Porcupine Reel

This porcupine has been hanging around our yard for a while now, usually in the compost pile. With the garden being done for the season, I thought I'd throw some apple peels and old carrots into the garden, planning to till them in with leaves (soon). Not much scrap left after ol' Mr Sharp Whiskers got done munching away! This photo was taken a week or so ago. Since then we've been raking leaves, putting some into the garden to till in and compost over the winter. The following is from an article about building your own compost mixture.

Almost any organic material is suitable for a compost pile. The pile needs a proper ratio of carbon-rich materials, or "browns," and nitrogen-rich materials, or "greens." Among the brown materials are dried leaves, straw, and wood chips. Nitrogen materials are fresh or green, such as grass clippings and kitchen scraps.
Mixing certain types of materials or changing the proportions can make a difference in the rate of decomposition. Achieving the best mix is more an art gained through experience than an exact science. The ideal ratio approaches 25 parts browns to 1 part greens.

We definitely have plenty of "browns" with the leaves in the yard. More kitchen scraps will help with the "green" component. Keeping things mixed in is important too, helping in the decomposition process. With some planning, hard work, and maybe a bit of luck, we'll have some nicely enriched soil for next year's garden!
Porcupine Reel is a tune collected over the years.