Gardening with Gary

Gardening Advice from an Expert

Composting

One family's trash is another family's treasure.

Backyard composting is a simple and effective way to help the environment and improve your Backyard Wildlife Habitat site. Composting is a natural process that turns organic waste from your yard and home into valuable nutrients for your gardens and indoor house plants, while at the same time reducing the amount of trash you send to the local landfill.

March is the perfect time to start a backyard compost pile since many people are spring cleaning their yards. Once you choose a proper site for your compost area and create the starter pile, there is little maintenance required. Read on to find out how to create a simple backyard compost pile in your yard!

1. Choosing the site for your compost pile or bin

Choose a convenient place for your compost pile. You are more likely to use a pile that is easily accessible. Choose a level spot near a water source and preferably out of direct sunlight. Do not build your compost pile against wooden buildings or fences because it will eventually cause the wood to decay. Your compost pile should be about 1 cubic yard (3' wide by 3' long by 3' tall). This size will ensure it is large enough to hold heat, but small enough to allow for proper aeration.

2. To bin or not to bin

Unless required by local ordinances, bins are not necessary for successful backyard composting. Composting bins may save space or look neater, but quality compost can be produced using either bins or open piles.

3. What to compost

A mixture of yard waste and select kitchen scraps creates a healthy compost pile. Start the pile with a 4-inch layer of leaves, loose soil, or other coarse yard trimmings. Always mix kitchen scraps with yard trimmings when adding them to the compost pile. There are two types of materials that can be added to your compost pile - "greens" and "browns." Fresh "green" materials are high in nitrogen and dried "brown" materials are high in carbon. Both types of materials are necessary for the composting process. A good rule to follow is one part "greens" to three parts "browns.""Greens" are fresh plant materials and kitchen scraps such as: green weeds and leaves, houseplants, fruit and vegetable scraps, and other kitchen scraps such coffee grounds (and filters), tea bags, stale bread, and egg shells. Certain types of manure (cow, horse, pig, chicken, and rabbit) are also considered "green" and appropriate for your compost pile."Browns" are dry and dead plant materials such as: straw, dried weeds and leaves, wood chips, sawdust, and shredded newspaper.

4. What NOT to compost

There are many items that should never be added to a compost pile or bin. These items may attract pests, produce a bad odor, or transmit diseases to humans, pets, or wildlife. Avoid adding these items to your compost pile: chemically treated wood products diseased plants weeds with seeds exotic invasive plants human wastes pet wastes or used cat litter meat/fish scraps or bones oil, grease, fat dairy products.

5. Maintaining your compost pile

Compost is created by billions of microbes (fungi, bacteria, etc.) that digest the yard and kitchen wastes you place in your compost pile. In addition to the nutrition you provide through the compost ingredients, you must also maintain an adequate level of air and moisture in the pile for these microbes. You will need to "turn" the compost pile every few weeks to circulate the air and distribute the moisture. The pile can be turned with a pitchfork or shovel. Don't be surprised by the heat generated from the pile or to see worms living in it - both are part of the natural decomposition process. Ideally, the pile should be as moist as a damp kitchen sponge. If there is too much moisture, the compost materials will be too heavy to allow air to circulate. Simply cover the pile with a trash bag or tarp until it dries out. If there is too little moisture, add water with a hose or bucket.

6. Now for your reward… How to use the compost In warm climates

The compost is ready to distribute within three to six months when it becomes a dark crumbly material that is uniform in texture. This nutrient-rich material can be used as potting soil or to enrich the soil in your gardens and yard beds.

For more information about backyard composting, you can order this simple, easy to read book entitled Backyard Composting: Your Complete Guide to Recycling Yard Clippings. Copyright NWF

http://www.nwf.org/backyardwildlifehabitat

Member Melinda writes~
My husband and I would like to build a very large compost bin, but so far have only found plans for small ones for food scraps and clippings. Do you have any ideas where we can find plans or do you have any suggestions? We would like to compost all of our horse manure and bedding (for five horses), grass clippings, and such. Any help you could give would be appreciated.

A. This is not an area which I know anything about! But, I did some searching and have some websites to recommend where you can obtain information on various groups of composting from home gardens to larger scales of manure composting:

The Composting Process
Composting Methods
Management of Composting
Land Application of Compost
Issues and Options

All above at: http://www.ianr.unl.edu/pubs/wastemgt/g1315.htm

BioCycle -- Published since 1960, BioCycle is America's foremost magazine on composting and recycling.

Compost Resource -- Covers the full range from home and garden composting to vermiculture to large-scale operations. Includes discussion forums.

Cornell Composting -- Master composters and novices alike will appreciate this site's explanation of the composting process and helpful management tips. Includes easy-to-use forms for calculating an ideal mix.

Humusphere-- A growing hub for a broad range of composting information from home-scale to commercial. Composting news, links, vendor and product directories.

All above at: http://www.ibiblio.org/farming-connection/links/compmanu.htm

Q. Every fall I gather the fallen leaves from a Sycamore tree in my garden to add to my compost heap to be dug in the following year. However, this year I notice the leaves have large black spots on them. Can they still be used for the heap or should I just dispose them?

A. I am glad you asked. I do not want you to add these leaves as they most likely have a fungus growing on the leaves. This can overwinter even a harsh climate and the spores blossom out in the warmth and moisture of next spring.

Then, you will introduce them to your new plants in the garden beds, as small veggies and flowers, which are most susceptible to attacks when young.

Never add anything at all that looks suspicious. It is great that you thought about this subject, as everyone reading this should go through all which you add to your compost pile regardless of when, to inspect closely for anything that appears weird. if in doubt, please discard into a garbage can and have removed as soon as you can, so it will not spread.

This is also a great way for insects to overwinter and attack your plants next year.

Georgia writes~ What are your favorite type of composters and why?

A. I have never bought a composter, so had to do a little research for you. I have located these sites. The first one has an entire inventory of various models well worth looking at before any purchase. Click on each one for a description and price. There you will be able to decide which is best for your particular needs.

Garden composters and tumbling bins: http://www.composters.com/main.shtml

Gardener's Supply Company Innovative Earth-friendly solutions www.gardeners.com

Composters www.buychoice.com

www.garden-tips.com

www.ecopatio.com/shop/composter.html

www.avalongarden.com/for-the-garden-composters.html

shop.store.yahoo.com/cleanairgardening

Gardeners Supply www.vg.com

I thought this was a clever recipe from Michigan Bulbs:

The ideal compost heap is like a layer cake:

Layer 1: Straw.
Layer 2: Green (fresh kitchen wastes, grass clippings, etc.).
Layer 3: Brown (dried grass, dead leaves, old cornstalks, etc.).
Layer 4: More green.
Layer 5: More brown (or straw).

And so on...

Add an "icing" of soil on top of each green layer.

All your plants will love this "compost cake"!

Gary, San Francisco, CA

An writes~
Would you please give me a few seconds of your time to let me know that the growing medium can be of other organic matters such as greens, and vegetable scraps, etc. Or must it consist of 40% straw, 40% saw dust, 20% animal manure?

A. Compost for years have been made with organic wastes from a household or yard. They include vegetables, skins, rinds, dead leaves, coffee grounds, stems, anything which is free from organisms. Do not put old, moldy, sick materials in the pile, nor anything which is diseased or insect-infested. The breakdown of the tissues releases minerals and elements quite beneficial for plant growth. Heat from the composting [decomposition] will speed the breakdown. That is why a forest ground of dead needles, leaves, bark and stems produces such healthy seedlings for the following generations. Do not use any compost until the following year, giving it time to age and complete its cycle.