Gotcha, hey, you gotta do what works and improve over time! Yes, vermicompost would be a fantastic use. I gotta get some worms haha. Are you limited on outdoor space like I am?
Awesome Mathew, Yeah worms are a great idea, they can eat right through it and break it down. I wonder if all the worms would creep the rats out too 😂 Is your worm farm inside or outside?
So many times, people advertise the romantic side of a business or career without ever giving informed consent as to all the work involved. So before somebody jumps into this business, they should have informed consent as to everything involved which is why I really enjoy watching your videos. No surprises.
You are so real! I appreciate that in people. You are easy to listen to and learn from. I am 64 and have in the past year changed my way of eating and microgreens are a perfect way to add greens to my diet and learn how to grow them and I would love to have a side income. Thank you so much.
Donny, Thanks for all the education and videos. Just some ideas: 1. Put down cardboard then one or two costco blue tarps (or similar) in the wheel area. Should give you more speed loading onto the trailer and make unloading/wheeling to the dump spot a little easier. Just fold up the cardboard/tarps and wedge between the bins and the side of the trailer, or just throw inside the bin after its empty. 2. A boat wench or electric wench might get one or even two bins up if you made something to double load it. And I'm shorter than you, but I'd squat lower than the lift point and drive up with legs to turn those over, but could be different body mechanics. 3. You could load into a truck and use a rake/fork to push out into the dump pile. You can also back all the way into the dump pile, and just dump out your window into the truck bed. The ultimate would be to have a hydrolic dump mechanism on the truck bed though, then you'd only need a broom to knock down any stragglers. 4. Dumping into a field where someone runs a chicken tractor or just dumping to a chicken farmer might be the best usage to turn those seeds and greens into meat or eggs and compost at the same time. Dump prior to moving the chickens into the dump area. 3* After using a truckbed to take out tokyo onions to the dump site with just using a rake and fork, I bought a dump capable minitruck. It was a no-brainer thinking of time/money/effort etc. Best regards
Nice video! Thanks for taking us along on your dump trip. I’m not commercial. I have an 8-tray rack for microgreens for my family, plus additional sprouting containers. I don’t have nearly the waste volume that you have with your business. I just dump around back, then trash whatever hasn’t composted in a month or two. Instead of soil, I use a hemp mat growing medium.
I’m curious about the hemp mat… can you tell me where you sourced that please? I’m also curious if you’ve compared that with soil or coir, and how you have found the results? The mats look like could be a lot less labor… cost benefit ratio?
@@lorenzovillegas2457 I bought a big box of I think 120 hemp mats (maybe 180?) from “Johnny’s Seeds” in Maine. Including shipping I think that cost about $150, maybe $170. I got it over a year ago, and I still have half a box of hemp mats. It’s a heavy box, so shipping isn’t cheap. Next time I will try to order directly from the hemp mat producer in Canada. YES, there are tradeoffs. When I lived in NorCal I composted my soil with the roots and produced my own potting mix. I had a big tumbling composter. I could do most of the work outside, but I kept the trays indoors to grow microgreens. Now I live in the northern part of Idaho where temperatures are below freezing half the year, and usually snow is all around. In this cold weather I do my complete operation indoors year round. Soil is just too messy for indoor potting! So much cleaner to use a hemp mat, then throw it outdoors to compost or throw into the trash. For microgreens the mats are great. My growing is somewhat hydroponic compared with using soil. With soil, the moisture is stored in the soil and requires less frequent watering. Using mats requires me to fill the bottom tray with a thin layer of fertilized water, which requires replenishing 2 or 3 times a day. But my whole operation involves so much less mess, easier to cut the greens, easier to clean up. And fast - throw the old mat out, rinse the tray, throw in a new mat, spread the soaked seeds and I’m growing again. Using soil requires a separate complete operation for composting unless you are buying bags of soil all the time. I never tried coir. Both ways produce abundant crops of microgreens! My best innovation that improved my crops was adding a small fan to each tray to circulate the air and cut mold down to zero!! I am up to 14 crops now in continual rotation. This just feeds me and my wife, and occasional gifts of greens to neighbors. My main source of seeds and supplies is True Leaf Market out of Utah. Highly recommended! Good luck! 👍
@@flyshacker Dang man! That is one heck of a response! Thank you so much for sharing. Yeah I’m in Spokane doing the same. Just getting started on micro greens indoors. Your insight is sound according to others as well. I try to look for those common denominators and not reinvent the wheel… at least until I’m in a place to really understand how choices are impacting growth and mitigating problems such as mold, or reducing labor intensive practices, without cutting crucial corners. I wish you great success🙏 Enjoy the beautiful country up there where you’re at.
Smart! It’s amazing how fast the spent trays add up. Hope you’ve thwarted the rodents for good! We are composting on site, and are lucky to have enough space.
Haha they sure do! Lucky you, one day I'll have more space too and can do a nice big composting area :) How many trays are you going through per week at this point?
@@DonnyGreens During the summer farmers market we did 40 trays per week, not so much now in the fall, but plans to scale way up in the spring! We are testing some on-site vermicomposting ideas to see if we can close the self-sustained loop, using a Hungry Bin, with plans to add more if it works. Just not sure if we'll outpace the worms with coco/sprout waste from the trays.
On most of the West Coast, trash pickup consists of Landfill, Recyclables, and finally Compostables. In a new law in California, specifically, the Industrial composting company is supposed to accept table and food scraps in the bin, or in a small compostable green bag. Both the Recyclables Bin and the Green Compostables Bin are very low cost per month for a weekly pickup. If you lived here, you could just roll out 1 or more Green Compostable Bins for pickup on a weekly basis. This of course could change if you decided to keep more materiel on site for other projects..
Hearing about the rats reminds me of my time at the brewery. First thing that popped into my head was, "You need a brewhouse cat". We didn't buy a cat we just found a stray and left food out for it. Our mouse/rat problem disappeared overnight.
I was warned about growing Sunflower and the rats that would follow. But then quickly realized that my 2 indoor cats and 2 outdoor cats basically solve that problem.🎉
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and passion for growing micro greens. You have mastered the art and it is awesome that you share your knowledge with everyone. The totes are heavy and way to much work. The solution I used when rats got into my compost bin is simple: PUT A SECURE LID ON BIN!!! THAT IMPLYS THAT THE CONTAINER IS COMPLETELY SEALED BOTTOM AND SIDES. Then coordinate with your pick-up man and YOUR DONE! Honesty, HARD HEAVY work when your young sets you up for health problems 4-5 years down the line.
That's a good point... It was annoying to coordinate with this guy, but this make a lot of sense. Maybe ill try that out if this doesn't end up working out for me and is too straining. Thanks for looking out and your kind words 🌱💚
Was thinking similar. Looked like a back injury in the future waiting to happen. Why not fill your 6 bins up. Get the worm guy to rock up the next day or 1 set day per week then dump the 6 bins in the worm farm guys container from your upper level similar to what you were doing before. If he needs to bring as many containers as needed. Then all emptied in an hour, no storage outside, no rats making nests and breeding and no back issues in the future. Might not know it but your discs of your spine are like a marshmallow. Once you squish it doesn't bounce back(herniated disc etc). PLUS you don't have to pay to hire a trailer or spend the time or effort dumping and moving the soil in the compost. Time is money. Hope this makes sense and is helpful.
yep, great point. We have deff seen mold in them, even prolific sometimes but hasnt effected the crops so far luckily. lids keep it contained to a degree. I also started storing them outside once full!
Put a piece of plywood on the ground behind the trailer... and bungee cords across the lids to hold them down after you load them in the correct direction. Farm life =) It seems like it would be easier to go back to your guy that picks up with his tractor, and just get a container designed with a lid (like the trash cans you are using now, or a dumpster) to keep the rats out. Again, bungee cords to keep the lid secured. Good luck!
Someone may have said this, but have you thought about having the dump truck come by every time you're 6 barrels are filled and have them back up to the door with the drop then dump the barrels right into the dump truck?
@@DonnyGreens you're welcome. While I have you I just want to thank you for inspiring me! I am excited to repurpose my cannabis growing equipment and get this new venture started. I live in a town that's all meat and potatoes and not the healthiest bunch. There is a summer farmers market that's a five minute walk from my house so hoping to get a few crops in by may when that starts and get a booth to educate and meet new clients. Thank you for breaking this down step by step! I have tried watching other people's videos but can't watch them. They beat around the bush and make lengthy videos on subjects you can cover in 10 minutes or less.
Can you find a way to compost the spent material and reuse it for your growing trays? You will not have to buy new growing soil. Probably a mixture of new and old 50/50 maybe.
Hi! I’ve been growing micro’s 5 plus years on a 4000m2 farm under glass and I can safely say you can reuse the soil for growing micro’s if you can compost them in an environment that’s warm enough. We have a 200m2 composting area where we throw the left over trays on top of each other. Our secret is chickens, they come in and love the compost! They start to scatter the soil around and eat all the left overs so at the end of the day there isn’t much left to compost and we can reuse the soil in 7-14 days. The key is, put your compost somewhere where you can keep it dry, our compost/chicken coop is never wet (because we have the glass greenhouse) and this is a major factor for reusing soil for microgreens successfully. Hope this helps!
Do microgreens develop enough to begin fixing nitrogen (assuming innoculated legumes). To use the microgreen crop waste as a nitrogen source in the garden/compost pile?
Would growing the greens in the fodder system work as well? No grow medium, it grows a matt with the roots, and then the roots can be fed to livestock.
Love the videos. Was wondering if it would help your bins situation if you modify the wheels with thicker ones with tires for different terrain? Similar to your wheel barrow ones.
Suggestion: perhaps consider getting a few rotary composters, and then offer the resulting soil (which takes 30 days after each drum fills) for sale to locals. You could probably sell it for $30 per contractor bagful. The only hitch is the likely backlog that will form in cold weather .... THEN you donate it to farm. 😉
, donny, it is just only suggetion,ive seen u have an extra spaces try making your own composting area ,tht can be possibly useful in ur veggies or might be reuseful to your microgreen, think about it
You should compost your leftover Microgreen soil and use it in your outdoor garden after it is composted. Someone with chickens would most likely pick up your microgreen waste on a weekly basis to feed their chickens. You could also start a worm farm and use your microgreen waste to feed the worms and make high quality worm castings and liquid fertilizer as another business.
instated of full bin, how about u fill the bin 3/4 full. Hopefully u can increase the efficiency for u to carry the bin and the gas. I heard that the truck consume more gas if u try to carry more weight.
Is it possible to use a small trummel, separate the dirt out of the other matter and then reuse the dirt. Add what you need to the soil. Now all that is left is the roots. Much lighter. Will decompose much quicker.. even if you can't reuse the soil, it can be incorporated into the lawn. The rest can be sent away ro decompose. Just a thought.
Great videos as always. You may need to invest in a dumpster trailer with hydraulic lift. That way you just reverse into the pile, flip the switch, drive forward and back and then flip the switch of and go home. No more hauling 100kg bins.
Thats EXACTLY what im saving for now lol. Im already sick of this toter setup, im too big scale for this lmao. Every three weeks i gotta dump 6 heavy toters
I was wondering what you did with it after harvest Are the leftovers (roots, seeds and dirt) just dumped after every harvest or every couple of harvests?
I would still load them the way you first did... and use a ratchet strap to keep them from opening. Removing 2 straps will be less work in the end then having to spin 6 totes as you unload them.
Hi. I’m new to your videos and really curious how much you’ve been able to scale your business since posting this and if you’ve changed your growing media. I am binge watching next weekend 😂 I hope to find that by now, you’ve found a cost efficient way to get rid of waste materials
I know this video is a bit old. Although I was thinking you could build something like your sandwich board. That is smaller about half the size of the bin. That you could tip the bins over forwards with the lid back.
Vermicompost so you can use the soil again after a while...wormcast is very good fertilizer...worms can be use to feed fish...fish waste can be use to feed plants, etc...
Yes absolutely!! Adding the worms this spring! I not am composting on my own property so I can do what i want now and make my systems awesome. Thanks for the comment!
I'm surprised you don't setup a small like, "slide" from your back door down to the ground-level wheelbarrow... where the spent soil just slides right in... though your soil dropping skills are prolly on point :D
Hey there Donny Greens. I really enjoyed this video. It was actually a lot of fun to watch. You're full of so much knowledge and it's wonderful you're sharing it with us. I'm hoping you make more videos like this!!!
Thanks so much for this comment! It was my first vlog style video so Im glad you liked it. Much love, ill try to make more like this in the future for sure! 🌱💚
In a word.... PIGS! Pigs are amazing in handling mats from processing.... and they look at this as treats. Pigs process much faster than composting and vermiculture and are still making great material for use on farms, mix for compost and in keeping vermin tendencies down. Also mixing other Ag waste only helps this system go even better. Resource: Joel Salatin and other familiar names for regenerative and restorative ag are prolific in writing about the use of pigs for processing this material that comes from micros.
Jeez! What a huge PITA! Isn’t there a mulching company nearby who will come pick up the material and take it away since youre giving them free mulching material?
Man. i was about to say. Don't try and push that heavy thing up in the trailer lol. Come on. do you push a rope or pull a rope?? lol Anyway, love your videos my friend. please keep them coming. I literally started my micro-green Hobby / hopefully turn into a business 3 days ago. Ive spent at least 500 already to get the things i want to be able to start. Ive been watching your channel for about 3 weeks now so i have learned a lot but im still going slow. I truly want to turn this into a business. Anyway, thank you for the videos sir. Keep em coming.
Hey I see your suggestion for t5 light, theyre a lil pricey compared to the cheaper sun blaze t5 for $35 that are 4ft 54w...do you think its bad to skimp on the cheaper lights? or is it Worth the upgrade for twice the price when just starting out?
Pricing depends where you buy them. Sun blaze lights could be good as well. Try searching google for the sunblasters since amazon is out of stock lately
I use a screen mounted on a 2"×6" frame its 24"×24" . I screen the dirt dry it out then mix it 50/50 with new potting soil in a composter . So far it hasn't affected anything.
I thought Long Island was all developed but it has some wooded areas. My impression has changed. I had a girlfriend in Valley Stream when I was a Summer Camp Counselor in the Pocono Mountains back in the summer of 80'...oh Judy...where are you know...
The commercial kitchen I work at uses an organic waste removable service for industrial composting. They have a truck with an arm that lifts those “toters” over the truck and dumps them upside down. We just wheel the cans to the back of the building and the truck is contracted to come twice a week and additional times can be scheduled.
LOVE that David, that's like literally the ideal scenario in my opinion. I gotta try and find some sort of service like that in my area, thanks so much for this 🌱💚
That'd be awesome! Thats the deal I had with the composting guy but this is just fine. Takes maybe two hours every three weeks? Not to shabby and I like having full control over the situation and full control over when I dump etc.
Uhaul trailers are cheap - and stolen often, and strangely enough most commercial vehicle insurance policies do not cover the trailer, damage to the trailer, or damage from the trailer (like if you hit someone), and many residential policies do not as well. For me, not being able to always watch the trailer Uhaul insurance is cheap compared to replacing a stolen trailer, you should check your auto policy to insure you are covered in an accident.
why dont you put bags in the totes when you get there lay the tote on its side slide the bag out dump it in the compost ben then put the bag back in the tote? also if you dont mind looseing the bag just cut it and pull the bag out.
we sel smaller trays , soil included without chopping them. customers chop when they wish and lasts longer. also removes all the plastic bags and trays crap. sales are up ;)
The more you love microgreens, the more I suggest this is a great idea. If you are 14, you will have such a head start on most other people including myself. Do you love growing them too? Have you grown any yet?
I read where you can get two crops out of each tray. Have you tried that. Also you can dry out and clean the soil or compost and reuse it. Why give it away.
@@DonnyGreens I have a few compost beds I have been filling up... I have a fairly large garden so there is always room to compost I grow at my home right now... I'm in the process of setting up my former she shed as a growing room It will have nice amount of space in there to really kick things off right.
I KNOW this was 3 years ago but your a smart man and so Im sitting here wondering why it is you have not made a worm bin of sorts outside , in the shade and just decomposed all that great stuff and have a side business, selling worm castings ? seems like a natural , organic evolution and one that does not cost too much to work or add on to existing business.
@@DonnyGreens automated system designed for microgreen farm (I have a long way to go), and mainly a custom light for microgreens. Soon going to post a new video of the first light prototype.
Very cool. Definitely keep me posted. Check out the system that bootstrap farmer made and then theres this other great video on youtube called DIY Seedling Cart. Those could be good references/inspiration for you 🌱💚
What do you do with your microgreens trays after harvest?
Loving my new method 🌱💚
Thanks for sharing. I just toss them in the trash. I have been wanting to use it for a vermicompost.
Worm farm.
I just posted a comment sharing a link and giving a brief outline of the benefits
Gotcha, hey, you gotta do what works and improve over time! Yes, vermicompost would be a fantastic use. I gotta get some worms haha. Are you limited on outdoor space like I am?
Awesome Mathew, Yeah worms are a great idea, they can eat right through it and break it down. I wonder if all the worms would creep the rats out too 😂 Is your worm farm inside or outside?
So many times, people advertise the romantic side of a business or career without ever giving informed consent as to all the work involved. So before somebody jumps into this business, they should have informed consent as to everything involved which is why I really enjoy watching your videos. No surprises.
We used to call it background research, but if you need to be able to claim a violation of consent, then do you.
You are so real! I appreciate that in people. You are easy to listen to and learn from. I am 64 and have in the past year changed my way of eating and microgreens are a perfect way to add greens to my diet and learn how to grow them and I would love to have a side income. Thank you so much.
Much love, thanks so much for this comment!
Haha. Entertaining!
Glad to live on a homestead where our ducks and chickens take care of our ‘waste’.
Thats the freakin life man, cant wait for that! I think my next move, I'll be able to start living that type of lifestyle. Need some land...
@@DonnyGreens this is the best solution and it's a 2 for!
This video was very helpful,especially learning that you use dirt as your grow medium.
Dancin’ with the Toters! LOL
I Really appreciate the reality of all your work & the details- it inspires me to keep dig in & keep on learnin’!
TOTERS!!!!! glad you are liking the content
Donny,
Thanks for all the education and videos. Just some ideas:
1. Put down cardboard then one or two costco blue tarps (or similar) in the wheel area. Should give you more speed loading onto the trailer and make unloading/wheeling to the dump spot a little easier. Just fold up the cardboard/tarps and wedge between the bins and the side of the trailer, or just throw inside the bin after its empty.
2. A boat wench or electric wench might get one or even two bins up if you made something to double load it. And I'm shorter than you, but I'd squat lower than the lift point and drive up with legs to turn those over, but could be different body mechanics.
3. You could load into a truck and use a rake/fork to push out into the dump pile. You can also back all the way into the dump pile, and just dump out your window into the truck bed. The ultimate would be to have a hydrolic dump mechanism on the truck bed though, then you'd only need a broom to knock down any stragglers.
4. Dumping into a field where someone runs a chicken tractor or just dumping to a chicken farmer might be the best usage to turn those seeds and greens into meat or eggs and compost at the same time. Dump prior to moving the chickens into the dump area.
3* After using a truckbed to take out tokyo onions to the dump site with just using a rake and fork, I bought a dump capable minitruck. It was a no-brainer thinking of time/money/effort etc. Best regards
Awesome, thanks so much for the suggestions!!!!!
Nice video! Thanks for taking us along on your dump trip. I’m not commercial. I have an 8-tray rack for microgreens for my family, plus additional sprouting containers. I don’t have nearly the waste volume that you have with your business. I just dump around back, then trash whatever hasn’t composted in a month or two. Instead of soil, I use a hemp mat growing medium.
Awesome yep that works for your scale!
I’m curious about the hemp mat… can you tell me where you sourced that please?
I’m also curious if you’ve compared that with soil or coir, and how you have found the results?
The mats look like could be a lot less labor… cost benefit ratio?
@@lorenzovillegas2457 I bought a big box of I think 120 hemp mats (maybe 180?) from “Johnny’s Seeds” in Maine. Including shipping I think that cost about $150, maybe $170. I got it over a year ago, and I still have half a box of hemp mats. It’s a heavy box, so shipping isn’t cheap. Next time I will try to order directly from the hemp mat producer in Canada. YES, there are tradeoffs. When I lived in NorCal I composted my soil with the roots and produced my own potting mix. I had a big tumbling composter. I could do most of the work outside, but I kept the trays indoors to grow microgreens. Now I live in the northern part of Idaho where temperatures are below freezing half the year, and usually snow is all around. In this cold weather I do my complete operation indoors year round. Soil is just too messy for indoor potting! So much cleaner to use a hemp mat, then throw it outdoors to compost or throw into the trash. For microgreens the mats are great. My growing is somewhat hydroponic compared with using soil. With soil, the moisture is stored in the soil and requires less frequent watering. Using mats requires me to fill the bottom tray with a thin layer of fertilized water, which requires replenishing 2 or 3 times a day. But my whole operation involves so much less mess, easier to cut the greens, easier to clean up. And fast - throw the old mat out, rinse the tray, throw in a new mat, spread the soaked seeds and I’m growing again. Using soil requires a separate complete operation for composting unless you are buying bags of soil all the time. I never tried coir. Both ways produce abundant crops of microgreens! My best innovation that improved my crops was adding a small fan to each tray to circulate the air and cut mold down to zero!! I am up to 14 crops now in continual rotation. This just feeds me and my wife, and occasional gifts of greens to neighbors. My main source of seeds and supplies is True Leaf Market out of Utah. Highly recommended! Good luck! 👍
@@flyshacker Dang man! That is one heck of a response!
Thank you so much for sharing. Yeah I’m in Spokane doing the same. Just getting started on micro greens indoors. Your insight is sound according to others as well. I try to look for those common denominators and not reinvent the wheel… at least until I’m in a place to really understand how choices are impacting growth and mitigating problems such as mold, or reducing labor intensive practices, without cutting crucial corners.
I wish you great success🙏
Enjoy the beautiful country up there where you’re at.
@@lorenzovillegas2457 I wish you success and best of health! You are on the right road!
Smart! It’s amazing how fast the spent trays add up. Hope you’ve thwarted the rodents for good! We are composting on site, and are lucky to have enough space.
Haha they sure do! Lucky you, one day I'll have more space too and can do a nice big composting area :) How many trays are you going through per week at this point?
@@DonnyGreens During the summer farmers market we did 40 trays per week, not so much now in the fall, but plans to scale way up in the spring! We are testing some on-site vermicomposting ideas to see if we can close the self-sustained loop, using a Hungry Bin, with plans to add more if it works. Just not sure if we'll outpace the worms with coco/sprout waste from the trays.
Very cool, so nice to talk with you. Sounds like you love experimenting just like the rest of us! keep up the good work!
Thanks a lot for this video Donny! Been wondering what to do with those aftermath cleanup, very informative and love all your videos!
Aftermath can be a pain and is quite messy! You are very welcome 🌱🌱
On most of the West Coast, trash pickup consists of Landfill, Recyclables, and finally Compostables. In a new law in California, specifically, the Industrial composting company is supposed to accept table and food scraps in the bin, or in a small compostable green bag. Both the Recyclables Bin and the Green Compostables Bin are very low cost per month for a weekly pickup. If you lived here, you could just roll out 1 or more Green Compostable Bins for pickup on a weekly basis. This of course could change if you decided to keep more materiel on site for other projects..
Hearing about the rats reminds me of my time at the brewery. First thing that popped into my head was, "You need a brewhouse cat". We didn't buy a cat we just found a stray and left food out for it. Our mouse/rat problem disappeared overnight.
I was warned about growing Sunflower and the rats that would follow. But then quickly realized that my 2 indoor cats and 2 outdoor cats basically solve that problem.🎉
@@CalvinPhuong Gotta love those little murder hobos.
love this vlog style video man shows the "story" of your biz...super cool
Thank you so much for this
No problem!
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and passion for growing micro greens. You have mastered the art and it is awesome that you share your knowledge with everyone. The totes are heavy and way to much work. The solution I used when rats got into my compost bin is simple: PUT A SECURE LID ON BIN!!! THAT IMPLYS THAT THE CONTAINER IS COMPLETELY SEALED BOTTOM AND SIDES. Then coordinate with your pick-up man and YOUR DONE! Honesty, HARD HEAVY work when your young sets you up for health problems 4-5 years down the line.
That's a good point... It was annoying to coordinate with this guy, but this make a lot of sense. Maybe ill try that out if this doesn't end up working out for me and is too straining. Thanks for looking out and your kind words 🌱💚
Was thinking similar. Looked like a back injury in the future waiting to happen. Why not fill your 6 bins up. Get the worm guy to rock up the next day or 1 set day per week then dump the 6 bins in the worm farm guys container from your upper level similar to what you were doing before. If he needs to bring as many containers as needed. Then all emptied in an hour, no storage outside, no rats making nests and breeding and no back issues in the future.
Might not know it but your discs of your spine are like a marshmallow. Once you squish it doesn't bounce back(herniated disc etc).
PLUS you don't have to pay to hire a trailer or spend the time or effort dumping and moving the soil in the compost. Time is money.
Hope this makes sense and is helpful.
This will work amazing alongside my worm farm and chickens! I am excited about getting started!!
Good job to sort it out. FYI, don't forget to use the trailer to pick-up new bulk potting material.
haha thanks!
The soil your using is used one time and disposed of?
No way to turn it over over a period of time ?
Yes, one time use
If you are storing those bins inside, you may want to disinfect them so the mold in the empty bins do not contaminate your crops. Great videos!
yep, great point. We have deff seen mold in them, even prolific sometimes but hasnt effected the crops so far luckily. lids keep it contained to a degree. I also started storing them outside once full!
Mr. Obvious chimes in....
Put a piece of plywood on the ground behind the trailer... and bungee cords across the lids to hold them down after you load them in the correct direction. Farm life =) It seems like it would be easier to go back to your guy that picks up with his tractor, and just get a container designed with a lid (like the trash cans you are using now, or a dumpster) to keep the rats out. Again, bungee cords to keep the lid secured. Good luck!
Thank you!!! 🌱💚💚💚
Love your videos and wish you was down here in GA with them toters
Someone may have said this, but have you thought about having the dump truck come by every time you're 6 barrels are filled and have them back up to the door with the drop then dump the barrels right into the dump truck?
Thanks for the suggestion!!
@@DonnyGreens you're welcome. While I have you I just want to thank you for inspiring me! I am excited to repurpose my cannabis growing equipment and get this new venture started. I live in a town that's all meat and potatoes and not the healthiest bunch. There is a summer farmers market that's a five minute walk from my house so hoping to get a few crops in by may when that starts and get a booth to educate and meet new clients. Thank you for breaking this down step by step! I have tried watching other people's videos but can't watch them. They beat around the bush and make lengthy videos on subjects you can cover in 10 minutes or less.
Get yourself a Dachshund and it will the rats faster than you can imagine. They were bred to kill rodents. Cheers from Ottawa, Canada 🇨🇦.
question So is only one time you can plant in the plant mix?
Can you find a way to compost the spent material and reuse it for your growing trays? You will not have to buy new growing soil. Probably a mixture of new and old 50/50 maybe.
Im sure you could properly compost the material and reuse. I wouldnt re use for micros, I would re use outdoors maybe for full veg
Hi! I’ve been growing micro’s 5 plus years on a 4000m2 farm under glass and I can safely say you can reuse the soil for growing micro’s if you can compost them in an environment that’s warm enough. We have a 200m2 composting area where we throw the left over trays on top of each other. Our secret is chickens, they come in and love the compost! They start to scatter the soil around and eat all the left overs so at the end of the day there isn’t much left to compost and we can reuse the soil in 7-14 days. The key is, put your compost somewhere where you can keep it dry, our compost/chicken coop is never wet (because we have the glass greenhouse) and this is a major factor for reusing soil for microgreens successfully. Hope this helps!
This is a lot of fun ! Thanks for sharing :)
How much heat was generated in the totes during storage? I would be concerned about spontaneous combustion due to the decomp process
Have you thought about using Anaerobic Digestion Technologies in the future ??
Seems like you have a ton of compost to make a small one
Do microgreens develop enough to begin fixing nitrogen (assuming innoculated legumes). To use the microgreen crop waste as a nitrogen source in the garden/compost pile?
not sure. they are very young crops though
Would growing the greens in the fodder system work as well? No grow medium, it grows a matt with the roots, and then the roots can be fed to livestock.
Maybe, probably would depend on variety, try it out!
Love the videos. Was wondering if it would help your bins situation if you modify the wheels with thicker ones with tires for different terrain? Similar to your wheel barrow ones.
Thanks!! i now compost on my property
Are mats OK to use as a micro green method to grow over soil?
‘Toter!! I laughed so stupid hard. I really like how you go the extra mile instead of just throwing it in the trash.
Lmaooo I was definitely having too much fun that day 🤣 Glad you got a good laugh. Toter lifeee!!!! 🌱💚
Suggestion: perhaps consider getting a few rotary composters, and then offer the resulting soil (which takes 30 days after each drum fills) for sale to locals. You could probably sell it for $30 per contractor bagful. The only hitch is the likely backlog that will form in cold weather .... THEN you donate it to farm. 😉
After my waste has been sitting a week decomposing I use it to re-top my yard and fill in low spots.
Love it, great idea
@@DonnyGreens I'll learn to reuse compost correctly later on but for now best to use in lawn or home planting.
Hello Abraham, why is it a bad idea to reuse it for microgreens?
@@raghav1471 I never said it was bad. Just what I'm doing at the moment. In time, I will compose it proper.
, donny, it is just only suggetion,ive seen u have an extra spaces try making your own composting area ,tht can be possibly useful in ur veggies or might be reuseful to your microgreen, think about it
How are you disposing of your spent microgreens trays?
Loving my new method with the toters :)
That was a GREAT video! Thank you.
I'm from Long Island. Transplanted to Florida in '83.
Thanks so much!! Nice to meet another Long Islander. Let me know if you are ever visiting!
Would you be able to feed chickens with the spent micro greens?
yes!
so glad you have closed caption so I can read your video; I really barely hear this at all.
Glad that was useful for you!!! Thanks for watching 🌱💚
Have you tried reusable mediums instead of soil?
hell no
Exactly what I needed to hear going into winter!
Awesome, so glad you liked the video and its helpful 🌱💚
That was funny when your girl was like your in the same spot😅. Love the content working on some jars right now going on trays after!
hahah yeah shes always trolling me haha love her. Good job growin!
You should compost your leftover Microgreen soil and use it in your outdoor garden after it is composted. Someone with chickens would most likely pick up your microgreen waste on a weekly basis to feed their chickens.
You could also start a worm farm and use your microgreen waste to feed the worms and make high quality worm castings and liquid fertilizer as another business.
instated of full bin, how about u fill the bin 3/4 full. Hopefully u can increase the efficiency for u to carry the bin and the gas. I heard that the truck consume more gas if u try to carry more weight.
Any way you could re use that waste soil?
Is it possible to use a small trummel, separate the dirt out of the other matter and then reuse the dirt. Add what you need to the soil. Now all that is left is the roots. Much lighter. Will decompose much quicker.. even if you can't reuse the soil, it can be incorporated into the lawn. The rest can be sent away ro decompose. Just a thought.
Great videos as always. You may need to invest in a dumpster trailer with hydraulic lift. That way you just reverse into the pile, flip the switch, drive forward and back and then flip the switch of and go home. No more hauling 100kg bins.
Thats EXACTLY what im saving for now lol. Im already sick of this toter setup, im too big scale for this lmao. Every three weeks i gotta dump 6 heavy toters
I was wondering what you did with it after harvest
Are the leftovers (roots, seeds and dirt) just dumped after every harvest or every couple of harvests?
Each tray’s soil is used once then disposed of
I would still load them the way you first did... and use a ratchet strap to keep them from opening. Removing 2 straps will be less work in the end then having to spin 6 totes as you unload them.
Nice Kyle, thanks for that tip brotha!
donny, is there a possibility to be reused that wastes as material for our miccrogreen?
I wouldnt reuse for micros, but I would for outdoor veg and to feed chickens
How many times can you use the same soil for the tray?
Hi. I’m new to your videos and really curious how much you’ve been able to scale your business since posting this and if you’ve changed your growing media. I am binge watching next weekend 😂 I hope to find that by now, you’ve found a cost efficient way to get rid of waste materials
yes i have my microgreens business from my own house/property now so I compost in the back yard
What's a wheel barrel?
I know this video is a bit old. Although I was thinking you could build something like your sandwich board. That is smaller about half the size of the bin. That you could tip the bins over forwards with the lid back.
Are you growing in doors under artificial light ? Hence the fans?
Yep
Vermicompost so you can use the soil again after a while...wormcast is very good fertilizer...worms can be use to feed fish...fish waste can be use to feed plants, etc...
Yes absolutely!! Adding the worms this spring! I not am composting on my own property so I can do what i want now and make my systems awesome. Thanks for the comment!
My chickens love them.
I'm surprised you don't setup a small like, "slide" from your back door down to the ground-level wheelbarrow... where the spent soil just slides right in... though your soil dropping skills are prolly on point :D
Wheelbarrel. love it
haha woops! My life is a lie!!
Are you using organic soil? And organic seeds?
Is it to much work to re use the soil?
Hey there Donny Greens. I really enjoyed this video. It was actually a lot of fun to watch. You're full of so much knowledge and it's wonderful you're sharing it with us. I'm hoping you make more videos like this!!!
Thanks so much for this comment! It was my first vlog style video so Im glad you liked it. Much love, ill try to make more like this in the future for sure! 🌱💚
In a word.... PIGS! Pigs are amazing in handling mats from processing.... and they look at this as treats. Pigs process much faster than composting and vermiculture and are still making great material for use on farms, mix for compost and in keeping vermin tendencies down. Also mixing other Ag waste only helps this system go even better.
Resource: Joel Salatin and other familiar names for regenerative and restorative ag are prolific in writing about the use of pigs for processing this material that comes from micros.
You don't do your own composting for your own garden/farm?
i now compost in the back. i didnt own my prior properties
in spring I would imagine there will be a lot of yellow jacket wasps with easy access to food like veggies and fruits.
haha ummm yeah potentially!
I screen my waste and compost it for a season then sell it every spring. Gets rid of all the headaches.
Love that, planning to do this starting this coming Spring!
Wouldn't it be easier just to get a metal cover for the blue bins, so rats don't get in there and they can pick it up for you?
Yes yes and yes
Hahaha yes I thought the same thing but then I thought nothing wrong with a little exercise!
Jeez! What a huge PITA! Isn’t there a mulching company nearby who will come pick up the material and take it away since youre giving them free mulching material?
Man. i was about to say. Don't try and push that heavy thing up in the trailer lol. Come on. do you push a rope or pull a rope?? lol Anyway, love your videos my friend. please keep them coming. I literally started my micro-green Hobby / hopefully turn into a business 3 days ago. Ive spent at least 500 already to get the things i want to be able to start. Ive been watching your channel for about 3 weeks now so i have learned a lot but im still going slow. I truly want to turn this into a business. Anyway, thank you for the videos sir. Keep em coming.
Hey I see your suggestion for t5 light, theyre a lil pricey compared to the cheaper sun blaze t5 for $35 that are 4ft 54w...do you think its bad to skimp on the cheaper lights? or is it Worth the upgrade for twice the price when just starting out?
Pricing depends where you buy them. Sun blaze lights could be good as well. Try searching google for the sunblasters since amazon is out of stock lately
I use a screen mounted on a 2"×6" frame its 24"×24" . I screen the dirt dry it out then mix it 50/50 with new potting soil in a composter . So far it hasn't affected anything.
Interesting
I thought Long Island was all developed but it has some wooded areas. My impression has changed. I had a girlfriend in Valley Stream when I was a Summer Camp Counselor in the Pocono Mountains back in the summer of 80'...oh Judy...where are you know...
I can see why compost people jump on your waste. I would let you dump also. In what you do I would get my own set of shovels, etc. to carry with me.
Thanks for the tip Chris!
The commercial kitchen I work at uses an organic waste removable service for industrial composting. They have a truck with an arm that lifts those “toters” over the truck and dumps them upside down. We just wheel the cans to the back of the building and the truck is contracted to come twice a week and additional times can be scheduled.
LOVE that David, that's like literally the ideal scenario in my opinion. I gotta try and find some sort of service like that in my area, thanks so much for this 🌱💚
Have you heard about the Rotator cuff syndrome (RCS)
I havent!
That waste would be great in my compost pile or for chickens.
yes absolutely. not that i have a property, thats where it goes, composting in the back yard
Which trays are best to buy?
I have a video on this! Check out my youtube channel!
Cool idea. I do wonder if maybe you could find someone who'd come and pick up your loads from you?
That'd be awesome! Thats the deal I had with the composting guy but this is just fine. Takes maybe two hours every three weeks? Not to shabby and I like having full control over the situation and full control over when I dump etc.
Uhaul trailers are cheap - and stolen often, and strangely enough most commercial vehicle insurance policies do not cover the trailer, damage to the trailer, or damage from the trailer (like if you hit someone), and many residential policies do not as well. For me, not being able to always watch the trailer Uhaul insurance is cheap compared to replacing a stolen trailer, you should check your auto policy to insure you are covered in an accident.
why dont you put bags in the totes when you get there lay the tote on its side slide the bag out dump it in the compost ben then put the bag back in the tote? also if you dont mind looseing the bag just cut it and pull the bag out.
Why can you not compost the soil medium and then reuse for your microgreens?
i dont see that as being all that safe
thank you
we sel smaller trays , soil included without chopping them. customers chop when they wish and lasts longer. also removes all the plastic bags and trays crap. sales are up ;)
niceee love to hear it!
You should get a cheap winch attached to ur car could pull them up with little effort
i am 14 would u suggest me doing microfreen as a business???
ps. i love microgreens
The more you love microgreens, the more I suggest this is a great idea. If you are 14, you will have such a head start on most other people including myself. Do you love growing them too? Have you grown any yet?
@@DonnyGreens I love them, Yes I have grown wheatgrass
Great, so start growing the other varieties and sell them!
I read where you can get two crops out of each tray.
Have you tried that.
Also you can dry out and clean the soil or compost and reuse it. Why give it away.
New every time
Totally toting those toters!
😂😂😂😂😂 TOTER!!!
I use it in my garden.
niceee thats what im doing now that i have my own property
New to microgreens. Do you get one harvest for every tray?
Yep, one harvest and then start over
@@DonnyGreens thanks.
Perfect chicken food!
Haha for sure!
There's these 'plank' rat traps you attach to a 5 gallon bucket to take care of the rat problem so maybe you can keep your compost after all
haha thanks for the recommendation!
You can get a come along at Harbor Freight for $20 to pull those bins up the ramp.
It might be a good idea to spray the inside of your toter with your antifungal so you don't bring any mold spores back into the growing area...👍💚🍀
Yes, that is a great idea, thank you!!! Do you use a similar setup?
@@DonnyGreens I have a few compost beds I have been filling up... I have a fairly large garden so there is always room to compost I grow at my home right now... I'm in the process of setting up my former she shed as a growing room It will have nice amount of space in there to really kick things off right.
Thats awesome, I hope to have some more exterior space in the future!
@@DonnyGreens I found chickens that eat the spent trays YAY!!!
I KNOW this was 3 years ago but your a smart man and so Im sitting here wondering why it is you have not made a worm bin of sorts outside , in the shade and just decomposed all that great stuff and have a side business, selling worm castings ? seems like a natural , organic evolution and one that does not cost too much to work or add on to existing business.
I am finally operating from my own location and i am implementing worms this spring!!
why dont you put bags in the totes then slide them out of the totes and dump the bags in the compost ben put the bags back in the totes ?
Couldn't you dump it all into a pile out back, till it, and reuse it?
Man I wish I lived close to you I sure could use all that compost matter for my worms.
very interesting, thanks for sharing.
Maybe one day my project could help your farm
You got it! Maybe! Keep me posted, i'm happy to help. What's your project?
@@DonnyGreens automated system designed for microgreen farm (I have a long way to go), and mainly a custom light for microgreens. Soon going to post a new video of the first light prototype.
Very cool. Definitely keep me posted. Check out the system that bootstrap farmer made and then theres this other great video on youtube called DIY Seedling Cart. Those could be good references/inspiration for you 🌱💚
@@DonnyGreensYeah, those are great videos and inspired me :)
Basically trying to improve on those designs
@@DonnyGreens here I showcase my progress. I would love to you your thoughts on microgreen grow lights!
th-cam.com/video/9AIXtaWK0iE/w-d-xo.html
Rats are a pain! But I see you mastering the toter system so it isn't so labor intensive! Toter toter toter 🤣
Lmaooo. Im already annoyed with the toter system haha. I need a property so i can compost. Or a dump truck!