What is composting
How to make compost? Actually, it is an easy task, because you’re taking part in a natural process. Composting is nature’s way of recycling organic materials. Backyard composting reduces the amount of waste you create in your yard and kitchen by converting it into a soil amendment that you can use to keep your lawn and garden healthy. Items that readily decompose – leaves, grass, and vegetable scraps – are broken down by bacteria and other organisms to provide nutrients and structure to the soil. It’s easy to make compost at home!
First, you will need a compost bin, a container or structure in which to build your compost pile. Compost bins can be homemade from chicken wire, wood, bricks, or plastic. You can also buy compost bins, often at low costs through municipal recycling programs. Be sure the bin that you make or buy has ventilation holes in the sides, so your pile gets the air it needs to decompose.
However you really don’t need a bin to make compost — a pile of leaves, grass clippings and other yard wastes will do—but a bin keeps the compost contained and looks neater. You can corral compost in a simple wire column made from a 4-foot wide by 8-foot long piece of stiff wire mesh.
Composting is a technique used to accelerate the natural decay process. The technique converts organic wastes to a mulch which is used to fertilize and condition soil. Leaf waste decomposes naturally in about two years. Composting can take as long as a year or as little as 14 days, depending upon the amount of human control.
Most yard wastes can be composted, including leaves, grass clippings, plant stalks, vines, weeds, twigs and branches. Compostable food wastes include fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, eggshells and nutshells. Other compostable materials are hair clippings, feathers, straw, livestock manure, bonemeal and bloodmeal.
Employing slow composting is an easy and convenient way to turn yard wastes into a useful soil amendment. It is often the best method for people who do not have the time to tend a hot compost pile. Simply mix non-woody yard wastes into a pile and let them sit for a year or so. Microorganisms, insects, earthworms, and other decomposers will slowly break down the wastes. A mixture of energy materials and bulking agents provides the best food source and environment for decomposition.
Add fresh wastes to the pile by opening the pile, placing fresh wastes into the center, and covering them. This helps aerate the pile, and also buries the fresh wastes so they do not attract pests.
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