the blended bits will help to mitigate large predators but won't the nutrient seap require me to move my pile more frequently? Can the pile produce too much nutrients that it'll harm the area? Like taking too much vitamin C or hypernatremia in humans.

[@incanada83]

gint murphy, Funny, I just asked similar question few minutes ago!? Except I pour blended greens, directly into the soil around plants. I'm not sure HOW or IF this has any benefits. Hence my question to Canadian Permaculture Legacy LOL

[@IvanPavlov007]

You need a permit for a shed?? O.o how hard is it to get one?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

We can have 1 free standing structure bigger than 10x10 feet. I already have 1 shed (the hideous one with no door). So I likely couldn't even obtain a permit. The only solution would be to build something smaller than what qualifies for a permit (9.9ft x 9.9ft).

[@jennyfrost1340]

Call your municipal government - ciry, town or county

[@incanada83]

@@jennyfrost1340 Forget it! We have worse rules where I live. You can't fart without a permit.

[@doinacampean9132]

Are you watching Doug and Stacy? Lots of info, applicable or not... Sun oven is one... thoughts?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Yeah, they are great for people wanting to go off grid. Solar ovens are nice. Depending on how they are built (cob for example), they usually don't last more than 1 season where I am. It's too damp and the winter usually cracks them bad. They are better the drier the climate is.

[@doinacampean9132]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy - thanks! Good to know!

[@doinacampean9132]

Charles Dowding shows off his composting method - cannot believe you haven't seen it...

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

I like Charles. His method is essentially my hot composting, or aerobic method. Although I don't think he turns his sections as often as they should be. He produces a lot of methane, I'm sure. In my opinion the best compost teacher on the planet is Dr Elaine Ingham.

[@doinacampean9132]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy - the forest, however, uses zero turns... But I'll take a look at dr Ingham!

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Yes, but the forest often doesn't create and concentrate as much stuff in one spot. Also, the way we compost is mainly to speed up the process. However, nature will do it regardless of our method. Even if we "mess up", it will all turn to soil.

[@jilltucker6865]

Struggle is real with making things "look good"

[@ColinMurphy10000]

Do you talk about the leaf bags somewhere else? Is that just for the convenience of containing them and dragging them around, or do you compost the bags directly? I'd think it would be better to just move the leaves from place to place with something permanent like bins. But you have vastly more leaves than I can probably imagine.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

You should check out the old man walking trail series (5 parts). It's what I do with most of the bags. Here is part 1: kzbin.info/www/bejne/a5KueWijpL99b68

[@skinnyWHITEgoyim]

The best way to compost dead animals or meat of any kind is to simply bury them in your garden. The bacteria and worms will decimate it quickly. Even large fish are gone within a month.

[@jeannettedewit9005]

Where would one get 'wine-cap mushrooms'?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

It depends on where you are. Fungi.com is great for the US. For Canadians, I got mine from a small business whose owner died of covid. 😞 I'm not sure where to get more now. For the EU, I don't know.

[@jeannettedewit9005]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy I am in NB Canada. So sorry to hear about your supplier :(

[@Woodchipengineer]

Maybe compost directly into the swales?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

A good swale is actually very low profile. Very wide but not very deep. A good compost pile is minimum 3ft x 3ft x 3tf, or 1m x 1m x 1m, so it's not really a great shape fit.

[@Leeofthestorm]

given what you have said in the 4 vids I've watched since I found you and subsequently subscribed, of how you like to do things, I think you might really like the Johnson Su bioreactor method of composting. It is a super fungal friendly system because you don't turn it, and it is also aerated. If you look up the name, you can find the original design, but I think Diego Footer's design is likely even better (less work, less over-all materials, less plastics) : kzbin.info/www/bejne/oZ7PZYWBj9B2aKc

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Yeah I've been watching Diego Footer's videos on them. He has modified his design a few times. To be completely honest though, the last thing I need right now is another project! And my super compost pile has been fantastic. I know there's soil microbiology tests that were performed that point towards the bioreactor creating extreme diversity, but for someone with some space, I think a big pile of diverse feed compost is a great play. It's WAY easier, and turning it isn't that big of a deal to me - I want the workout. I think the bioreactors are great for people with limited space though. Also if you are really against turning it, then I think it's also great.

[@kicknadeadcat]

Don't be so quick to dismiss anaerobic bacteria. Everything has a purpose in nature. Fermentation and putriication has its purpose also. A tree in the forest does not reject a putrifiying animal it uses it. As humans we think we are so smart but forget that we wouldn't be here if it wasn't for these processes. Nature has a way of balancing the good with the bad. If when a dead thing is put into the ground it feeds the anarobic bacteria which in turn feeds the Aerobic which are closer to the top of the soil. nematodes and other bacteria molds and yeast feed off of this. Balance what is needed not elimination.

[@milsanandu]

My earth machine not making compost. What is wrong??

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Sorry I'm not sure if I understand. What do you mean by earth machine?

[@milsanandu]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy black color compost machine

[@skinnyWHITEgoyim]

I bet comfrey would be great to compost since it's high in nitrogen.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Indeed, check the research article I linked in the video description from Zimbabwe. Very interesting paper discussing the nutrient composition of comfrey liquid manure.

[@inesberon7294]

We are vegan and have tons of organic matter to compost but to make a one cubic meter to compost it takes time anyway. Is okay to keep them in a pile until we have enough volumen and then start turning the pile?

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Yes, it will just kind of sit there and not do much anyways. You can also add grass clippings, etc. to bulk it out.

[@bennywalsh2038]

Bokashi..... See Nature's Always Right.

[@carriedemerchant9327]

I'm working on developing a permaculture project for a battered womens shelter and I am a complete novice at this. I'm wondering if I can get help from you.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Sure thing, sounds like a great cause. Any question or concern in particular?

[@Ben.McNeilly]

I've never in my life seen someone eat raw rhubarb before!!!

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Really?

[@Ben.McNeilly]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy nope, honestly I didn't even know it could be eaten raw 🤣 game changer!

[@Ben.McNeilly]

By the way, I'll take this opportunity to to thank you for all the work and extremely valuable content you put out there. You, and Shawn from edible acres have by far the highest quality content that I have seen. (and I have seen plenty) I am a fellow cold climate, food forest enthusiast from Ireland. 😁

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Thank you so much! Being associated with Sean (I believe that's how he spells it) is just such an incredible honor.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Just FYI, I do think you need to be careful how much you eat raw. Don't go eating 6 stalks a day raw. One here and there is no problem.

[@m.z.593]

Actually about the cows and green house gases there is some interesting findings on that in "kiss the ground" on netflix

[@d.w.stratton4078]

Multiple scientific studies vs documentary on Netflix.... Gonna go with the science that says cow farts are burning the planet down my droug.

[@m.z.593]

@@d.w.stratton4078 they don't say those studies are wrong or that cows don't fart they claim that if cows are kepr on a (silvo-)pasture year round they sequester more greenhouse gases than they emitt. If they are kept in feedlots they are very bad for the climate

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Definitely look up silvopasture. Drawdown.org is a good website which links to scientific studies. This isn't one of those "Facebook told me" things like flat earth and chemtrails. This is top soil scientists finding ways that animals build soil and sequester carbon. The problem with cattle isn't the cattle. The problem with cattle is the human. It's the systems we run cattle in. We feed them corn which isnt their normal diet, we cram them in extremely high density. We overgraze. We pile their manures up to decompose anaerobically in giant piles. We plant monoculture corn and soy to feed them, transporting their food instead of letting the graze grass and ferns in forests, eat branches and trees and nuts and fruit. Cattle aren't burning the planet down, the humans and the systems we create are. That being said, even silvopasture systems have their drawbacks, it's just that carbon isn't it. The drawback of silvopasture is land use. Cattle run in regenerative systems like silvopasture use up a lot of land. Now, that land is a healthy ecosystem, so even though a lot of land is used, it is being used to restore habitat. The problem is, humans eat way too much meat, and there isn't enough land to run the world demand for meat in silvopasture. So the solution is to combine eating WAY less meat with running regenerative silvopasture for the meat we do eat. But cutting back is of utmost importance. Just don't villainize the cow when it's the human system they run the cows in which are the problem. It would be like saying all mushrooms are bad because deathcaps are poisonous. Or poppies are bad because lives are ruined by cocaine.

[@charlenesapient9635]

Volume disappeared at summary :(

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Indeed. The weird thing it was fine in editing. It changed when youtube processed the uploaded file. And I have since deleted the original file unfortunately. At least the rest of it was fine.

[@jurieccilliers]

Dead living beings... zombies?

[@charlenekociuba7396]

Geez sound is so low, could not make you out around 9 min. in and the content was important.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Really sorry for that.

[@lynnerobinson6425]

Build a compost setup like Charles Dowdings one, your wife probably won't object as they are attractive.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Space is my main problem. Also, something like his setup would actually require me to get a permit (which I would actually not pass, due to my currently existing shed). We are only allowed 1 building per property bigger than 9x9'. So I would have to knock my shed down to build a compost setup like his. Sounds stupid. Most bylaws around here are :(

[@TIznus]

Yes… Compost tumblers suck!

[@sandylaika]

Love your stuff mate but don't talk about greenhouse gases just propaganda from the government for profit and fear. Co2 is one of the main building blocks of life. The more co2 the better..bigger greater plants. Turn your TV off. Other than that keep up the good work.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

You shpuld check out my climate change series. I discuss exactly this topic. Hopefully it helps explain some of the propaganda, and science in this area.

[@mishasumi6827]

Worms also eat your plant roots.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

Not really solvable, outside of destroying all soil life. So just treat that as a part of balance. Don't worry about things you cannot change.

[@mishasumi6827]

I plant in raised beds with stone bottoms and garden cloths to keep everything out of my soil. When adding mulch, i put it in the wheelbarrow first to get worms and whatnot out.

[@CanadianPermacultureLegacy]

How long have you been doing it? After a few years worms will likely find their way in, unless you take all the dirt out each season and replace it.

[@mishasumi6827]

@@CanadianPermacultureLegacy Not very long and you may be correct. I have a 3 inch layer of stone of various size on top of garden fabric. We'll see.

[@Xepent]

Oh wow. I had like a 4:1 N to C ratio... I don't know where to get 12x more carbon material