Sifting compost

[BethParticipant]

I enjoyed very much watching the compost video and wondered whether Charles sifts his compost. I hate doing that as it usually requires one of my sons helping me shake the screen and they get tired of it. We get manure and hay from our 2 goats. They have a barnyard that is approximately 20′ X 15′ and we tried raking and shoveling out the gravel/rocks in this barnyard but they resurfaced after our long winter. I am thinking about laying down 3″ of topsoil over this barnyard but we also have 4 chickens and I know they will scratch it all over and get some rocks mixed in. Anyway, even if we were able to get rid of all the rocks, would we still need to sift because some of the materials are not as broken down as others? Or could we put it on our beds mostly ready with some sticks, debris, and avocado peels in it? If we turned it several times or let it sit long enough, I imagine it would all look fine and broken down without the sifting. However, my bins fill up after a point and I need them for new material.

[charlesModerator]

Beth, your compost sounds good to use now. Without sieving, I never do that unless using it for potting.
Just break any lumps up with a fork and pick out undecomposed bits and sticks, for the pathways or to add to your current heap.

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