Compost Is Referred To As "Black Gold"
Composting makes "cents" and plants will tell you by the way they grow with ample amounts of organic matter, how happy they are because they will have nice green leaves, good healthy growth and plenty of flowers.
All of us who enjoy gardening like to see our plants thrive without having to babysit them too much. One way that this can happen is by providing the best soil conditions for our plants by regularly adding compost to our heavy clay garden soils. The improvement to the growing environment is very rewarding. You can either purchase organic matter in the form of peat moss, manure or pine bark fines from your local independent garden center or create it from items right around your home. All of the trimmings from your plants, grass clippings, newspaper and kitchen waste can be used to produce this "black gold". Just follow a few basic guidelines and you will be on your way to FREE compost made right at home. It can take less than 4 months to make a "batch", two or three batches a year is a reasonable expectation.
Here are the basics: There are 2 basic forms of organic matter(OM)- brown and green. Brown types of OM are the fall leaves, strips of newspaper, egg shells, straw, twigs and small branches. Green OM would be grass clippings, kitchen scraps like peelings and fruit rinds, weeds before they set seed. Avoid using any bones, meat waste, cooking oils as they will create unwanted odors and attract rodents and other pesky animals. Use a layering system starting with a few inches of chopped brush on the ground, then an 8" layer of brown and green OM with the third layer consisting of about an inch of garden soil to provide the microbes that will go to work and convert the pile to compost. Be sure moisture is added as you go. Sprinkle a small handful of urea fertilizer to feed the microbes. Repeat this layering technique making the pile 3' X 3' and 3' high. Heat will begin to develop in a week or so when you build your compost pile in this manner. This self-generated heat is a result of the microbes in action and will determine how rapidly the OM is converted into compost for your garden. When you keep the compost pile moist, but not soggy, this will accelerate the process. Turning the pile once a month and put the edges of the pile to the center will also do a more thorough job of composting. If you Google 'composting at home' you will find many more sources of information with much more detail. Hopefully this limited amount of info is enough to get you interested in making your own compost which will benefit our environment by recycling your our yard waste instead of sending it to landfills. Just think how much you can improve your soils when you add ample amounts of your own yard waste in the form of organic matter back to you planting areas.
Here is a website that may give you some ideas: https://www.rodalesorganiclife.com/garden/5-easy-steps-fast-compost.
Tell us how you are making out with your own composting, send your story or questions to info@meadowview.com .
30 years of Growing
Meadow View Growers
New Carlisle, OH
www.meadowview.com