For the season finale of The Composter Podcast, we talk all things Earth Care Farm, which is my family's compost operation. You'll get to hear from my dad, Mike Merner, also known as 'papi,' the founder and heart of Earth Care Farm. Quality compost is his life's work. He's an inspiration for many, including me. For all the loader operators out there listening as you turn the piles, I've included a bonus discussion with our compost production manager, Justin Boss, about the machinery used...

Dirt Hugger was founded in 2010 by Pierce Louis and Tyler Miller in The Dalles, Oregon, close to Hood River in the Columbia River Gorge.  Pierce and his business partner, Tyler, started Dirt Hugger after leaving their careers in drone technology. Their background in tech and business has served them well in the compost industry. Their facility in Washington takes in 50,000 tons of organics a year, and they use a unique aerated pile system. Dirt Hugger is well known for its high quality...

Composter and compost users have rightly been concerned with the high levels of phosphorus that can be found in composts, especially those with manure-based feed stocks. Phosphorus leaching is a serious water pollution issue. I had read an article in BioCycle written by Ron Alexander, of R. Alexander Associates, about how phosphorus in organic matter releases more slowly than inorganic, water-soluable phosphorus found in inorganic fertilizers and thought we should dig deeper into it. He has...

SOILutions has been making compost in New Mexico since '96 in a region that receives only 10" of annual rainfall, most of it all at once during the Summer monsoon season. Ben Dickerson and his team have lots of strategies and tips for composting in dry conditions without many natural resources closeby. You can find Jayne Merner Senecal and Earth Care Farm on Instagram Also mentioned in the show... Composting on Earth Care Farm, a poem Logan Labs for compost and soil testing The Composter...

Dr. Robert Rynk was aprofessor at NYU where he taught courses on composting, waste management, renewable energy, and agricultural engineering, senior editor of BioCycle Magazine, and executive editor of the peer-reviewed journal Composting Science and Utilization. He is also one the compost industry giants! Bob wrote the book On Farm Composting over 30 years ago. It was the book we at Earth Care Farm used to set up our compost site many decades ago. We talk about so many things, especially...

Table to Farm is a curbside collection company in Durango, CO, that has partnered with a local farm where they now produce compost. Table to Farm is six years in and has gone through a lot of hurdles to get to where they are now, collecting from 600+ residences and producing compost. They are now in the process of becoming a class III Colorado composter. Today, we're going to hear from someone just out of the start-up phase, what it's like to compost in a dry climate, and the challenges of...

Peats Soils, our first international guest, is a second generation south Australian company focused on receiving, processing, and marketing recyclable organic resources in bulk and bag form. The vision of Peats Soil is to be a world leader in innovative and sustainable organics recycling. They have a 45+ year history in the creation of valuable landscaping, gardening, and horticultural products. Let's hear from South Australia's compost scene... You can find Jayne Merner Senecal and Earth...

No one has a better pulse on the organics recylcing industry than Nora. She is the editor--and heart--of BioCylce, the organics recycling authority, and it's where I turn for news on composting. Nora's father, Jerry Goldstein, started BioCycle back in 1960 when it was then called Compost Science. Nora has taken her deep love of composting and turned it into a useful resource for all composters to learn more from and help each other.  You can find Jayne Merner Senecal and Earth Care Farm on...

Felicia Newman is the director of operations at Coast of Maine Compost, which makes a high-quality compost in many blends that are bagged and sold across the US. She has a background as a chemical engineer and a deep love of farming. In addition to wearing many hats at Coast of Maine, she also runs a half-acre no-till market garden called Three Dog Farm, where she has an endless supply of good compost.  You can find Jayne Merner Senecal and Earth Care Farm on Instagram Also mentioned in the...

Welcome to The Composter! In our first episode, I had the pleasure of speaking with Carla Castegnero, co-founder and president of AgRecycle, Penn's largest composting operation headquartered in Pittsburg. AgRecycle was one of the pioneers in the composting industry founded in 1991. Carla has a wealth of knowledge on making high-quality compost with a wide variety of feedstocks. She's a seasoned composter and was the recipient of Rodale's Organic Pioneer Award in 2013.  You can find Jayne...

Welcome to The Composter, a podcast for farmers and composters. I'm your host and fellow composter, Jayne Merner Senecal. Join me in practical conversation between industry professionals and farmers with a passion for producing high-quality compost. We are going to dig deep into the science, technology, and art of compost production so that we as composters can help enliven the world's soils.