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Overview
Toby Buckland makes a soil sieve (or riddle) for sifting out large lumps from soil, leaf-mould and compost, to leave you with a fine material suitable for seed sowing and potting mixes.
You should aim to make your soil sieve slightly bigger than your wheelbarrow so you can quickly work your way through a pile of compost directly from the heap.
Do it:
all year round
Takes just:
2 hours
How to do it
-
Measure your wheelbarrow, so you can build your sieve to fit comfortably across the top. -
Cut the timber into eight pieces and fix them together to form two equal-sized rectangles. Smooth any sharp edges with sandpaper. Use pliers to cut the wire mesh to the same size as the frame. -
Paint the timber with wood stain to preserve it and add colour, then leave it to dry. -
Set out the lower half of the timber frame on a flat surface and place the mesh on top. -
Screw the upper and lower parts of the frame together, sandwiching the mesh in-between.
"Your sieve can also double as a drying tray in autumn and winter for onions, garlic, root crops and beans before you store them."
Comments and rating
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BillinDetroit commented on this article
06 March 2009
You can also make the frame of 2x4's and staple the screening directly to one face. This becomes the -bottom- face when seiving ... allowing you to seive larger quantities, roughly a bushel, at a time.
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