An early Christmas present from my compost pile

[Guest guest]

I love my compost pile and even when I cannot go out there weekly and turn it

over, Carl will dutifully go outside every evening while I do dishes and he'll

deposit the vegetable parings and such. Today was a good day, and I was able to

go outside to my compost pile. It's been raining on and off, so I had my

favorite rain/sun hat on, my Tweety Bird pajama bottoms and an ancient t-shirt

from about 30 years ago. I couldn't turn the pile over, but I could go with an

offering of coffee grounds and some tagless tea bags.

 

As a matter of habit, I carried my favorite garden spade with me - it's kind of

like my cane is when I go to the store. Gardeners know what I mean by favorite

garden spade - it fits your hand perfectly, slices into the soil cleanly and

holds just enough that you can lift it, but not so much that it is a chore.

 

Despite it being December, several of my rose bushes are in bloom. Silly things,

they're supposed to be sleeping now. Good thing I had my snips with me. Habit is

a funny thing. i was going into the side yard so automatically picked up the

spade and snips along with my hat.

 

There was something growing in my compost pile. I figured it was probably weeds

and most likely morning glory. It wasn't, though. It was potatoes. Lovely red

potatoes just big enough and numerous enough to throw in the soup pot tonight.

 

An onion had developed as well; just little ones but also perfect for the pot.

There were some carrot tops growing but just the lacy foliage. No carrots

tonight.

 

Maybe my old compost pile was saying thank you for all the years of feeding and

nurturing. Maybe it was just science. Whichever it was, it was a lovely blessing

and gift. So dinner tonight comes in part from the old compost pile, partially

the tag ends of veggies from this week's dinners.

 

All in all, a really good day.

 

Hugs, Jeanne (and compost) in GA

http://jeannefromgeorgia.blogspot.com/

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Just want you to know, Jeanne, how much I enjoy reading all your eloquent

offerings. They're always so entertaining and I feel as if I'm reading mail

from an old friend. Do you blog? If not, you should. You have so much to

offer. Sending my best wishes to you and Carl for a bright and beautiful

Christmas and a new year filled with nothing but wonderful!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Thank you! I hope you and yours (and everyone else here) have a wonderful and

safe holiday season! Yes, I blog - got a couple of going but cannot access one, 

Not sure if my sig line shows up, but it is

http://jeannefromgeorgia.blogspot.com/

 

Doing the tree tonight. I remember when it was fun and everyone looked forward

to putting it up, now it's a bit of a job. I wonder if I could just keep it up

all year - wonder how I'd dust it....

 

Hugs, Jeanne in GA

 

http://jeannefromgeorgia.blogspot.com/

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

That is so cool you have a compost pile, my old neighbors (not that they're old,

we just moved) have a compost pile, and it smelt bad, lol, but that's so cool

that you actually grew stuff :-D good job

[Guest guest]

A bad smelling compost pile is a sick one. It needs a bag of fertilizer, water

and getting turned over (pitchfork or spade flipping old compost to top). A

healthy one smells loamy - rather like being in a dense woodland right after a

soaking rain.

 

My father was very into composting before it was trendy. ACK! Gardening and

greenstuff is going trendy. What's next - skinny models in 14 inch high heels

wearing gardening clothes and carrying spades? Oh the horror!

 

Ah, remember the good old days when it was plain WEIRD to be vegetarian? Beans

and rice were cheap. They almost had to give TVP away and you couldn't even find

a frozen veggie burger at the grocery store and if you did, it was cheap cheap

cheap. Now it's healthy. Being vegetarian is fashionable. Going green and

meatless is the done thing.

 

We're so screwed. Where did I put my old " Have you hugged a tree today? "

t-shirt? Sure wish I hadn't given away all those pairs of hand embroidered and

mirror-sequined bell bottom button fly jeans. I'd make enough money selling my

old hippy clothes on eBay to pay for my vegetarian habit.

 

I still have Carl's old polyester suit and his clunky heel shoes. Maybe I can

parlay them into some Gardenburgers.

 

Jeanne in GA, heading to bed, perchance to dream of veggie burgers on the grill

with fresh tomatoes, lettuce, onions, pickles, sprouts, veganaise,

ketchup...Think I'll detour to the kitchen for a nibble of freeze dried corn and

peas. Mmm, or some miso soup with buckwheat noodles.

 

Don't you hate when it is time to go to bed and your tummy starts rumbling?

http://jeannefromgeorgia.blogspot.com/

[Guest guest]

I love composting!  I don't have a compost pile where I live now, but the best

one I ever had was a large, stubborn pile of mostly leaves and kitchen scraps

for a couple of years--and then I got the idea from my dear husband (who had

terrible allergies every time he tried to mow the large yard--to buy a neat

mower with a " catcher " bag. 

 

This was back before mowers " mulched " the grass into microscopically small

pieces.  The yard yielded large amounts of grass cuttings which, when put into

and onto my compost pile, REALLY heated it up!  I LOVED going out to " turn " the

compost in the pile, especially on cooler days--seeing the steam, literally,

coming off the " digesting " vegetative matter.  It was a sight to behold!  (My

garden used no commercial fertilizers, but thrived, because I raked that nice,

rich compost stuff into it.)

 

Ah, I love the memory!  I hope, since we'll be moving in 6 months to a year and

a half from now, that where we live next will allow us a place for a bit of a

garden and some way that I can get going with compost again. 

 

Thanks, Jeanne, for the neat stories!  I love reading the little vignettes you

share!  Best wishes for the Holidays!

 

Peace and blessings!

--Laura B., in Illinois  (We have snow covering the ground tonight--supposed to

get a little more tomorrow, too!)