Compost Pile - The Way To A Healthy Garden

There is no doubt about it a healthy garden needs good rich compost to enrich the soil with nutrients to replenish those taken out by year round growing.
If your planning on making your own compost pile make sure you have everything ready and start your project at the right time of year. The best time to start your compost pile is in the fall period when there are plenty of leaves to form the compost pile base.

There are many way's to make a compost pile but here is one sure way to make it a success.
First you are going to need some sheets of plastic, these are to prevent tree roots and weeds from getting up into the mix. Lay the sheets on the ground to make enough area for a 3 or 4 foot square pile.

Next you are going to spread a layer of grass cuttings or leaves over the plastic roughly 6 inches deep and shovel a 1inch layer of beneficial garden loam over the leaves. Repeat this process of adding a layer of loam and leaves until the compost pile is roughly 4 feet high.

To speed up the composting action of your pile you can use organic material, shred leaves into much smaller pieces ( a Black and Decker Leaf Hog is ideal for this ). If the leaves are dry you should dampen them after they are completely mulched up. If you have used oak leaves you should add some ground up limestone to the mix. This will help reduce the acidity of the oak Leaves.Lastly you can add some natural fertilizer, cow manure is good for this.

Your compost pile should be situated in a shady part of your garden in order to help retain the moisture and make sure the center of the pile is lower than the sides which will also help to hold in the moisture. Do not be tempted to disturb the pile during the first few weeks, give it time to heat up in the center. After about three weeks it should be starting to look more like compost and you can then start to turn it over with a shovel every couple of weeks.

Applying compost is an affordable way to a healthy garden no matter what sort of things you plan to grow you need healthy soil. By making your own compost pile, instead of relying on pre made bagged fertilizer you would be doing yourself and the environment a service.

There are other types of compost pile designs but the one described above is a fairly simple one to build and is usually the kind most gardeners start out with.

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How to Make Organic Compost Fertilizer and Mulch

Making compost is a process of cultivating living micro-organisms. These micro-organisms must have 4 ingredients to flourish and produce a nutrient rich fertilizer or mulch. These 4 are oxygen or air, water, nitrogen, and carbon. Nitrogen rich materials are the "green" or moist materials such as fresh grass clipping, leaves, and most other alive landscape substances. Carbon rich materials are the "brown" or dry materials such as dry twigs, leaves, hay, and straw etc.  Just keep a note that the greens will be alive and moist and the browns are all things dry. Water will used to wet down each layer of the pile and air or oxygen is added when the pile is turned providing air pockets by not allowing the pile to compress and compact.  Many materials are bio-degradable but for organic fertilizer, it must not have any chemicals.

There is not a set method of building an organic compost pile.  Piles are built in layers to ensure the proper proportion of nitrogen to carbon, and water and air.  Then the layers are thoroughly mixed or "turned". Begin by selecting the area for your compost pile. If possible, a location with as much sunshine will be best. Next, lay a bed a few inches or so thick of dry straw. Begin mixing in one part greens organic matter with two parts brown organic matter. Spread vegetable, fruit and food scraps near the center. Continue adding your mixture of organic matter as the weeks go by. Fresh materials may be added but should be buried inside the pile to speed composting. It is better to add fresh materials to a new pile. You determine the size you want. (Many of the materials can even be stored in trash bags to be used later or for making winter compost.) You will know your compost pile is working if you feel there is heat. Turn the compost pile from every 3 days to every 6 weeks with a pitchfork or shovel. This turning provides the oxygen necessary for decomposition. Turning the pile will maintain the temperature, allowing all the material to benefit from the heat. If you have odors, organic composting lets you know your pile is too damp or is lacking oxygen, and that more frequent turning is necessary. Frequent turning will result in a faster composting. Add a little water if pile is too dry or does not feel warm to hot, especially in dry weather. You can cover the pile with some black plastic or tarps to reduce watering as the water from the "greens" will be released from heating up.

This is active organic composting and should be ready to use in six weeks to eight weeks. The compost will be ready to use when the pile will no longer generate heat. Compost is ready to use when it has an earthy smell and a dark crumbly appearance. (Passive organic fertilizer is allowing the compost pile to decay on its own without tending, turning, etc, and may take up to 8 months to 2 years. Many factors involved here.) Even in active organic composting, one method may be faster than another. But a variety of techniques will work well too.

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Creating a Simple Compost Pile!

Composting is something that is good for both your garden and the environment. The items that you put in compost will break down (keeping them out of the landfills) into very organically rich materials to re-introduce to your garden. Composting can be as easy or consuming as you make it. Personally my composting method is fairly simple and low maintenance. Here is how to do it.

1. Find a space to compost in. Preferably this area will be away from the home (in case of rodents or smell when you first start your pile). Try to choose a place that will get some sun exposure and exposure to the elements (moisture and sunlight will help the process).

2. Decide what type of compost pile you want. You can have a simple pile where you just continue to heap items to let them break down, you can choose to build your own containment area, or choose to purchase a pre-made composting bin. Each has their own advantages and disadvantages. Just remember, that a compost pile does best when somewhat enclosed and with the ability to cover it if you want (enclosing it will keep everything in one place and the heat condensed, also some moisture is good but too much is really bad for composting).

3. Once you have established where you want the pile placed and what type of composting pile/bin you are using you need to start adding organic material. Here are some ideas of things to add to your compost pile:
Small amounts of cardboard and newspaper, coffee grinds and filters, sawdust, scraps of vegetables and fruits, grass clippings, leaves, pruning cuttings (not from very woody plants). Some things not to place in the bin include: intrusive weeds you pulled, bones and meat (some people say this works fine for them, so it's up to you), woody plant cuttings, branches, anything that may contain toxic chemicals, dog feces, etc.

Some last tips for you compost pile are:
Remember to watch how wet it stays. It can rain on your pile, however, you do not want the compost soaked day after day and week after week.

Your compost pile should be hot enough to limit the smell of things rotting and to keep rodents away.

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Common Compost Problems and Solutions

Is your compost pile smelly? Not producing compost fast enough or at all? Damp and cool? These are common problems faced when building a compost pile, but the good news is that they are easy to fix. Listed below are some of the most common problems in a compost pile and their solutions.

Problem: Smelly

Solution: Your compost pile is too wet and is not getting enough oxygen to properly decompose. To help it dry out, you need to add some brown material (such as hay or dry leaves) to the top of the pile. Then rotate the pile, at least once a week, with a pitch fork to get air into the middle of the pile.

Problem: Attracts insects, worms and slugs.

Solution: Do nothing. Insects, worms and slugs are a normal part of the decomposition process.

Problem: Attracts flies, rodents, raccoons and other creatures.

Solution: You have probably added food scraps, such as fish, meat or bones. Avoid adding these items and place other food scrapes near the center of the pile. Put up a wire fence over the pile or switch to a container bin system that has a lid that can be locked into place.

Problem: Grass clippings are not decomposing.

Solution: Avoid adding too thick of a layer of grass or too much grass. Mix in dry leaves and rotate the pile to let oxygen in.

Problem: The compost pile is damp and warm in the middle, but not anywhere else in the pile.

Solution: Your compost pile is too small. When you are composting in a pile, make sure the pile is 3 feet wide and 3 feet high. Composting bins or tumblers don't need to be so large, making them more suitable for the city or small families.

Problem: The compost pile is decomposing most items, but some large items remain.

Solution: Before you put larger items in your compost pile, break them down into smaller pieces. This will give more surface area to the microorganisms that are responsible for decomposing the material in your compost pile.

Problem: The center of the compost pile is dry.

Solution: Add water while rotating the pile. It is important to keep the moisture level just right. Too dry and the materials won't break down properly. Too wet and the pile will start to rot.

Problem: The center of the compost pile is cool or warm, but not hot.

Solution: You need more nitrogen in your compost pile. Add nitrogen rich material such as grass clippings, manure or other green materials. Ensure that any material added is damp. Too dry or wet and the materials won't decompose. Also, when adding grass, make sure that it is in thin layers, so that it will decompose.

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Compost Troubleshooting - Part I

A compost pile has to be healthy in order to efficiently decompose the compost that you add on a daily basis. There are many things that can happen to make your compost pile work inefficiently; you will find some of these problems with solutions explained below.

The temperature of your compost pile should be between 40 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit. If the compost pile is too cold your compost will not mature this decade and if it the compost pile is too hot it may spontaneously combust. Although, the compost lighting on fire is a rare occurrence, it is not something you want to risk. To test the temperature just dig a fist sized hole into the compost and hold your hand inside. The air in the hole should be warmer than the outside air temperature, but it should not be too hot.

Here are some things you can do if your compost pile becomes too cold:

In the summer time, increase the compost pile's exposure to direct sunlight
In the winter time, insulate the compost pile with regular insulating materials, or if you thought ahead you will have to a portable composter that you can move inside
You can raise the temperature by adding more greens (carbon-based organic matter); such as, news paper, straw or dry clippings.

If you find that your compost pile is too hot:

In the summer time, decrease the compost pile's exposure to direct sunlight
Turn or Aerate the compost pile more often or split it up into separate piles. Make sure that you break up the center of the pile because that is where it will be hottest and if a fire is going to start that is where it will happen

If your compost pile is starting to smell like rotten eggs (hydrogen sulfide) or ammonia the best way to deal with the problem is to turn the pile. Turn the pile every day for several days until the smell goes away. The odor is caused by the anaerobic respiration of bacteria in the pile, meaning they are not getting enough oxygen. Most bacteria can live both with and without oxygen, but they use different mechanisms to do so. When there is oxygen they use aerobic respiration which generates water and carbon dioxide as byproducts. This is what you want to be happening in your compost pile. When there is little or no oxygen the bacteria switch to anaerobic respiration creating hydrogen sulfide and ammonia as byproducts (both of which are toxic). This is what you do not want to be happening in your compost pile.

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Let's Speed Up That Compost Pile

Compost piles must hold a minimum of organic material before they will maintain rapid decomposition. So the pile should be at least 3-feet-by-3-feet and 4-feet tall. Naturally piles can be larger. Moving leaves to the pile, then chopping them up with a lawn mower or leaf shredder before they go on the pile aids composting considerably, as small particles decompose faster than large ones.

There are other things we can do to accelerate composting and make it more efficient. As slightly wet leaves decompose quicker than dry ones and rain may not penetrate the pile center, I'd dampen dry leaves before adding them. Ground limestone may also be scattered in if we add a bunch of oak leaves and we're concerned about the acidity they may generate in our pile. Scatter about a pound of lime for every five leaf layers. But do not use lime if your compost will be given to acid loving plants such as mountain laurel, blueberries, azaleas, rhododendrons and potatoes. Adding lime to compost is an option rather than mandatory.

The addition of fertilizers speeds composting. Scatter 1 cup of fertilizer for every 15 square feet of pile.
Two pounds of dried cow manure can be the fertilizer. The addition of fertilizer is not a necessity.

Shady piles seem to compost faster than sunny ones, as they more promptly retain the moisture microbes need. Drenching a dry pile with water can be helpful in hot weather. Construct your pile lower in the center and higher on the sides, that way rain will go in more easily. Covering the pile with plastic sheets to reduce evaporation can help in conserving that most important water supply. Turning the pile every month with a garden fork or similar tool aerates our microbes and speeds composting.

Garden waste material and vegetable scraps make great compost additions, but don't place meat, bones, glass, plastic or metal in the pile. Keep material loaded with weed seeds, plant disease or insects out of the pile. Never put in material that's been treated with herbicide. Straw or hay can be added, but seeds in the hay may not decompose, sometimes causing weed troubles. Pine needles may be added, but because of their waxy coatings, they may take longer to break down. If you add twigs make sure they are small and broken, or they will take forever to break down. If you add newspaper they need to be shredded into tiny strips. Choose an inconspicuous site for the pile. While piles aren't ugly, they are seldom beautiful.

Compost has so many garden uses that I never get enough of this terrific stuff. I blend compost into every planting hole, whether I'm planting a dogwood tree, petunia beds, tomatoes or anything else.

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Tips When Recycling Waste Via Compost Pile

One of the great things about organic waste is that with enough time and the right conditions it will decompose. But that should not be construed to mean that you can toss any kind of organic material onto your compost pile.

But recycling your yard waste via composting is a great way to go. You can take your lawn clippings, leaves, hedge trimmings and any plant trimmings that are "non-woody" and add them to your compost heap. You can even add the wood items if you first make ว่า พวก เขา ถูก สับ เป็น ชิ้น เล็ก มาก.

ใน การ หมัก สนาม หลัง บ้าน ส่วน ใหญ่ ให้ ข้อมูล เดียว ที่ ใหญ่ ที่สุด เป็น จำนวน เงิน มาก ใบ ที่ ฝน ลง ฤดู ใบไม้ ร่วง ทุก ฤดู. นอกจาก นี้ clippings หญ้า สามารถ เพิ่ม ได้ ถ้า หาก พวก เขา ไม่ mulched และ ซ้าย เพื่อ รักษา สนาม หญ้า เอง. เมื่อ clippings หญ้า ที่ ใช้ ใน การ ผสม ปุ๋ย หมัก ที่ พวก เขา ควร จะ ใช้ ร่วม กับ องค์ประกอบ อื่น ๆ เสีย หลา.

ถ้า คุณ มี อุปทาน ของ รายการ ไม้ เช่น ล็อก ขนาด เล็ก หรือ สาขา twigs แล้ว คุณ จะ ต้องhave them chopped or ground up if they are more than a quarter inch in diameter. If you just have a few of these larger wood items you want to put in your compost pile, then you can also use a corn knife to cut them down to a size that will decompose easily.

Many types of kitchen waste items are also appropriate to be included in a compost pile. Fruit rinds, vegetable peelings and scraps, coffee grounds and eggshells that have been crushed are all perfectly acceptable to use in composting and this is a very effective way to recycle these kinds of materials.

There are some organic materials that need to be avoided and which should not be added because of potential health hazards or nuisances that can be created. No type of pet feces should be included in a compost heap because of potential diseases that can be transmitted. Any kind of meat, whole eggs, dairy products and grease should also be excluded because they will attract rodents and other vermin.

In most instances, diseased organisms that are common to plants and weed seeds are destroyed through the process of composting, as long as these components are in the center of the heap and the temperature in the center reaches at least 140 degree F. But, experts caution that it is difficult to assure that such waste will be brought to the center during the composting process. As a result, putting large amounts of diseased plants or weeds with seeds into your compost heap could end up causing problems and should be avoided.

A good compost pile needs a balance of materials that will enhance the decomposition process. In general, keeping the mix to a ration of about one-to-one of brown material with green material works well.

Brown material includes items such as manure, decaying leaves, and newspaper and cardboard. Green material would include the hedge and grass clippings, coffee grounds, and fruit and vegetable peelings.

It is a good idea to keep the compost pile contained in a structure of some kind. This not only helps speed up the decomposition process, but it also minimizes the space needed. You can pick up composter bins at most local garden stores and these are a very good way to help you manage your composting while also helping to keep your backyard looking clean and tidy.

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