Topic: my compost pile

[Peggy]

I don't know if I am over reacting.... 
we have hauled four loads of that free compost you get from the county into the yard. I have spread it around my irises you gave me, mixed it in with my hay bales in order to build soil in our 'garden area', we put it right by our front door on my flowers out front...  (when you think of four loads, think of the back of a small pick up  truck, our trailer was once the back end of a Ford Ranger)

our last load went on the back lawn, we were told if we spread it a couple inches thick that the  worms would carry it under ground and make our soil real spongy and healthy.... 

we were planning spreading it on both front and back lawns, around the flowers around the pond, and in my butterfly/hummerbird/bee corner... yes, basically on almost all of our little 1/2 acre.

and yes it smells.. but it's starting to wear off.. and most of it will be tilled under in the fall after gardening season is over...

Supposedly, our neighbors have gotten together and decided that we should not be spreading this compost on our yard anymore, and they want us to buy straw and cover it up.. geez, louise, how many inches of straw do they want??  I think it's realistic to say that no straw is going to cover up what they don't want.

The one neighbor that approached clyde said three neighbors had come to him about it.. first of all I don't believe it.. but if it's true, it's probably the same three that demanded we cut down our trees as soon as we moved in....

The people who lived here before us manufactured dope, and the we've been told the back yard was used as a dump and it was so bad that rats were all over the nieghborhood... We are cleaning the place up and trying to improve the lot.. so that someday we won't have to haul any compost in... or at least very little...

my neighbor asked me tonight, if i don't care about my neighbors... and you know, i see that as a mean tactic.. it's not that I don't care.. it's that I'm looking at the big picture, and enjoying the fact that this is our first home, and I can actualy have a beautiful yard someday.. and I tried to explain that to him, and he kept asking me over and over again, "so do you care about your neighbors??"

I look at his stuff in his back yard every day.. he puts in furnaces for a living.. there are pipes and furnuce pieces.. and wires, and cables, and a shed that needs torn down..but it's not my yard so I don't worry about it.  I don't see it as my business unless it's a health hazard.

I've tried to tell this story from the neighbors side and from my side, and I've taken college classes and I know good and well, I put an 'emotional appeal' in this.. but right now I'm  really emotional.

My neighbor said he wasn't gonna talk to me ever again, he now has no use for me.. cause I said I told him I would not stop hauling compost in, and I invited him to hire an attorney if he wanted.  My husband is mad at me because he doesn't want to make enemies of the neighbors.... this is just stupid!

We live in an area that is zoned in the county.. we live down the road from a cow farm, across the free way from Sheep farms... there is agriculture all around us... I don't honestly get it.

Obviously, I need a 200 acre ranch...cause I think cow stuff doesn't stink at all.. unless you get such massive quanities that it could probably be considered toxic waste.... my grandparents had a farm... it is part and parcel of growing up in the country..  yes, I come from a very long line of farmers...

I'm so sad... and mad.... have you ever heard of such a situation coming up ever?? And how did it go???

xoxoxo, peg

[Patty S]

Jiminy christmas, Peggy! I got so engrossed in your story, that I completely forgot I've been so bored tonight that I resorted to sitting here picking burrs outta my brand new warm fuzzy socks! I picked them up at a garage sale for 50¢, then turned around & walked through the field grass at the edge of the yard with them on... & ffwup!  They turned into seed magnets! (How the heck do those one-way grass seeds work their way clear into your shoes?!)

Well anyway, about your neighbor... I do understand your frustration & anger about your neighbors not being even remotely happy about anything you do there!  (Gosh, I remember when a "neighbor" was more than simply a person who lived on the same street!) All I can say about the way they're treating you is the same thing I say to my kids/grandkids when they deal with agitators at work/school... We can't always share an elevator with people who smell good! What I mean by that is, we're all "passing through" on this planet, & our main objective is to just get through it... but some people haven't figured out that it'd be easier for everyone if they just didn't insist on being boat rockers!  Just go about your business & know that you aren't the one who stinks!

We need to accept people as they are & go about our own lives, being the best we can be.  I appreciate your efforts to have your dream home, while improving your neighborhood by turning what someone else had neglected/turned into a dump, into a place that people will want to live next to!  (In the process of doing that, it's not even necessary to compare your yard to the neighbor's yard!)  You're an intelligent woman who knows how to treat Mother Earth, so take pride in what you're doing.  The "do you care about your neighbors" challenge is nothing more than a cheap shot, made by a person who obviously knows how to effectively intimidate & control people, but I say, don't play the game & assume the roll of "victim", to the people around you... which a comment like that is designed to do!

As for the cattle & sheep ranches and your compost amendments, I'm sure that if the County Commissioners were in the business of mediating such disputes, their bottom line would be that if the homeowners in your area don't like living in an agricultural zone, they have the option of selling their deeds & moving to the city! (If your neighbor insists on badgering you & you want to "talk back" to him, suggest that he's welcome to take his complaint to the County!)

As you know, the only neighbor that I have, smiles in my face & screams like a bloody maniac at my guests if I neglect to warn them not to turn around in her driveway!  I take her where she's at & hope she'll grow up one day, cuz I'm from where neighbors were always "neighborly"! 

Keep on doing what you're doing in that yard... & you can vent here (and/or to me) any old time you want! 

... and don't allow little people make you feel or act little!

 

[Peggy]

thanks, patty...

now, i just gotta get my husband talking to me...
over a pile of compost!
this is just unreal! lol
hugs, peg

[Pharmerphil]

Actually, there is something wrong IF, your compost smells anything other than "earthy", like the smell you get when you walk into a greenhouse.
Many municipalities either do not compost yard waste correctly, or let it go out to folks B4 it has finished.
Be very cautious of compost at this type of source. It could cause "other" problems...
A sad tale....
A neighbor that attended Master Gardening courses with me wanted to make a flowerbed at the Township Hall, her and her team worked feverishly to get it done in a timely manner, Tilling, adding ammendments, and 5 truckloads of compost from the city pile.
She, (who raises bedding plants) filled the garden with beautiful flowers, it looked Beautiful
One week lter, everything was DEAD :-\

Improperly composted yard waste can carry residual fertlizers, Herbiicdes and pesticides

[duh]

Yep it sounds like your "compost" was not made well.  I know the price is right with municipal compost but pharmer is on the money.  They just dump everything they get that's green in there.

I've found that it's very easy to build a compost pile that doesn't smell or attract pests using just grass clippings and leaves.  The leaves mixed with the grass clippings keep it from smelling.  Mine is about 75 percent grass and 25 percent leaves and I live in the city and don't like strong smells so you know this works. 

Compost should look and smell like good dirt if it doesn't leave it alone. 

As far as what you can do now I would suggest sprinkling lime over the compost.  It will decrease the smell if there is any and it is a good amendment for the soil.  With acid rain being what it is most uncarefor soil can use a dose of it anyway.  And it doesn't hurt to apologize for disturbing your neighbor.  That's frequently the easiest way to open up a close minded persons ears.

If there was a dope den in your house before you got it I'm sure the neighbors are all a little paranoid and will probably act in a controlling manner until they realize what good people you are.  Remain open and friendly.  They will come around it will probably just take awhile. 

They sound like me when new people move in.  I always expect the worst.  I know I shouldn't but I suffer from PTSD and it affects my attitudes and actions until I become accustomed to people and things.

[Dianna]

It is so sad that your neighbors can't see the "big" picture, Peggy. I feel like Phil and duh, though...the compost was not quite ready or it would not have that stinky smell that the neighbors are complaining about. It won't be long, though, and the smell should go away. Wish I could send you some of the rain we have been having to help it soak in...

It is hard to live beside neighbors that have different ideas and values than you do. Even in the country, you can't expect them to live and let live. We try to just keep ourselves to our little plot and hope the others do the same. Like you, we live out in the country and don't expect to have to deal with the "rules" of a subdivision or residential area.

If the compost is really not that stinky, I can't help but wonder if maybe they might be smelling the cow or sheep farms when the wind is right. Every time I passed a certain hog farm when I lived in NC, I could smell the stench and hoped it wouldn't travel home with me. I could not have bought a home in that area...

Also, maybe the neighbors are complaining because your yard no longer looks like a yard, but a compost pile? It wouldn't hurt to spread straw all over the compost (it will eventually compost, too) and just think of it this way, that it might save you from tracking "stuff" into the house...

Compromising will help heal the relationships with your neighbors. Maybe just doing the yard a little bit at a time will help "clear the air"...

[Patty S]

Good advice, about the lime, Duh! I hadn't thought of that myself, but I know that it'll cut down the odor. (Daddy used 2 dump lime in the hole when he moved the outhouse every couple years!)

Peg, I didn't want to say anything last night about that county compost you've been getting... you've heard my take on that stuff before, & it sounded to me more like you needed some help in handling your rude neighbor.  I know that you do need to deal with both, the bad neighbor & the bad compost though.

For those who don't know, the compost that our county landfill offers free every year is exactly as Phil & Duh described... "They just dump everything they get that's green in there", & "let it go out to folks B4 it has finished." I got a load of it a couple of years ago & will never do it again, cuz #1 it's loaded with weed seeds, & #2, it needs more "cooking" time. It would be OK to add to an existing compost pile or bin, but personally, I'd sure use a pre-emergent in my garden beds after spreading it.

Anyway, I think the lime treatment (not very expensive) will take care of the foul odor & that should take care of both problems for now.  I know that you're working pretty darned hard to get your yard built up, so I wish you much success.

  I assume that you know to wear a dust mask when you apply that stuff & the kids should avoid going barefoot in those areas, or getting it on their clothes.
 

[Peggy]

One week lter, everything was DEAD[/color] :-\

Improperly composted yard waste can carry residual fertlizers, Herbiicdes and pesticides

Well that is just ew!! lol....
It just has a manuerish smell... It doesn't smell particularly earthy though... It's been on my flowers for a couple weeks now, and nothing is dead... the thing I worry about most, is that it is breaking down so beautifully that when you get it, it is literally so hot it is steaming... so we spread it and water it to cool it down and get those nutrients into the ground quick.

Thank you... it's good to know... it would be easy to believe there is something yukky in there the way it smells. 

ew ...ew... ew!!!     Hugs, Peggy

[Peggy]

Dear Duh!!
I love your name, wish I had though of it.. it's soooo simple.. and to the point! hehehe!!! 

I am making my own compost pile... but I've had to move it a few times due to rearranging fence lines (we have two malamute/golden retriever mixes).  We have finally choosen a place for a permanent compost pile.... lol, I"m sure my neighbor will complain about that next as it's the corner closest to his house... but it's also the corner closest to my garden.... sooooo, what do I do...

I've found that it's very easy to build a compost pile ...snip....
Compost should look and smell like good dirt if it doesn't leave it alone. 

....snip snip....
As far as what you can do now I would suggest sprinkling lime over the compost. 
...snip more....
And it doesn't hurt to apologize for disturbing your neighbor.  That's frequently the easiest way to open up a close minded persons ears.

LIME!! YOU know I spent 10 years in Ohio, and watched the farmers lime their fields every year, gosh I Feel dumb for forgetting that!!! Thank you, thank you!! 

Far as apologizing goes, I *might*.. eventually.  But, I didn't curse him, I didn't wish him ill health, and I didn't tell him to his face how immature and stupid he is. LOL.. and I made no comment about the smell of alcohol on his breath either! hahaha.

You know, this particular neighbor has been nice to us actually.. and we have been nice to him... meaning, we have gotten along... we are not, great friends, but we have been good neighbors to each other.. some of his "crap" (saw horses, flues, lumber, etc.) is stored on our property and was before we got here, so we said he could leave it.. he's gone deer hunting and gave us some...deer meat... and we planted cherry tomatos just for him....  his dogs love our dogs. In general, I think the man is one of those nice drunks..  Did I say that?? Holy Cow! lol

But, I just don't take to well to being told what to do by a gang of neighbors. And we had talked about the smell with him prior too and he'd had no ill comments.  This came rather out of the blue...  two weeks after the biggest bulk of the compost had been moved in and the smell was already mostly dissappated... yesterday I mowed my yard and all I smelled was fresh cut grass, and when I turned on the sprinkler the beautiful ---my favorite-- smell of water hitting the ground... lol.. I watered the corner closest to his house to try and help drive some of the smell down.  It is not that I do not think of them, it's that it's my yard! LOL

They sound like me when new people move in.  I always expect the worst.  I know I shouldn't but I suffer from PTSD and it affects my attitudes and actions until I become accustomed to people and things.

Well, lol, we all carry our own baggage don't we.. I've been abused in life just enough that no one will tell me what to do anymore... it's best to ASK me politely. lol... but... we've been here for two years now, I think it's quite obvious that Clyde works hard for a living, and I take care of home, and my worst habit is the loud music I sometimes play.  I can hear it in my bedroom, it  is rockin' country stuff..  So, we've not blown the roof off cooking meth, there has been a sherriff here once, thanks to my 16 year old.... grrrrrrrrrrrr.... lol. The place is being continuesly worked on as we can afford things.. the yard being the cheapest gets a lot of work done to it by me.. I'm out there all the time.. there are no wooden fences...if anyone wants to see what I am doing, all they have to do is look.. there are no secrets here... 

I tried to explain to him, gardening is a relatively cheap hobby... it improves the lot, and makes it worth more money (I hope).  I will probably be here the rest of my life, and I will spend some of that time alone, because of the nature of Clyde's heart disease.... I have to work the soil now while I am young to get it loosened up so that when I am 70 years old, I dont have to call my kids to weed for me... I have arthritis and a pacemaker myself...and that is also part of my big picture... who else is gonna take care of me and mine.... things just have to be done regardless of complaints... 

personally, I think my neighbors are just plain silly...  and I'll tell ya, what cures a small mind... education.. and I'm too old to worry about theirs! ok, done now! hahaha
hugs, Peg

[Peggy]

Hi Dianna,

You know this thread has been good for me...  I took an occupational horticulture class for two years when I was in high school, and it was there that I learned that compost should smell earthy... but I had forgotten that.

Far as smell goes, I know on occasion, I smell exhaust from the rigs running up and down I-5... it's close to heavan here, but not perfect... it's so funny, I'd thought they'd complained about the rooster first... we really expected complaints about him... lol, and never got a one, this particular neighbor loves Teddy Bear....

and, nah.. my yard still looks like a yard.. my garden needs weeded, really bad... but, I keep it mowed down, and the day lily's are blooming all over... it actually looks more like  a park setting (hehehe, I"m so proud of me!!!) and this neighbor has actually commented that he loves to sit in his kitchen in the morning and  drink his coffee and look into our yard now.

Thank you for the rain wishes... we did just have some, and I do believe it helped.  That is another reason why I was so shocked... we have this stuff right by our front door and our front door wide open so air can get into the house... I put it on sooo thick.... we'd know if it was so horrible, I do believe.

Our budget is very tight, and we can't afford 6 bucks a bale for straw to cover this stuff up... that is why we started getting the compost to begin with it's cheaper than straw.... so, we'll try lime and see how that goes... we think we might just mix it in, every time we bring a load in... and we only bring in a load every other week, sometimes once a week... it's not like we are hauling this stuff in every day... we can't afford that either, the place to get it is 17 miles away... it takes a special trip.

I think my compromise will be that he can still have the cherry tomatos that were meant for him, along with some zukes and pumpkins and other goodies from the garden...  then he can TASTE why we are doing what we are doing, and he'll see that we are not trying to be mean.
But we'll see.. I'm still in "cooling off" stage. hahaha!!!

Thanks, & Hugs, Peg

the compost was not quite ready or it would not have that stinky smell that the neighbors are complaining about. It won't be long, though, and the smell should go away. Wish I could send you some of the rain we have been having to help it soak in...

If the compost is really not that stinky, I can't help but wonder if maybe they might be smelling the cow or sheep farms when the wind is right. Every time I passed a certain hog farm when I lived in NC, I could smell the stench and hoped it wouldn't travel home with me. I could not have bought a home in that area...

Also, maybe the neighbors are complaining because your yard no longer looks like a yard, but a compost pile? It wouldn't hurt to spread straw all over the compost (it will eventually compost, too) and just think of it this way, that it might save you from tracking "stuff" into the house...

Compromising will help heal the relationships with your neighbors. Maybe just doing the yard a little bit at a time will help "clear the air"...