A moist buttery texture .....

On Sunday a very special recipe was followed at the farm.  The farm is officially certified organic and has the certificate to prove it and that means that all sorts of chemicals are off limits, even some that you would think are harmless, or even organic, like fish emulsion.

So, what does a resourceful farmer do? Make bio dynamic compost of course.  Here's the recipe:

manure
wet hay 
a variety of green material

Mix very well together and make into a pile.

The pile will heat up to around 50 degrees C.

Leave in this pile without any turning for 4-5 months until it has all converted into a very concentrated natural fertiliser with a moist, buttery texture.

Below you can see the photos.  It was a wet and mucky and satisfying process, occasionally a little smelly.  Definitely good for your inner child.  Imagine wearing gumboots in the bath and stomping the straw in the water, then sloshing about in mud and straw and cow manure.  Oh, and you get to play with the hose!  VERY good for your inner child.
 

You get to play with the hose.

 

Sloshing in gumboots

Mud, glorious mud.

This pile took 8 people 4 hours to build.

The pile was shaped rather like a steep pitched roof of a house.  When all the ingredients had been piled up like this, the whole was covered with "biscuits" of straw.

Now it will sit there until early next year.

Watch this space for when we break it open!