RogueRose - 15-11-2015 at 22:09
Just wondering what you guys thinkn might be the best organic material to use to soak up the urine and then till into the soil in the spring. Would
leaves be better than straw (or is it hay??). I would think that adding some fresh green grass might help as I think it has nitrogen in it as well.
Any suggestions here on this?
MolecularWorld - 16-11-2015 at 08:03
Hay, urine, and lime, can be composted together for the production of nitrates.
For gardening/agricultural purposes:
Most gardening resources don't go into the details of chemistry and biochemistry in compost, instead going with the simplified system of "greens" and
"browns". You want the correct ratio of the two, which can be determined only by experimentation. Dry grass (hay), straw, and leaves count as
"browns", being rich in carbon and ash, but low in moisture and nitrogen. Green grass, fresh-picked leaves, vegetable scraps, and urine, would count
as "greens", being rich in nitrogen and moisture. With a correct balance of the two, your compost will be warmed to a temperature sufficient to kill
harmful bacteria and viruses, by heat produced from the decomposing plant matter, but should not stink. This heating is particularly important if
using animal wastes in the compost, otherwise it my be unsafe to handle. If there isn't enough nitrogen, the compost will decompose very slowly, and
not warm noticeably. If there's too much nitrogen, the compost may turn into a stinking greenish goop.
From personal experience, a compost of mostly leaves mats together, making it difficult to turn and aerate, something which should be done frequently
to accelerate decomposition. I suggest a combination of roughly equal parts dry hay/straw and leaves, moistened with urine, though just hay/straw and
urine should work as well. Green grass should not be necessary, though if you add some, add an equal quantity of dry grass (hay) for balance. Some
limestone or phosphate rock should also be added to control acidity.
When the compost is ready for use, it will look like "black earth". It may take anywhere from a few weeks to over a year to reach this point,
depending on many factors, including ambient temperature, frequency of aeration, relative levels of carbon, nitrogen, and moisture, etc. If you chop
the hay and leaves into smaller pieces before composting, it will accelerate decomposition.
[Edited on 16-11-2015 by MolecularWorld]
aga - 16-11-2015 at 09:34
RogueRose, please read the forum guidelines and do at least a bit of googling before starting threads with random thoughts.
https://www.sciencemadness.org/whisper/viewthread.php?tid=19...
This is supposed to be a Science site after all.
Does weeing on hay constitute science ?
Well, it could do if you were to look into what happens, maybe look up the French Process (or Swiss process) for Nitrate production and if you put in
a little work.
"Just wondering what you guys thinkn" does not really qualify for being posted in the Organic Chemistry topic.
Do you think that fits well amongst stuff like "L-tryptophan decarboxylation" ?
Please contain stuff like this to Beginnings where it belongs.
People will still jump in and help out.
Using Beginnings helps keep the more advanced topics 'cleaner'.
[Edited on 16-11-2015 by aga]