How to Compost - Easy To Follow Instruction

Good compost is of great value in gardening, whether you use organic gardening methods or not. But buying compost can be expensive, especially if you’re gardening a fairly large plot of ground. And when something becomes expensive, we’re less likely to use as much of it as we might otherwise, and that’s not good. Compost is of such importance in successful gardening that it’s best not to restrict its use if possible. To avoid this dilemma, why not learn how to compost? It’s easy to do, and making your own compost provides benefits beyond simply saving money.

What to Compost

Compost is simply organic matter that has been broken down by microbial activity. Compost can be made with virtually any organic material (though there’s a few ingredients listed below that you shouldn’t use), but when starting a compost pile, the ingredients will fall into one of two categories:

1.Browns – Leaves that you’ve raked, branches and twigs, and sawdust are examples of Brown ingredients, but an item does NOT have to be brown to be a Brown ingredient.

Tree leaves, for example, are Brown ingredients whether they’re dead on the ground or fresh from the tree. Brown ingredients are items that have a high content of carbon or carbohydrates. If you’re not sure if an item falls in this category, wet it, wait for a few days to let it start decomposing, and then smell it. If it does not smell bad, then it belongs in the brown category. If it stinks, then it belongs in the next category.

2.Greens – Grass clippings from your lawn, vegetable or fruit scraps from the kitchen, and even coffee grounds are Green ingredients. Green ingredients are items that have a high content of nitrogen or protein. You can use the smell test described above to tell if an item falls in this category. If it stinks, it’s Green.

Things NOT to Put in Your Compost Pile

You can turn most of your garbage into gold by composting it, but there are a few things NOT to put in your compost pile. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, it would be best to leave these things out:

Black walnut tree leaves and twigs
Coal or charcoal ash
Dairy products
Plants that are known to be diseased or hosting insect pests
Fats, grease, lard, oils
Meat or fish bones and scraps
Pet waste, including used cat litter
Yard trimmings known to contain chemical pesticides

How to Compost

A compost bin is not required. But, it will keep the pile organized, and will also make it easier to turn. Free Compost Bin Plans.

If you have any particularly large pieces, it’s best to first chop or shred them into smaller pieces. If you’re using tree trimmings, for example, don’t just throw a branch in the Brown pile; run it through a shredder first, or at least chop it into smaller pieces. Make certain that all of the ingredients are well moistened.

Once you’ve gathered and prepared your ingredients, it’s time to make the compost pile. As you build the pile, the goal is to have a ratio of 3 parts Brown ingredients to 1 part Green ingredients. One way to do this is to alternate layers of Green and Brown ingredients, with the Brown layers 3 times thicker than the Green. Once all your ingredients are in the pile (or the pile is as large as you want it), thoroughly mix all the ingredients together. If you can, cover the pile with a tarp to keep it from getting too dry and to prevent rainfall from leaching out some of the nutrients.

Though not necessary, turning the pile frequently will help to speed the composting process. Turning it every few days will keep the composting process working at maximum speed, but turning it much less frequently will still help. Composting should be an aerobic process, and turning helps to keep the pile aerated throughout. If you detect any foul odors emanating from the pile, this is an indication that some parts of the pile aren’t getting oxygen, and so the pile needs to be turned or mixed. After a period of weeks to months, depending upon the ingredients and the amount of turning, your compost will be a rich brown, crumbly mix, ready to use.

So now, kitchen scraps that you used to throw in the garbage and the lawn clippings that used to go to the landfill will serve a valuable purpose. And there’s no longer any reason to feel guilty about wasting food. With a compost pile to feed, there’s almost no such thing as waste!