Compost basics
By webeishere
@webeishere (36313)
United States
April 17, 2007 1:18pm CST
It's that time of year again here in the States.
I am going to try mt very first composting this year I believe.
This may help you also as far as the basics of making a compost pile.
To save on waste and provide a nutritious soil amendment
for your garden, consider making a home compost pile. This
is a good way to recycle precious nutrients back into the
earth. To make a compost pile that will break down quickly
to form finished compost, you will need:
* Green materials, such as grass clippings, vegetable
trimmings, and weeds. Green waste is high in nitrogen and
helps heat up the compost pile fast.
* Brown materials, including dry leaves, straw and woody
brush. Brown material is high in carbon.
* Enough moisture to keep the compost pile as damp as a
wrung out sponge.
* Air to help build up more heat so that the material
will decompose faster.
* A source of good bacteria to help break down the compost.
A scoop of garden soil should be all you need, but you can
also buy a compost activator.
Put all of your ingredients together in a pile of four to
five cubic feet. A pile of this size heats up quickly in
the center, reaching up to 140 degrees Fahrenheit. Turn
your compost pile regularly to help it break down evenly.
It does get very rank smelling so you may need a box or a store bought compost container.
This all depends on the size of compost pile you wish.
HAPPY GARDENING FROM GRANDPA BOB !!~
6 people like this
10 responses
@tammyr (5945)
• Etowah, Tennessee
18 Apr 07
I have a compost pile in the back. I add to it often.
Last year my DIL had a wreck and tore up some plants in the lady's yard. She had to go to class and work the next day so I cleaned it all up and put it all in white garbage bags. I left them in the bags for several months and when i went to dump it out, I had compost, not the yucky stuff, but rich decomposed ready to use compost! I have thought that I will do the same thing again and put all my deadhead and weeds into a bag and leave them to see if it works or if it was just because it was yucca plants mostly.
5 people like this
@webeishere (36313)
• United States
18 Apr 07
All sorts of gunk can be added also.
Coffee grounds are great also.
It's the temp thats most important next to the moisture.
Happy composting. Hahahahaha!
2 people like this
@creematee (2810)
• United States
19 Apr 07
That's one of the best ways to make compost. :) I've heard it called "leaf mold." Personally, I call it Black Gold. Just keep it in a shady spot until next spring when you aren't using it, so it doesn't burn.
@Aphroditei_5279 (2465)
• Philippines
17 Apr 07
Thank you for the very informative post Grandpa Bob! My dad will love it. We've been doing it but not that well planned. And this would help us to achieve a better compost for our plants. Thank you! Have a nice day! (^^,)
@jennybianca (12912)
• Australia
18 Apr 07
I bought this fancy composting barrel over ten years ago. One opens the lid, plonks the vegetable scraps, & give a turn. We always had a lot of vegetable scraps, peelings, etc. Also there was plent of lawn clippings, & all the other stuff you mentioned.
At least three times I have tied to get this going. You know what happens? Nobody will take the vegetable scraps down the back yard to put in the composter. It would sit there on top of the washing machine getting maggets.
So I gave up.
I think composting is a great idea, so good on you for doing it.
@webeishere (36313)
• United States
19 Apr 07
I maled out for info on those type of composting barrells. The cost and effectiveness didn;t impress me none. So it's going to be a plain covered wodden box I think for me. Hahahaha!
HAPPY POSTINGS FROM GRANDPA BOB !!~
@kamalila (193)
• United States
18 Apr 07
My mother-in-law bought us a little kitchen compost bucket. She was a farm-wife, so she knew the deal. When the bucket gets full, every couple of days, we call over one of the kids and hand them the bucket. They know better than to argue, and they love the results of our garden as much as we do.
1 person likes this
@byfaithonly (10698)
• United States
18 Apr 07
Bob I'm saving this, some great information here. I've tried doing compost before but never had a 'formula' just whatever. Some turned out but most just sat there and bugged me till I hauled it to the woods behind the house.
@sjohnson628 (3197)
• United States
18 Apr 07
I tried making a compost pile last year but my BF stopped me due to the bears in the area! I never thought that I would be "feeding" the bears with the compost pile! It stopped me and what do you think about this aspect?
2 people like this
@webeishere (36313)
• United States
19 Apr 07
Make a covered box for the compost pile and there shouldn't be a problem with bears. After all do they come after your garbage cans? LOL. Thanks for the response also.
HAPPY POSTINGS FROM GRANDPA BOB !!~
@dlkuku (1935)
• United States
18 Apr 07
I used to have a compost bin back home, coffee grounds and eggshells are good, as are vegetable waste from the kitchen, potato peelings, corn cobs, and such. I had an apple and a peach tree, and I would throw the fruit that fell to the ground in it too, as well as grass clippings and leaves.
@blackbriar (9075)
• United States
24 Apr 07
Actually, a 'correct' compost pile won't smell bad at all. Have to add the right amount of ingredients or yes, it will reek pretty bad. My compost piles never smelled bad but I never went by the 'recipes' that I found in numerous magazines and books. I just threw in whatever I had, let it sit for a few months b4 turning it once. I'm a lazy gardener at times. lol Oh, fresh horse/cow/chicken manure added to the compost heap works wonders for heating it up.
@creematee (2810)
• United States
19 Apr 07
Sounds like you've been spying on my compost pile. :) We kept our grass clippings and leaves in a pile in the middle of our garden last fall (after harvest) and swept it up into a pile on the side last weekend. Oh the black gold we found. There shouldn't be any reason we shouldn't have super veggies this summer!! :)
@webeishere (36313)
• United States
20 Apr 07
Black Gold. I like that name. Sounds very "enriching".
@janidanielli (132)
• Canada
15 May 07
I have read that hair, shredded cardboard and dryer lint can go in the compost. I don't think there is a guaranteed formula, but I have heard that, at about 1 part greens to 25 parts browns, the compost should not have a bad odor.
I would like to know what the definite 'don'ts' are for composting. I've heard that the things to avoid are grease and meat. But is that all? What about cooked foods? Pasta? cheese and other dairy? Bread? What are the definite no no's?
I am using a 24 X 16 X 12 1/2 Rubbermaid bin for my compost. I throw in my scraps, put the lid on and give it a good shake. Not sure how well this will work, but I am renting for only a short time and I am stingy with my black gold, so I want to be able to take it with me when I move. I'm thinking by the time I move to my own house, the bin should be pretty full and then I can dump it onto my own garden or whatever for next year.
It's pretty neat that we can take garbage and turn it into something so great. It will be a real source of pride for me, as I can tell it is for all of you.
@blackbriar (9075)
• United States
15 May 07
The don'ts of composting is:
No meat of any kind
No dairy of any kind except eggshells
No grease
No cat or dog poop
No bones unless they are ground up
No sticks but only cause they take years to break down
No rocks
Do's
Anything not mentioned above. lol
Horse,cow,sheep,goat,chicken,rabbit,guinea pig manures are all a real ++++ for really heating up the compost pile. The hotter the pile, the more effective it will be in killing any disease or seeds that are in it.
@janidanielli (132)
• Canada
15 May 07
One other tip I read is to cover your kitchen scraps with your brown material(straw, hay, or if you are like me dryer lint and shredded cardboard) and create a layering effect. Every time you add green material(kitchen scraps, hair, coffee grounds) Throw enough browns on to cover it. This is supposed to help with the smell as well as keep pests away. And the layering is in lieu of the turning. At least that is how I understood it
