Best use of dried corncobs?

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What are the best uses for old corncobs? After the chickens have pecked all the goodies off them, they pretty much lay out there until we clean up after them. Is it preferable to use the dried ones to burn in the woodstove, grind in the shredder and add to compost? Can they be added to feed for the livestock/poultry? What have others done? Don't smoke, so the corncob pipe option is out! Thanks, Jan

-- Jan B (Janice12@aol.com), March 20, 2000

Answers

Hillbilly Charmin? Just kidding--we shred them for mulch and compost -- mostly for mulch because the take forever to rot.

-- Joel Rosen (Joel681@webtv.net), March 20, 2000.

Jan , do you do any home smoking of meat? They are great for that .

-- Patty Gamble (fodfarms@slic.com), March 20, 2000.

You have the right idea, grind for the compost, grind for hog feed, I use to grind the corn and cob together for hogs.

-- Hendo (OR) (redgate@echoweb.net), March 21, 2000.

My mother, age 76, tells me that they used them for fuel in the wood cookstove when she was a child on the farm. She said they worked well.

-- Judy Bowman (bowman61@altavista.com), March 26, 2000.

My husband likes to use them for starting fires. Works great. We have quite a collection too.

-- beckie (sunshine_horses@yahoo.com), March 26, 2000.


My best use is for kindling in the wood stove. Secondarily, they do add good tilth to the garden if chopped up somehow. The classic answer, has, of course, already been broached. They were once the answer for the outhouse, at least until Sears. Roebuck & Co. began issuing catalogs. (Does anybody remember Roebuck?) [Wild aside here: Farmer to Sears on new-fangled telephone: " I need som uv thet toylet paper". Sears person ((Am I politically correct or what?)): "What is the catalog number?" Farmer: If I had the catalog, I wudn't need the damned toylet paper!] But I digress! If anyone has a better answer, I'd sure like to know it. That's the beauty of this site - A lot of knowledge plus a modicum (BIG modicum) of humor. Does it get any better than this? Good luck!

Brad

-- Brad (homefixer@mix-net.net), March 26, 2000.


Good ideas all, however the best is the one on smoking. Ran a smoked fish business for a while, and it works great on poultry and ribs too. After cooking on the bar-b-q, get a lid,let the coals get ashy and gray on top. Put the cobs on the coals,about six cobs for a chicken. Its not critical, close the door or lid tight, remember the cobs are to smoulder and not burn. When they stop smoking, you start chewing, about 20 minutes.

-- Raymond Gray (RorLGray@amntv.com), May 16, 2000.

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