Grow Your Own Magazine

I have a couple of black bags full of straw that was used as a bedding for my chickens. They have been around the back of the greenhouse now for a couple of months. Had to move them today to get to my compost bin and the bag split. The contents was very wet and the straw was covered in tiny orange balls no more than a mm diameter. Any idea what they are? Bit disapointed as I was going to use this in the garden, possibly as mulch this year and looks like I might have to dump it instead

Could it be some kind of fungus?
I'd've thought you could still compost the whole lot rather than dump it

I would 2 sheds bu I only have 1 black compost bin at the moment and that already has loads of "brown stuff" in already as we use sawdust in the coop on the floors and I usually clean them out once a week, hate to see piles of chicken poop in there. We also have a rabbit and her bedding goes in aswell.

Black bin bags are good for making leaf mould, but they do need holes punched in them for drainage. Any chance of building or buying another compost bin/heap?

I asked about these a while ago Serenity and unfortunately never found out what they were.

__________________
Bright Blessings
Earthbabe
If at first you don't succeed, open a bottle of wine.

sounds like eggs of some kind, slugs or ants perhaps

There is a fungus that grows like that. Don't know its name, but you quite often see it in woods on leaves and bark I believe, but if the balls roll around, they are probably eggs.

__________________
Regards, Jane
What sane person could live in this world and not be crazy? The creative adult is the child who has survived.
Ursula LeGuin
http://www.etribes.com/madderbat

Iv got them on the sides of some peat pots that iv sown some peas in, Looks like a fungi to me.

Think its a slime mold ...
http://www.quoditch.org.uk/quoditchf...imemoulds.html
have a looky, see what you think. Put 'Lycogala Epidendrum' into Google Images

Yes, definately must be that. I went out earlier today to take a photgraph of it but wasn't orange anymore and so didn't look as noticable. thanks for that.