Homesteading is hard work. But if you’re like me {and you’re a little bit odd}, you kinda like that. There’s a sense of fulfillment that goes along with using your hands and wiping the sweat from your brow. It just feels right.

Right?

But I must admit, there are times that I look for ways to cut corners. And typically the reason I’m out looking for a shortcut is because I’m impatient to a fault. It’s my biggest weakness and I have no problem admitting to it. And though it is something I work on daily, there are times when I treat myself and allow my impatience to win…as long as it is for a good cause.

Composting is such a cause.

If you’ve given any thought to composting, chances are you’ve done some research on how to do it. Yes, there is actually a how. Composting is not as simple as it appears on the surface. There’s a science to it. Sure, you can heap stuff into a pile and never touch it and eventually (a long eventually) it will break down, resulting in the “black gold” end product so highly desired by gardeners everywhere.

But if you’re like me, you’ve long been out of school and were never really all that great at science in the first place.

And you’re impatient.

And you hate staring at piles.

There’s gotta be an easier way.

Thankfully there is.

If you’ve got chickens, you’ve got an easy way to compost. And right now- with winter knocking at our doors- right now is the time to get moving on this new composting method. It will allow you to actively compost all winter long, rather than your piles being frozen in time until next spring. And it is oh-so-much-easier than what you’ve probably been doing. Whether it be rolling your compost in a bin, turning piles, carefully monitoring your green: brown ratios, moving composted material from one bin to the next, starting new batches and digging up the old. I’ve done all of these. {It’s no wonder my back hurts}.

It’s time to try something different. And make our chickens super happy in the process.

As we look forward to winter {and by that, I mean look ahead, not necessarily look forward in the sense that -30 degree weather for weeks on end is something to be enjoyed}, as chicken keepers we often think about what life is like for them on the inside. Of the coop, that is. Endless days of boredom stuck in the coop. So many of us have a run that we utilize {or would like to utilize} during that time. This summer we built a new 12′ x 24′ run primarily for winter use as our chickens free range during the other seasons. We plan to cover the entire thing with construction grade plastic to keep the snow out. Many like to cover the floor or ground of the run with straw or leaves to keep their feet warm and give them something to scratch around in. You can still do that. But you can also use the run as a big compost pile. And it’s so easy.

Just dump and run.

Literally.

Run because those chickens are going to go tearing after whatever scraps you’ve tossed in there. And they’re gonna put the hurt on them in one way or another.

Use the run to discard your garden waste as you pull up your plants for the year. No need to chop them up or do anything special or fancy. My monstrous zucchini plants were tossed directly into the run for the chickens to work on for the next several days. As were my 7-foot tall tomato plants, snap peas, bush beans, potato plants, cucumbers, etc. All pulled and trucked on over to the run to create ground cover and plenty of playtime for the flock.

The ducks love helping out too.

As your trees shed their leaves, rake them up and add them to the run. Keep a bowl on your stove top or kitchen counter for kitchen scraps as I do and bring them out once a day.

Coffee grounds, dryer lint, bedding, twigs, grass, weeds, anything that you would normally add to your compost pile can be tossed into your new composting system. If the chickens don’t eat it/don’t want to eat it, they will at least scratch it around and turn it over, saving you time {and back pain} while greatly accelerating the composting process.

Come springtime, you will have a nice, deep, earthy bed of black gold just waiting to be dug up and added to your garden. Or you can partition off a portion of your run and plant a seasonal garden right there in your beautiful batch of nutrient-rich organic matter. And you will have happier, healthier, more active chickens who will thank you for the distraction from the winter doldrums.

Shortcuts, as long as they are positive and beneficial, are okay on the homestead.

So go for it.

Dump, run, and smile while you’re doing it. Because composting just got easier.

Shared at:

HomeAcre Hop #93

The Art of Homemaking Mondays #24