Adding Mountain Pine Beetle Killed Trees and Tree Ashes to Compost

I was fortunate enough to be invited to speak at the Healthy Horse Seminar in Kamloops this past weekend and a few questions pertaining to regional issues came up that this Manure Maiden needed to check on before I could answer them.

The first question was regarding the addition of mountain pine beetle killed trees to their horse manure compost piles. Can these trees be added?

The answer is yes. Keep in mind that these trees should be chopped or shredded prior to being added to the pile. This is because the needles are covered with a thick, waxy coating that does not break down very well.

It is also important to keep in mind that adding pine needles to your pile can increase the pH of the pile. Not a bad thing if your soil is alkaline, but can be bad for certain plants that you may be growing. It is also a good idea to use a simple soil test to test the pH of your compost pile from time to time.

The second question, also related to this was:
Can you add the ash from buring pine beetle killed trees? Will this raise the pH?

The first answer is yes. Ash is an excellent addition to compost as it can add a number of other nutrients to your compost such as phosphorus and potassium. The recommended amount of ash to add is no more than 2 gallon buckets full for every 27 cubic feet of compost.

The answer to the second part of this question is no. Pine tree ash will not increase the pH of your compost pile as ash tends to be alkaline in nature.