Sift through your materials over a wheel barrel or in a separate pile. All the good fresh compost will fall through the holes and the other materials such as twigs, un-composted organic materials and plastics and stones will stay on top. Adding the right materials.
Usually we run short of brown material to add to the pile and that is often true of piles that we are trying to keep chugging and producing fast results. We will talk about this in more detail just below. Chop them fine. When adding your mix of browns and greens, try to chop them down to as small of a size as possible. Add existing compost. This part is crucial to starting up a fast pile. Existing compost already has the billions of active microbes that are needed to get things started.
The existing plants and ground are full of helpful bacteria and microbes that are needed but they will need to start fresh with the material you have.
When adding some fresh compost to the new pile, you introduce all the right ones into the mix straight off the mark. This will help your pile break down much faster. If you do not have available compost at hand you can always borrow a small bucket from a neighbor or if you are unsure of what was used to make their compost, you could always get a safe source of compost starter from Amazon for a great price.
You will only need to source out this material once as after you have finished your first batch of compost, you will have a source of quality compost to start off each additional pile from then on.
Mix your materials thoroughly. Like mentioned earlier, this is an important step that many people forget to perform. In order for the composting process to really take place and for your pile to heat up to the correct temperature, the materials must be mixed up really well.
This means either using a shovel, an aerator or a pitch fork which I think works best for a pile to turn the materials over them selves several times in order to ensure a good mix. This will both mix all the materials into the right proportions for compost but will also fluff the pile up and add oxygen to the mix, a very important part of the composting procedure.
A larger container can capture and retain more heat than a smaller one. Of course, the size of your compost bin is contingent on the space you have available. If you have to rely on a smaller compost bin, put the container in a place where the pile will receive a lot of direct sunlight.
The ideal height and width of the compost pile is three feet , which will allow things to heat up more quickly than smaller compost piles. The material of your bin is also important. Compared to wooden bins, plastic compost bins are much better at retaining heat, which will speed up the composting process.
Ultimately, composting relies on the production of carbon and nitrogen, which feed off each other. Your compost pile, therefore, needs to feature even, alternating layers of both green and brown contents. Keep in mind that different materials break down at different speeds, so that variety must be factored into how long it will take to make finished compost. Food scraps like uncooked fruits and veggies — peelings and all — are perfect for good compost. The same logic applies to other kitchen scraps like eggshells, tea bags, coffee grinds, old wines, as well as herbs and spices.
These materials will break down in a matter of weeks. Other greens like lawn clippings and leafy vegetable garden waste are great, as long as they are free of chemical herbicides. Keep an eye on how much grass clippings you add at a time. If the layer is more than 20 cm thick, it will take longer to break down. Brown materials that compost quickly include dried leaves, pine needles and small woody branches. Paper and cardboard can also be added but will take a few months to fully decompose.
Shred or tear it up as much as possible. Keep in mind that some items, such as greeting cards, wrapping paper, glossy catalogs and fliers, contain laminated materials, glitter and plastics that cannot be composted. Whether you want to get finished compost as fast as possible or have time to let it mature, there are certain materials you should avoid adding to the pile at all costs. Other materials that will slow down decomposition or otherwise disrupt the microbial harmony of your compost pile include meat and dairy products, avocado and other fruit stones, and diseased plants.
You should also refrain from adding pet droppings, diseased plants, coal ash, inorganic materials like glass, metals or plastics, as well as any other material that has come into contact with herbicides or pesticides. This also makes spring the best time to start your compost.
That way it can benefit from warm summer temperatures. Also, include a fair amount of soil to the bin to include microorganisms that will decompose the components. Initially, it will need to be turned more often — twice a week is sufficient.
Once the microorganisms start working their magic and the temperatures start rising within the pile, then it will only need to be turned once a week. Use a compost thermometer to keep the temperature in check. If the temperature drops or rises beyond the range, turn the pile and water it. The more it is turned, the better, in this case. Although hot composting is a labor-intensive method, usable compost will be available within a couple of months.
For those gardeners who are not in a rush, cold composting is the route to an effortless homemade compost. Although it is possible to leave it entirely up to nature, turning it once a month or so can help speed it up a little.
It will take its due time to break down the organic material and release nutrients. However, there are a bunch of things that could be done to speed up the process. Here are some tips:.
Compost tumblers will work, but a bigger compost pile will work faster. Microbes work through the compost pile, heating it up. Heat is the key to speeding up the composting process. A larger pile, typically 3x3x3 feet, will do a better job of retaining heat and composting faster. Nitrogen heats up the pile, encourages the microbes to multiply, and as a result, speeds up composting.
Commercial compost starters or compost accelerators are available, but they are expensive and completely unnecessary. They contain nitrogen sources or microbes, or both. As long as the compost pile is healthy, both of these essential elements are already there. Even if nitrogen is lacking in the pile, adding nitrogen fertilizer will do the trick. Instead of adding whole leaves, use shredded leaves. The smaller the size of the organic material, the greater the surface area it will have for being decomposed by microorganisms.
With greater surface area, the material will decompose and turn to compost much faster than when using larger pieces. However, a lawn mower works perfectly for shredded leaves and soft material from the garden. How does a compost really work and what do you need to know?
Instead, add fruit and veggie scraps, eggshells, percent real paper, and cardboard to the compost pile on the regular. Different foods and compostable items break down according to different time frames.
Some composting bins use the help of worms, which eat the scraps, breaking them down faster, while others rely solely on the elements. Composted items can take anywhere for four weeks to 12 months to decompose. So, since different items and compost work on different timelines, how do you know when your compost is finished? The easy answer is that it should look like topsoil — dark and crumbly, like dirt.
The more difficult answer is that you can test it out. Put a handful of the compost into a sealed plastic bag. If it smells earthy, like dirt, then indeed your compost is finished and ready to go.
0コメント