Compost: an Early Christmas Gift for Gardeners
                                     by Chris Winslow

To some, the autumn leaves falling on our lawns and landscapes mean
hours of tiresome raking and bagging. Gardeners however have a different
view. We welcome this phase of the calendar, and only see opportunity
in these beautiful fallen leaves.

Think of it as compost gold - Mother Nature’s early Christmas present to
us.This stuff is free, on-site and will enrich your turf, landscape beds and
trees, and will make your vegetable gardens truly bountiful.

To start with, you will need a compost bin. Any  4’ by 4’ area will work,
and keep it  open on one side. You can use a corner of a privacy fence
and add one side… or construct a free-standing bin with used wooden
fork-lift pallets.

I like to orient the bin so that the open side faces the south,  towards the
warmth of the sun. On cold wintry days, the sun feels good on your back
when you are turning the composting leaves.

Layer the leaves in the bin with grass clippings or other organic matter.
Leaves, especially if they are large, will compost better if they are shredded
or chopped into smaller pieces. Running over them with the lawnmower a
time or two will do the trick.

Barnyard manure is also an excellent additive. You would be surprised how
many horse owners are willing to share if asked!

Then all you need to do is to add water and some compost starter -  which
is usually a blend of beneficial bacteria and is available in most local nurseries.
High Yield makes an effective and inexpensive blend. Biotone also offers
a great mixture of beneficial bacterias with added microrizzal fungi.

The bacterias and fungi are needed to break down the organic matter into
rich compost.

Now, all that is left to do is to turn the composting leaves on occasion. Once
a week should be adequate. Adding a little water to the pile will also accelerate
decomposition.

Within a few weeks, nature’s bounty, with your help, will transform these
leaves into rich compost that can be used as a soil amendment in vegetable
gardens, in landscape beds, as a top dressings on the lawn, and as a mulch
around trees.
                           Happy Gardening Everyone!

Christmas gifts aplenty in the Thyme Gift Shop. A perfect place to buy
affordable Christmas gifts: wood faces,soaps, hand tools, hats, suet for birds,
wildflower seed shakers and much more. 

New Sugardrop Tomato 'sweeter than a peach,' writes Sean Poulter in an
article in Britain's Daily Mail. This new tomato has been developed in Spain
as a result of crossbreeding some 3,000 different varieties. They're packed with

nutrition, and children love 'em. For full story, click here. sugardrop  Thanks to
Mick Vann for telling us about this story.

nutritionist Alain Braux's new book "How to Lower Your Cholesterol with
French Gourmet Food: a practical guide."