Composting Basics
What is compost?
Compost is simply decomposed organic material. You may ask why there is such a fuss about it. Well, it is basically the best food you can provide your garden! And even better, it is incredibly easy to obtain! Composting may seem complicated, but it is actually incredibly easy. Composting is a natural process that happens in nature that returns nutrients to plants to re-use. Below is a step-by-step guide for starting out with composting.
Step 1: Choose a compost bin
There are any number of different styles of composting bins from
the simplest homemade style of wood and chicken wire to the highly complex. Some are cone-shaped, some are square, some tumble and you can easily make your own. I personally opted for a pre-made compost bin since they are relatively inexpensive (particularly in my town) and I wanted to put it down and go. If you are interested in building your own, check this website for step-by-step instructions: composter. You can see more about composting designs here: compostII. Whether you opt to make your own or buy one, keep in mind the main purpose of using a composter. You want somewhere to store your kitchen scraps and yard waste so that it will break down. In order to this, you need a steady supply of oxygen in there, a decent temperature (90-140F, but not above 140F), an approximate 30:1 C:N ratio, moisture content of 40-60% and sufficient surface area exposed to allow air to freely circulate.
Picking a site for your compost bin is easy. You want a pretty level site, but it also needs to be accessible year-round. Remember in the dead of winter you don’t necessarily want to go traipsing 1/2 a mile from your house just to empty your indoor compost.
Step 2: Start adding your compost materials (kitchen scraps and yard waste).
It is important to add BOTH brown and green composting materials. The green composting materials are high in nitrogen and include most of your kitchen scraps like leftover veggies, fruits, veggie and fruit waste, but also grass clippings, fresh manure and annual weeds. The brown materials are high in carbon. Remember you need to have more carbon in your pile than nitrogen (an approximate ratio of 30:1), so it is important to add your brown materials. Brown materials that should be added include leaves, hay and straw, cardboard, eggshells, coffee browns, sawdust, tea bags. The mix of both the green and brown composting materials is important in achieving the correct C:N ratio for great composting.
Things NOT TO ADD to your compost: any type of meat, bones, fish, whole eggs, dairy products, fatty food waste, feces, treated wood.
Step 3: Starting your pile
You are going to layer. Start with a pile of brown material – brush, twigs, straw or hay a the bottom of the bin. Next add some finished compost or good garden soil. Then a pile of green material. Moisten this by misting it with a garden hose. Then keep adding your layers. If you turn your compost pile, it will break down faster and you will have finished compost to use earlier than if you don’t. I admit that I have become a bit lazy with mine and I simply just add my layers and water and call it good. I end up with enough to use on our garden though!
HAVE FUN!
Sultana is the owner of Simple Wonders Diapers – a green cloth diapering company providing personlized service to every customer. Sultana holds an MS in Environmental Sciences from the University of Maine and loves promoting the use of cloth!
