# Using Spent Grains As Mulch?



## Trough Lolly (28/8/06)

G'day all,
Does anybody else use their spent grains as mulch, rather than simply tossing them into the compost heap to breakdown? I have three large tubs/pots that I have recently moved some hop rhizomes into and I thought it would be good to spread a layer of spent grains over the bare earth to keep the moisture in and prevent weeds from getting established via bird dropppings, airborne seeds etc etc.

I added the grains a few weekends ago (from a Dortmunder brew session!) and when I gently lifted some of the grains this weekend, the subsurface and soil was moist so it appears to be working - are the grains going to add excessive acidity to the potted soil? I noticed that the grains near the soil had a purple appearance! :huh: 

What say you horticulturalists out there?  

Cheers,
TL


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## Gerard_M (28/8/06)

I top dressed the back lawn with about 600kgs of spent grain a couple of years back. The smell wasn't great for a little while, but the Kikuyu loved it. It really helps keep the moisture in the ground, & you can see which part of the lawn got top dressed & which part missed out. I may do it again this year.
Cheers
Gerard


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## Ash in Perth (28/8/06)

just make sure there are no sugars left in the grains, otherwise fungus will no doubt start growing.


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## DJR (28/8/06)

Trough Lolly said:


> G'day all,
> Does anybody else use their spent grains as mulch, rather than simply tossing them into the compost heap to breakdown? I have three large tubs/pots that I have recently moved some hop rhizomes into and I thought it would be good to spread a layer of spent grains over the bare earth to keep the moisture in and prevent weeds from getting established via bird dropppings, airborne seeds etc etc.
> 
> I added the grains a few weekends ago (from a Dortmunder brew session!) and when I gently lifted some of the grains this weekend, the subsurface and soil was moist so it appears to be working - are the grains going to add excessive acidity to the potted soil? I noticed that the grains near the soil had a purple appearance! :huh:
> ...


 
I think if you mix in a whole bunch of garden lime (ie. rough bicarb) into the spent grain the acidity can be neutralised quite well. I've always buried mine though, put a bit of lime through it, dig up a section of garden and lay it down. The one time i put any on the garden the birds came and ate it before it really did much (was only about 1 kilo).


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## arsenewenger (28/8/06)

I put My grains on the opposite side of the garden to the Vege patch so the birds and ducks eat them and not the veges.

AW


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## benno1973 (28/8/06)

I've used them as mulch. Especially good on azaleas, I assume because they like an acidic soil. I didn't wash out much of the sugar before I dumped them on the garden, and it did get a bit mouldy, but the doves loved the grains and my cats loved the doves


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## Trough Lolly (28/8/06)

Ok, thanks for the feedback - so it looks like I'm not going to kill the hop plants, but perhaps a layer of organic soil on top may help breakdown the grains but then that will undo the good mulching properties of the grains!


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## Voosher (28/8/06)

I've tried a few things.
I fed grains to the worms and they hated it no doubt because of the acidity.
I tossed it onto the compost heap and the rats attracted to the neighbours chicken coop loved it. I've had to go to extreme measures to keep rats out of the compost bins.
Personally I'd be inclined to neutralise the acidity before putting it to general mulching use.
The idea of using it on acid loving plants sounds sensible to me as well. So long as you don't have rats nearby.


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## Mr Bond (28/8/06)

Grains as with many other organic material are best composted first in a designated area and then added to soil etc.As organic matter breaks down through microbial action it can rob soil of other nutrients and elements to aid composting and affect the plant it is near.Moulds and mildews may also be attracted to the sugars and could affect new shoots.


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## GMK (28/8/06)

Guys,

Just get an old small shed - some chicken wire - and make a small coop.
Get 3-6 chickens - they will eat the spent grains, lawn clippings, kitchen scraps etc and give you eggs.

Then you can sell the excess eggs and put the money back into homebrew.

I have set up 7 chickens - never seen 10+kg of spent grains gone so fast - they love it.

Get an average of 3-4 eggs a day - these are 18month old ones - cost 3.00 ea...

Well worth the investment.


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## Chatty (28/8/06)

I wouldn't worry too much about grain tying up nutrients as they break down. There will be enough N to supply bacterial requirements during the degradation process. Nutrient tie up is only really a problem when there is a very rapid period of microbial activity (ie the break of the season) and there is a large source of carbon (straw in a paddock) and very little residual N.

Watering the grain mulch a couple of times after it has been put down will take care of the sugar/mould thing.

Hydrangeas would probably benefit from some grain as well. If the grain is as acid as it would seem then the hydrangeas would likely turn pink, like litmus paper.

Chatty


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## Sammus (28/8/06)

I read about people using grain to grow mushrooms on somewhere (the legal kind of course ) any comment on that? mushies are one of my favourite vegetables (I use the term loosely) and would love to try and grow some - just regular buttom mushrooms or field mushrooms or whatever- like the ones in the supermarket...


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## razz (28/8/06)

GMK said:


> Guys,
> 
> Just get an old small shed - some chicken wire - and make a small coop.
> Get 3-6 chickens - they will eat the spent grains, lawn clippings, kitchen scraps etc and give you eggs.
> ...


I agree whole heartedly GMK, except I...well um.......don't sort of......have the chickens yet !


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## goatherder (28/8/06)

Sammus said:


> I read about people using grain to grow mushrooms on somewhere (the legal kind of course ) any comment on that? mushies are one of my favourite vegetables (I use the term loosely) and would love to try and grow some - just regular buttom mushrooms or field mushrooms or whatever- like the ones in the supermarket...



Yep, you can grow mushrooms on grain, amongst other things. I've used brown rice with a fair degree of success. I've even seen them grown on wet rolls of toilet paper! 

Growing your standard supermarket mushrooms from scratch is very tough - they need a sterile peat layer in order to fruit which is very tough to produce at home. Your best bet for growing these is the mushroom kits in a box - spray with water, put em in a cool dark place and watch them grow.

If you do want to grow from scratch, there are some varieties which are well suited to it - oyster mushrooms being a standout. The basic procedure is to produce a sterile growing medium and inoculate with spores. Allow the mycelium to colonise the medium then move to a fruiting container. The hardest part is the levels of sanitation needed. Everything needs to be sterile, way more than with brewing. Lots of pressure cooking required.


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## Mr Bond (28/8/06)

Chatty said:


> Hydrangeas would probably benefit from some grain as well. If the grain is as acid as it would seem then the hydrangeas would likely turn pink, like litmus paper.
> 
> Chatty



Think you may have your acids and alkaline effects mixed up chatty.
acid will likely make blue

"To make the aluminum available to the plant, the pH of the soil should be low (5.2-5.5). Adding aluminum sulfate will tend to lower the pH of the soil. Another method for lowering the pH is to add organic matter to the soil such as coffee grounds, fruit and vegetable peels, grass clippings etc.

If the soil naturally contains aluminum and is acid (low pH) the color of the hydrangea will automatically tend toward shades of blue and/or purple."

Above quote takenfrom here


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## Chatty (28/8/06)

Ooh. Did I mention I had a science degree? :blink: In my defence, Friday's were cheap jugs at the tav - same day I had my chemistry labs on...  

Chatty


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## Jazzafish (28/8/06)

I put spent grain on my garden until my puppy ate some (must have been alot), got clogged up and got pretty sick.

Just a word of warning...


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## AngelTearsOnMyTongue (28/8/06)

Brauluver said:


> If the soil naturally contains aluminum and is acid (low pH) the color of the hydrangea will automatically tend toward shades of blue and/or purple."[/color]
> 
> Above quote takenfrom here




My mum use to grow heaps of Hyderangeas and some of them she got to be brilliantly blue by shoving rusty metal objects around the base. Oxidation I guess.

I only do partials but I just chuck the grains onto my vege garden to be. Tried feeding the rabbit but he only had a little bit.

Does anyone chuck the sediment from their fermenters on the garden?

ATOMT


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## wee stu (28/8/06)

GMK said:


> Get 3-6 chickens - they will eat the spent grains, and give you eggs.
> 
> Then you can sell the excess eggs and put the money back into homebrew.
> 
> ...



Keeping the eggs for 18 months is a fair investment in itself :blink: 

But, once the lag phase has passed - 3.5 x 365 x $3 = bloody nearly $4K a year  

Now I see how that wonderful bar got built  

Pure genius, again, kenny :beer:


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## Voosher (28/8/06)

AngelTearsOnMyTongue said:


> Does anyone chuck the sediment from their fermenters on the garden?



On the roses.
Legend has it they love it.
5 years worth and they don't look any better to me.
Still. They're not dead yet.


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## Trough Lolly (30/8/06)

Thanks for the info folks...
Well, fearing the worst, I started to remove the grains from the pots and discovered worms merrily burrowing through the lower decomposing layers! The grains are being broken down and I decided to leave the rotted material as is and simply scrape off the dry upper layer, and leave in a pile next to the pots, mixed up with some soil to help decompose the grains. Once they've turned to compost, I'll use them as nutrient to eventually go back into the pots.

Good God, Kenny! :blink: 
Chooks in Farrer Heights! How positively domestic!  
We nearly got tossed out of Hawkesbury Cresent for not owning an imported vehicle!!

Bro Battler... B)


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## doglet (30/8/06)

Trough Lolly said:


> ..... I started to remove the grains from the pots and discovered worms merrily burrowing through the lower decomposing layers



Worms in pots - I always thought this was a no no?

I put the spent grains onto a bare patch in the backyard for the birds to pick over. Fermenter sediment is just chucked onto the lawn with no problems.


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## Hubby (30/8/06)

Yep, chooks are the best composting machines for spent grain ... it's so simple ... IN (water + grain + heat) = OUT1 (wort) + OUT2 (chook eggs + chook poo)


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## Guest Lurker (30/8/06)

doglet said:


> Fermenter sediment is just chucked onto the lawn with no problems.




I know I keep going on about this, but for anyone who isnt aware, hops are toxic to dogs. So if there is a fair whack of hops at the bottom of the kettle or at the bottom of the fermenter, best not to chuck it where the dog can be attracted by the sweet malt and eat it.

My grain, kettle residue, fermenter residue go in the vege garden, covered with a bit of soil, fenced off from the dogs. Grows good tomatoes.


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## doglet (30/8/06)

Good point - GL. No dogs at my house so everything is safe.


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