2 Chronicles 26 "Uzziah...did what was pleasing in the Lord's sight...a man who loved the soil." NLT
Dirt rich
Compost is simply decomposed organic material. The organic material can be plant material or animal matter. While composting may seem mysterious or complicated, it’s really a very simple and natural process that continuously occurs in nature, often without any assistance from mankind. If you’ve ever walked in the woods, you’ve experienced compost in its most natural setting. Both living plants and annual plants that die at the end of the season are consumed by animals of all sizes, from larger mammals, birds, and rodents to worms, insects, and microscopic organisms. The result of this natural cycle is compost, a combination of digested and undigested food that is left on the forest floor to create rich, usually soft, sweet-smelling soil.
Backyard composting is the intentional and managed decomposition of organic materials for the production of compost, that magical soil enhancer that is fundamental to good gardening. Anyone can effectively manage the composting process. In fact, if you have organic matter, it’s virtually impossible to prevent decomposition. The trick is to maximize the process of decomposition, while avoiding the unpleasant effects of the natural process of decaying matter. Compost is good; sloppy garbage heaps and rotting food are bad.
Compost is great for the garden because it improves the soil, which in turn supports healthier and more productive plants. Using compost to feed your lawn and garden will also reduce your dependency on chemical fertilizers. So, you’ll save money and reduce – if not eliminate - the potential of chemical pollution to your little piece of the environment.
Backyard composting is the intentional and managed decomposition of organic materials for the production of compost, that magical soil enhancer that is fundamental to good gardening. Anyone can effectively manage the composting process. In fact, if you have organic matter, it’s virtually impossible to prevent decomposition. The trick is to maximize the process of decomposition, while avoiding the unpleasant effects of the natural process of decaying matter. Compost is good; sloppy garbage heaps and rotting food are bad.
Compost is great for the garden because it improves the soil, which in turn supports healthier and more productive plants. Using compost to feed your lawn and garden will also reduce your dependency on chemical fertilizers. So, you’ll save money and reduce – if not eliminate - the potential of chemical pollution to your little piece of the environment.
How to compost
To make compost, you’ll need to dedicate some outdoor space to the process. Ideally, the location of your compost production should be convenient to the garden, as well as close to the source of the raw materials (kitchen scraps, lawn clippings, etc.), without being an unappealing eyesore. Finding a good spot for your compost pile might be a little bit easier if you have a lot of land; but, even suburbanites and city dwellers can effectively maintain a compost pile with a little bit of creativity and effort. And, the benefits – both to the garden and the environment – far exceed the effort! Enclosed containers for composting usually consist of one of two designs: upright box-like containers, and rotating drums.
Whether you choose to use an open bin or a compost container, two chambers are always better than one. In fact, if you are really serious about composting, having two chambers is a necessity. Because the composting process takes at least several weeks under the best conditions, you cannot add additional materials to the heap without “resetting the clock” to day one (Mantis Makes a pretty good two chamber compost tumbler). To create an ideal batch of fully composted material, your mix needs to “cook” for at least several weeks; if you add additional material, you’ll have a mix of fully decomposed material, partially decomposed material, and fresh materials. The best hand tool for mixing and turning a working compost pile is a pitch fork.
One of the great aspects of composting is that the key ingredients are often things that you’d be tempted to throw away. So, with just a little effort, you can contribute less to the trash stream (good for the environment) and make great compost (good for your garden).
Compost is created when you provide the right mixture of key ingredients for the millions of microorganisms that do the dirty work. These microorganisms will eat, multiply, and convert raw materials to compost as long as the environment is right. The environment doesn’t have to be absolutely “perfect,” so you don’t need to be a microbiologist or chemist to have successful compost. You need to provide: food, water, and air.
The water and air are easy. The food is a little more complex. Food for your little micro friends consists of two classes of materials, simply referred to as “Greens” and “Browns.” Green materials are high in nitrogen, while brown materials are high in carbon. The green materials provide protein for the micro bugs, while the brown materials provide energy.
Typical green materials are: fresh (green) grass clippings, fresh manure (horse, chicken, rabbit, cow), kitchen scraps (fruit, vegetables, coffee grounds, tea bags), weeds, green leaves, leftover fruits from the garden
Typical brown materials include: brown, dry leaves, dried grass, cornstalks (shredded), straw, sawdust in moderation.
Just like us, the little microorganisms need a balanced diet, along with water and air. Too much, or too little of any ingredient significantly reduces their productivity. It is hard to have too much of the brown category. As noted earlier, leaves in the forest decompose without significant quantities of “green” components (although animal droppings do contribute to the green part of the mix) – but, the decomposition takes a little longer. Too much green is usually the problem. A pile of kitchen garbage will never become useful compost; it simply becomes a smelly pile of garbage. A good mix of browns and greens also helps the pile maintain the right amount of moisture and air. A pile that is 100% grass clippings, for example, will quickly become a matted, soggy mess, with too much moisture and too little air. It will decompose, quickly at first, but then stall. Mix in some dry leaves, and you’ll have a significantly more efficient mixture. The dry leave help maintain air pockets within the pile and also provide a more balanced diet for the bacteria and fungi that cause the decomposition. The Ideal Combination of Browns and Greens The best combination of browns and greens is about 4 parts of “browns” to one part “greens” by volume.
Don’t add these ingredients to your compost pile: meat, fish, animal fats, newspapers or office paper, ashes from BBQ grill, or pet feces
Compost can be used to create a very good seed starting mix, or it can be added to potting soil to create a nutrient-rich mixture. Most commercial potting mix is made from Canadian peat moss, which is virtually void of nutrients (this is important for your nutritional well being), so the addition of good compost provides a real boost. "hot" compost, which has been produced at higher temperatures, is less likely to contain a lot of weed seeds. However, some of the fungi in compost may contribute to “damping off” of seedlings when compost is used for seed starting. To be safe, you should consider “sterilizing” the compost before using it as a potting mix. You can sterilize compost by microwaving it, baking it in an oven, or pouring boiling water over it. Of the three methods, the boiling water treatment is the neatest and cleanest. Simply put the compost in a large flower pot and soak it with boiling water from a teapot or saucepan. For more information on composting, go to www.howtocompost.org.
Whether you choose to use an open bin or a compost container, two chambers are always better than one. In fact, if you are really serious about composting, having two chambers is a necessity. Because the composting process takes at least several weeks under the best conditions, you cannot add additional materials to the heap without “resetting the clock” to day one (Mantis Makes a pretty good two chamber compost tumbler). To create an ideal batch of fully composted material, your mix needs to “cook” for at least several weeks; if you add additional material, you’ll have a mix of fully decomposed material, partially decomposed material, and fresh materials. The best hand tool for mixing and turning a working compost pile is a pitch fork.
One of the great aspects of composting is that the key ingredients are often things that you’d be tempted to throw away. So, with just a little effort, you can contribute less to the trash stream (good for the environment) and make great compost (good for your garden).
Compost is created when you provide the right mixture of key ingredients for the millions of microorganisms that do the dirty work. These microorganisms will eat, multiply, and convert raw materials to compost as long as the environment is right. The environment doesn’t have to be absolutely “perfect,” so you don’t need to be a microbiologist or chemist to have successful compost. You need to provide: food, water, and air.
The water and air are easy. The food is a little more complex. Food for your little micro friends consists of two classes of materials, simply referred to as “Greens” and “Browns.” Green materials are high in nitrogen, while brown materials are high in carbon. The green materials provide protein for the micro bugs, while the brown materials provide energy.
Typical green materials are: fresh (green) grass clippings, fresh manure (horse, chicken, rabbit, cow), kitchen scraps (fruit, vegetables, coffee grounds, tea bags), weeds, green leaves, leftover fruits from the garden
Typical brown materials include: brown, dry leaves, dried grass, cornstalks (shredded), straw, sawdust in moderation.
Just like us, the little microorganisms need a balanced diet, along with water and air. Too much, or too little of any ingredient significantly reduces their productivity. It is hard to have too much of the brown category. As noted earlier, leaves in the forest decompose without significant quantities of “green” components (although animal droppings do contribute to the green part of the mix) – but, the decomposition takes a little longer. Too much green is usually the problem. A pile of kitchen garbage will never become useful compost; it simply becomes a smelly pile of garbage. A good mix of browns and greens also helps the pile maintain the right amount of moisture and air. A pile that is 100% grass clippings, for example, will quickly become a matted, soggy mess, with too much moisture and too little air. It will decompose, quickly at first, but then stall. Mix in some dry leaves, and you’ll have a significantly more efficient mixture. The dry leave help maintain air pockets within the pile and also provide a more balanced diet for the bacteria and fungi that cause the decomposition. The Ideal Combination of Browns and Greens The best combination of browns and greens is about 4 parts of “browns” to one part “greens” by volume.
Don’t add these ingredients to your compost pile: meat, fish, animal fats, newspapers or office paper, ashes from BBQ grill, or pet feces
Compost can be used to create a very good seed starting mix, or it can be added to potting soil to create a nutrient-rich mixture. Most commercial potting mix is made from Canadian peat moss, which is virtually void of nutrients (this is important for your nutritional well being), so the addition of good compost provides a real boost. "hot" compost, which has been produced at higher temperatures, is less likely to contain a lot of weed seeds. However, some of the fungi in compost may contribute to “damping off” of seedlings when compost is used for seed starting. To be safe, you should consider “sterilizing” the compost before using it as a potting mix. You can sterilize compost by microwaving it, baking it in an oven, or pouring boiling water over it. Of the three methods, the boiling water treatment is the neatest and cleanest. Simply put the compost in a large flower pot and soak it with boiling water from a teapot or saucepan. For more information on composting, go to www.howtocompost.org.
