Even Better Compost
THE JOSEPHINE PORTER INSTITUTE AND STEWART LUNDY
9 JUN 2023
It’s June. Plants are growing tall -- and so are the weeds. There can be the temptation to pull the weeds and drop them in the paths, letting them dry out in the sun. But there is a much more profitable use for these: to collect these precious weeds and add them to our compost piles.
Compost is at the heart of fertility in the garden. Debris from the entire farm is brought together and allowed to age, especially ruminant manures. As Rudolf Steiner suggested, the purpose of manuring is to enliven the soil. Similarly, Paracelsian alchemist and father of agricultural chemistry, Wallerius, suggested that the purpose of fertilizing is to “fatten” the soil. To demonstrate the combustible value of various manures, Wallerius undertook the undoubtedly odiferous task of distilling manure from different animals to find that enriching quality that might impart life to the soil. .....[more]