Composting

Composting is a fairly simple way to get rid of yard debris, grass clippings and kitchen waste with the added benefit of producing a beautiful organic soil additive for your gardens.

How Composting works: Vegetative debris is layered in a pile. As more materials are added, the pile heats up internally. The heat speeds up the natural decomposition process of the vegetation. What you end up with is a natural soil additive containing trace nutrients that will feed your gardens.

Why Compost? Aside from reducing the amount of garbage you put at the curb for pickup, compost is a simple and economical method of producing slow release garden fertilizer in bulk. As a soil conditioner, it helps loosen heavy clay. Lighter soils benefit from the compost’s moisture retention properties.

When To Compost: Some people believe you can only add to the compost pile in the warmer months. We disagree. Our compost pile is added to twelve months of the year. Granted, the materials we add in the winter months do not rot down immediately, but as soon as the warmer weather arrives we have a head start on process.

What To Compost: Leaves, weeds, grass clippings, soil from old container gardens, cut flowers that have faded, sod, garden trimmings and kitchen waste as long as it does not contain any fats, dairy products, meat, animal waste, or bones.

How To Compost: Many invest in backyard compost bins, but we have always found that simply piling up the debris in an out of the way spot in the garden works just as well.

There are some that recommend layering composting materials: A layer of green, a layer of brown, a layer of black. We have never gone to that trouble. As the debris comes out of the yard or kitchen, it goes on the compost pile.

If we remove sod, we make sure it goes grass side down on the compost pile. That helps kill the grass’ roots and speeds up the decomposition of the leaves.

In the fall when the trees are losing leaves, we run over the leaves with the lawn mower to chop them up before adding them to the pile. This helps them decompose faster.

The compost should be turned once a month in spring and summer. For that, all you need it a garden fork and some muscle. Then it is just a matter of moving the debris that’s on the top, to the bottom, and on the bottom to the top. The reason for turning the pile is to equalize the rate of decomposition. The material on the bottom of the pile has more heat so it decomposes faster than the material on top. By turning the pile, all materials will rot down at a more consistent rate.



Problems: Some people are afraid to have a compost pile because they think it will attract unwanted visitors of the four legged variety. It can happen, but to reduce the possibility of attracting rodents, either limit the amount of kitchen waste in the compost pile or keep it buried.

Another excuse for not composting I hear is the offensive smell. A compost pile does not smell unless you are adding materials you shouldn’t (meat, dairy, fats, animal waste).

There are some that believe weed seeds in the compost will germinate and you will end up with weed infested gardens. That is unlikely. Normally, the internal heat of the compost pile will destroy the seeds. A few may escape the cooking process, but not enough to cause noticeable problems.

When To Use It: The compost is garden ready when it has the look and consistency of good topsoil. This could take a year depending on what you’ve added to the pile.

How To Use It: Top dress the gardens with an inch of compost. Over the season it will work its way into the soil.

If you’re making a new garden, mix a couple of wheelbarrow loads of compost with the soil you have cultivated (assuming it’s a large garden or very heavy or very light soil). Blend the two mediums well and add it to the new bed.

When planting new trees or shrubs, toss a shovel full of compost into the bottom of the hole and also mix compost with the soil you use to backfill the planting hole.