Composting Garden Nursery Landscaping Guide
Home Garden Composting
By Pixie Matthews
A mixture of organic materials such as leaves, yard clippings,
small twigs and even some compostable kitchen scraps that have
gone through the decomposition process is known as compost.
Many people engage in the composting practice in order to recycle
the organic materials around their home and property. This allows
people to enjoy the resulting nutrient rich muck that can be used
in the garden, while also keeping their yard and kitchen waste
out of a landfill site.
Compost Is The Black Gold Of Garden Fertilizers
In fact, to avid gardeners, compost is highly regarded and considered
the "black gold" of garden fertilizers. Material that
has gone through the composting process ends up producing a wonderfully
rich material that is filled with minerals and nutrients that
are well suited to encouraging lush and healthy growth of new
plants.
Composting ends up creating a wonderfully rich organic material
that can be mixed in with virtually any type of soil to improve
it and to prepare it for plants.
Compost Improves The Soil Of Your Garden
Sandy soils are improved with the addition of compost because
it helps retain moisture. Clay soils become much easier to work
with when compost is added and makes the soil able to handle an
improved variety of plant types.
The composting process involves four different components that
are required to create a mixture that will deliver the sought-after
benefits. These four key components are organic matter, correct
moisture, sufficient oxygen and bacteria.
A Mixture Of Brown And Green Organic Materials Makes Good Compost
The organic materials suitable for composters include various
plant materials, food scraps, and some varieties of animal manure.
Good compost should include a mix of brown organic material and
green organic material.
The brown organic matter includes such as dead leaves, twigs,
and manure. The green material will be comprised of things such
as grass clippings, hedge trimmings, coffee grounds, fruit rinds
and vegetable waste.
Try TO Maintain 1:1 Green To Brown Ratio For Best Compost
The brown materials provide carbon for the mixture, while the
green materials bring in supplies of needed nitrogen. As much
as possible, it is best to try to maintain a one to one ratio
of brown material to green material to produce the best final
compost.
If you have a compost pile that contains more brown material
than green, then you can add in a handful of 10-10-10 fertilizer.
This will add nitrogen and will speed up the decomposition process.
Speeding Up The Decomposition Naturally
Sometimes it is helpful to shred, chop or mow the available materials
into smaller pieces. This will serve to speed up the composting
process because the smaller the pieces of material are the greater
the surface area.
The proper moisture levels are important to a successful composting
process. It is said that the compost pile should have about the
same amount of moisture as a sponge that has been wrung out by
hand.
Just Add Water If Pile Is Too Dry
If the compost pile is too dry, then the decomposition slows
down. You can simply add some water to the pile during dry weather
periods or any time when a lot of brown material has been added
to help keep the process moving along.
Should the compost become too wet, simply dig in and turn the
pile to mix the materials and spread the moisture. You can also
add some brown organic materials that are very dry to help balance
things out.
Sufficient oxygen is also a key element that is necessary for
decomposition. Oxygen supports the breakdown of the organic materials
by the bacteria.
Turning The Compost To Supply More Oxygen
Supplying oxygen to the compost pile is as simple as turning
the compost so the materials at the outer edges of the pile are
moved to the center. This also helps to control odors that can
develop. The pile should be turned about every two weeks for best
results.
It is the bacteria, and other types of microorganisms, that do
the real work involved in the composting process. With the other
needed elements in place, the bacteria can go to work breaking
down the organic components into the compost that will benefit
the organic garden.
Nutrient Rich Materials For Your Garden Soil
At the end of the composting phase, you will have recycled your
organic waste into a valuable and nutrient rich material that
will do wonders for your soil. When spring arrives, spread the
compost over your planting area.
Put about three to four inches of compost on your topsoil and
then till it in as you prepare for planting. When your vegetable
garden starts to bloom you will no doubt be glad you decided to
compost.
About the Author:
Pixie Matthews has written a number of articles on gardening and
landscaping including Organic
Vegetable Gardening Products, Vegetable
Gardening Tips, Spring
Vegetable Gardening, Compost
For Your Vegetable Garden, Vegetable
Gardening Tricks, Compost
Heap.
Keep a lookout for more of his articles on this website.
Little Known Composting Facts....
How do I prepare the materials for composting?
Start preparing your compost pile by breaking
up the materials into manageable pieces. The object is to help the
materials break down or decompose faster. Larger pieces will hinder
the process. A shredder works wonders for yard trimmings. If you are
using manure you will want to take a pitch fork and break up the
clumps before adding them into the pile.
Try to keep the pieces to sizes around the shape of a leaf if
it is at all possible. If you can keep them even smaller to help
speed up the process that much faster and before long you will
have a mound of fertilizer to use however you see fit.
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