Ask Our Experts

As most folks are well aware, an attempt to achieve a more self-reliant lifestyle often involves a good bit of problem solving . . . and much of the time, there just doesn't seem to be a ready supply of answers to the questions that come up. We're pleased to present, then, the following column . . . in which a number of well-known individuals from various areas of expertise (such as gardening, alternative building methods, hydroponics, water toxicity, and wood heating, to name a few) have agreed to act as "consultants" for you.

If a question concerning some aspect of self-reliant living has you stumped, send it to Ask Our Experts, THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS ® , 105 Stoney Mountain Road, Hendersonville, North Carolina 28791. Please don't expect personal replies, though. The most frequently asked questions will be answered here—and here only—so that we can all benefit from what these folks have to say.

For the past three Wisconsin winters we have tried—without much success—to keep an active compost pile. We've followed all the standard instructions: We place a thick layer of coarse material (cornstalks and the like) on roughed-up earth . . . put a couple of inches of cow manure over that . . . pile the kitchen garbage on the animal waste . . . and finish the whole thing off with a thin cover of soil and a sprinkling of water.

The three-to four-foot mound heats up for a week or so, but then gives in to the cold weather and dies. What are we doing wrong? Is it possible to keep a compost pile alive during the winter?

I wouldn't say you're necessarily doing anything wrong, but you need to distinguish between two different approaches to making compost. A hot pile is made up of shredded materials, which are put together all at once and kept warm by turning the mound every four or five days, or whenever the temperature in the pile drops below 100°F. No soil is used in such a mound. Compost from a hot pile is ready to go out to the garden in a few weeks.

It sounds as if what you made is a layered pile. This is the type of compost we make. It takes longer, but is less work than a hot pile. As you described, coarse materials are put at the bottom (the humic acids from the materials on top help the rough stalks and such to break down, and the coarse bottom layer allows air to penetrate the pile). Next, kitchen and garden wastes are added (we don't use manure, but many folks do). Each layer is watered as it's put on, and—finally—the mound is covered with soil.

This type of compost pile may heat up once and then cool, but as long as it's kept moist the breakdown activity will continue. Our layered compost takes about four months to decompose. We work on a six-month cycle, making compost in the fall to be ready for spring, and again in the spring for use the following fall. We also turn the piles once, about a month before we need to use the compost, to insure a complete breakdown of the materials.

We've found that the best compost is at the center of the pile, while that on the outside tends to become dry and not decompose at all. An insulating layer helps prevent that problem by keeping the outer compost damp. Perhaps your pile is losing too much moisture. Try applying a thicker top layer of soil—about three inches—and enclose the mound in a wooden or cinderblock bin to help insulate it (surrounding the pile with hay bales will do the trick, too). Also, although three feet is the usual minimum size for a compost pile, a five- to six-foot mound is the smallest you should build for successful composting in colder climes.

So make your piles larger, insulate them (and keep the mound moist, if necessary), and if you want them hot, turn them regularly. Otherwise, sit back and let nature do it for you!— John Jeavons and Robin Leler.

John Jeavons and Robin Leler are dedicated researchers and mini-farmers, and they have written several books based on their ten years of bio-intensive gardening. Their latest publication, The Seed Finder, is available for $4.00 postpaid from Jeavons Leler Press, Dept. TMEN, 5798 Ridgewood Road, Willits, California 95490.

I have a farm pond plagued with crawdads that undermine the banks, causing them to collapse. The resulting shallow water warms up enough to permit algae to grow and allow cattails to take over.

The county conservation people advised me to pour a mixture of fuel oil and mothballs down the crawdad holes . . . but I felt that action would contaminate the pond (besides, there are hundreds of holes!).

Can you suggest a nonpolluting way to eradicate the creatures?

Do you really want to eradicate the crayfish (or crawdads), or do you just want to control them? It sounds to me as though your problem isn't crayfish, but rather too many crayfish.

To improve the situation, you'll first need to see whether your water level is stable. Crayfish reproduction is favored by a fluctuating water level (which in itself can undermine pond banks). If there are measures you can take to stabilize the water level, do so. This won't eradicate the crustaceans, but it will reduce the population.

Crayfish, in moderation, are actually an asset to a pond. They help control weeds and are an important fish food. Bass, in particular, are fond of the critters. You haven't mentioned what your pond is stocked with, but if it's like most farm ponds, it's probably overstocked with bluegills and understocked with bass. An effort to build up the bass population might help control the crayfish.

Of course, the most straightforward method of "crawdad control" is to catch the crustaceans and eat them. All North American species are edible and, in my opinion, delicious! Crayfish can easily be caught in an ordinary minnow trap that has openings of a suitable size and is baited with meat scraps or a punctured can of dog food. Umbrella nets also work welt. If you want to get rid of the crayfish quickly and your pond bottom is free of obstructions, use a weighted seine. Keep in mind, though, that all methods of crawdad capture work best at night.

I urge you to view the crayfish as a resource, or at least as a mixed blessing, rather than as a pest. However, if you feel you must eradicate them, you are right to fear that the fuel oil-mothballs mixture could contaminate the pond (it's also quite flammable). Other chemical poisons are even worse. An old-fashioned, nonpolluting technique involves making up a solution of eight teaspoons of lye to one gallon of water, pouring the mixture into each burrow, and sealing the holes. This method won't contaminate the pond or kill other organisms. [EDITOR'S NOTE: Bear in mind, though, that lye is a powerful chemical, and take the proper precautions when using it.]

You could eradicate the crayfish with rotenone, but this would also kill the fish . . . perhaps all of them (since crayfish are found primarily along the shoreline, the fish in the middle of the pond might survive). The standard rotenone dosage to kill fish is 1 pound of 5% rotenone, or its equivalent, per 300 feet of shoreline . . . and I imagine it would take a higher dosage to eliminate the crayfish. Mix the rotenone with twice its volume of water and apply it parallel to the bank, just under the water surface. Unlike treatment in the burrows, which requires low water levels, this process is best undertaken when the water is high.—Bill McLarney.

Bill McLarney, Ph.D. is a founder of the New Alchemy Institute and its sister organization, NAISA, in Costa Rica. He is the author of three books on aquaculture and numerous technical papers and articles about fisheries and aquatic biology. He currently divides his time among directing NAISA, consulting, and free-lance writing.