I'm not much into turning compost. Yet the space seems wasted while I wait for things to decompose.

So, I made a 3 foot tall, 3 foot diameter bin from 10' of hog wire. I filled it with a mixture of weeds I cut and bagged from an open field. After it settled for a bit, I added more and filled it to the top and let it settle again. Then I added 6 cubic feet of dirt I got from around the lowest point in the yard. To keep the dirt from leaking out the holes, I shape the compost into a lip around the edges. Not much leaks out.

I transplanted some small peppers on Jul 2. Initially, I had some weed barrier cloth around the sides, but that was a mistake as the peppers had a lot of heat stress. But now they are doing very well.

For some reason, I never have to water it. The moisture content drops a little during the night and rises during the day. (That's not a typo.)

The compost material is very dry now and there is probably not much composting going on.

I put some mulch on half and left the other half bare. It doesn't seem to change anything about moisture retention. But it's probably good for the soil.

I'm doing the same thing with parsnips and it's working well. I just started one with beans. I'll see how it does.

I figured I have room for 85 of these in various areas where it's inconvenient to turn the soil. I'm about 10 into making them although only 3 are planted now.

If I knew how to load a picture, I would, but I don't, so please click on the link. Thanks.

Here is a link that might be useful: Picture