Composting is Hard Work

I decided that a compost pile would be a great way to
(1) Make my very own nutrient-rich soil for growing vegetables
(2) Recycle kitchen scraps (since I throw them out in the yard anyway!)
(3) Eliminate the amount of trash I throw out, therefore eliminating the amount that goes into a landfill
So I've been doing research (my middle name) and I've found so much information! I love the internet! I love that I can come to my computer and find anything I want to know more about within minutes! Well, it was the same with composting. But of course, being me, I figured after I read the list of what you can compost/cannot compost and watched an 8-minute video on the subject on You Tube, I'm good. I know exactly what to do and I'm just going to go outside and do it!
Yeah .... not really that easy.
First of all I ask my FIL where to put the pile, just in case there's anywhere in particular on his property he doesn't want it. He tells me to put it "between those two trees." And tells me that he has already told my husband that when he rakes up the leaves, to rake them up around the bases of these three trees that stand in a row in the back yard. When he points to them and says to put the pile between them, DH thinks he means around the base of this tree and around the base of that tree. Add food and whatnot to the pile of leaves. But that's not really what I got. I got Lay the Pile of Leaves Between Those Two Trees. Hmm??? Wonder who was right?
I ended up going out while DH was taking a nap and first I raked all the leaves into two piles around the bases of two of the trees.
I look at it.
It doesn't quite look right.
So I rake another pile in between the two trees and form a 4 1/2 foot bed there.
Yeah, still doesn't look right.
But I figure this is what I'm suppose to do and I move on to adding the kitchen scraps as well as some cardboard. The video showed me that you can add scraps, cardboard items such as cereal boxes, egg cartons and paper rolls, coffee grounds with the coffee filters and even dryer lint! I add my stash, throw a little water on it and stand back and admire.
Hmm. Still looks a little off.
So I go inside and get back on the computer and get to Google-ing! I look up Where do I place my Compost Pile? And I find that you are not suppose to put a compost pile near trees! Yep. That's way it looked wrong! LOL Apparently if you put it near a tree, the roots will grow up into the compost, looking for nutrients. When you 'turn' your pile - every couple of weeks - you will destroy those roots.
Not Earth-friendly.
So I go back outside and move the compost pile! If you've ever seen a picture of compost, you can imagine how hard this was for me! If you've never seen one before, Google "Compost Pile Images" as soon as you finish this Blog!
So I move the pile. DH gets up from his nap and comes outside to check on me and is very proud of what I've accomplished! He likes to see me working in the yard ;-) He can't believe I am raking without gloves on, so he finds a pair for me to wear and tells me to keep them for when I'm working in the yard from now on. He helps me add pine needles to the layers and he sets up the water hose so that it will now stretch to reach the pile. I give it a sufficient amount of moisture this time, having seen exactly how much I should add on my 2nd trip through Compost-Google. And there it is!! My Compost Pile! 3'x3'x3' of layered green and brown organic matter that in 6 to 12 months will be beautiful, nutrient-rich, all-natural soil.
I am so tired right now, I can't stand up. And my arms are killing me. And I have a blister on my palm. But I FEEL WONDERFUL!! I feel like I really did something active today and I feel Greener right this very minute!
I Love Being Green!