Get started: compost

I have an aunt who always says she's "old as dirt." When I was a child, I thought "wow, that's got to be really old!" Now I realize she could be as young as a couple of months (she's not.) And guess what! With these simple steps, you could be the proud owner of your very own dirt! Let's dive in!

In this post, I want to walk through starting a composting routine. We'll be discussing specifically "hot composting" which is done on top of the ground, or in one of those manufactured compost tumblers. You don't need any skill for this! Your compost pile can be as complex as a gravity-feed hopper that spits out black dirt from the bottom as you fill the top with veggies, or as basic as a pile of stuff in the corner of your yard. What I do want you to take away is this: compost is easy if you follow a few rules, it is beneficial to your home in many ways, and it is free.

Part One: What is compost?

I know you know what compost is. It's dirt. More specifically, it is decomposed organic materials used as a soil amendment due to its high nutritional value and beneficial organisms. But did you know there are two types of compost? In the dirt industry, we recognize "Brown Compost" and "Green Compost." 

uh, thank you for the dirt?

Brown compost is inert organic material that offers carbon to the mixture. It is called brown because these items are usually colored brown. This will make up the majority of the "dirt." 

Examples of brown compost are:

- Dry leaves

- twigs and woodchips

- plant stalks

- shredded paper

- carboard

- dryer lint

- animal hair

- coffee filters

Green compost is organic material that provides nitrogen to the mix. This is fresher material that is, you guessed it, often green. The green waste provides food to the organisms that are breaking down the compost.

Hmm, hands again...
Starting to see a pattern.

Examples of green compost are:

- Grass clippings

- fruit and vegetable scraps

- eggshells*

- coffee grounds

- green leaves

- horse, pig, chicken, sheep, goat manure

- other green yard waste (weeds, dying plants, sod)

*animal products such as eggs tend to attract pests. Use sparingly, if at all

So, can I put anything in there? Well, not really. Some things that you can't add would surprise you. Some items will attract pests, some won't break down, some can even kill off the beneficial organisms. I'll try to make this list as intuitive as possible.

Compost no-nos:

- Rice. Molds quickly, which can out-compete good fungi.

- Bread, crackers, other carbs. Attract pests and molds quickly.

- Meat/bones/fish. Attracts pests. Slow to break down

- oils/fats/grease. Do not break down. will cause anaerobic areas.

- dairy products (cheese, butter, etc) pests, and heavy in fats

- dog and cat feces. waste from protien rich diets does not break down properly.

- anything containing chemicals such as pesticides, treated lumber, cleaning chemicals.

Ok look up compost photos and tell me
why there are so many hand pictures!

Part Two: How does it work?

When you build a compost pile, you are essentially building a habitat for waste-eating organisms. All the little invertebrates, fungi, and bacteria need a cozy home to live in, and it's your job to build it. It takes 4 ingredients: Carbon (brown waste), Nitrogen (green waste), water, and oxygen. 

It is important to keep the compost aerated, usually by turning it or mixing it thoroughly several times per season. This will allow the microorganisms to breathe. The good bacteria, which do most of the work by eating the carbon and nitrogen, and turning them into nutrients, are all aerobic meaning they require oxygen to breathe. 

If the pile compacts or becomes water-logged, anaerobic bacteria take over and can make the pile very stinky by producing methane.

Fungi will do a lot of work too. They break down the parts that bacteria can't like the fibrous plant structures such as cellulose. Worms and isopods eat partially decomposed plant matter and excrete very fertile waste, i.e, worm castings. 

You may find other "bugs" in your pile as well. Ants help aerate the soil by digging burrows, flies and larvae eat all organic material, as do beetles, slugs, and other insects. This is why it is important to avoid pesticides and other chemicals. You don't want to kill off your cleaning crew!

well, that's kind of cute.

Part Three: Let's get building!

Step one, pick a location. You have to answer this one yourself. You may not want to walk very far to dump your scraps after dinner. You also don't want it against your house as it will attract insects and be relatively moist, which are both bad for homes. A shady space off in a corner is a safe bet. The shade will help prevent it from drying out. 

Step two, build your space. I find a good starter compost bin is 3 (untreated) wood pallets stood on end making 3 adjacent walls. The materials are easy to find for free, can easily be assembled with minimal tools, and honestly looks halfway nice. You could get fancy and build it out of cedar boards which will last longer. If you want, go ahead and buy a kit or a tumbler! Also, you can just build a pile with no structure whatsoever. It's all up to your taste, budget, and skill. I encourage you to look up designs online. 

Here little plant,
have some hand-dirt!

Step three, assemble the pile. I like to start with a layer of twigs and small diameter branches on the ground, only an inch or two thick. This will give the stack an air space that will allow insects to enter the bottom of the pile. Now you can start adding the browns and greens. The amounts of each are important. If you are a chemist or an industrial composter, your ratio of carbon to nitrogen needs to be between 30:1 and 15:1. If you are reading my blog, you are probably neither of those. My rule of thumb is that I shoot for 2-3 parts brown to 1 part green. If it's not breaking down fast enough, I add more green; if it's starting to smell like trash or rotting fruit, I add more brown. Take note, a properly maintained compost pile should not stink. the balance of nitrogen and carbon allows the bacteria to utilize as much as possible without waste and gasses.

What are you doing? Don't plant that in the
compost bin! That's vegicide!

Step four, water and mix it. Every time I add to the pile, I also add water. A quick spray with the hose or a small bucket poured over the pile will help keep it moist. Many of our friends in the pile need moist conditions to survive. The moisture will also help keep the temperature up as well, which is important to quick decomposition. 

You also need to stir it up. This is where the tumblers really shine. Save yourself some cash though and just grab a $20 spading/digging fork from the garden center. It looks like a stubby pitchfork and works wonders on the fibrous pile of rotting stuff! Every few weeks spend a few minutes trying to turn the whole pile upside down. This should be plenty, though more often won't hurt.

"What do now?" - Charlie Kelly

Well, use it! Compost is the 'industry standard' in organic soil amendments; the first line in growing healthy and fruitful plants. You can use it in containers for patio or indoor plants. Mix it with topsoil and other materials to fill new garden beds. Till it into existing beds to refresh the soil for the next season. 

A few other notes before wrapping up. 

There are a few fringe benefits of composting. My favorite being that my trash doesn't stink. Between composting, garbage disposal, and recycling, very little actually goes into my trash bin. As long as the trash stays dry, the only food going in (bread, snacks, etc) won't really rot. As for meat products (bones, chicken 'diapers', wet packaging), I keep a zip-top bag in my freezer and store this stuff until trash day so it doesn't have a chance to spoil.

You also have a great spot to grab worms for fishing! No more spending $5 for a dozen crawlers at the gas station, just step out back with a hand shovel and a container. When you're back from the trip, drop those worms back into the pile to keep working!

In the winter, it can be hard to find brown compost if you plan to add to it all season. You could freeze your green waste until spring if you have the freezer space. Or you could build a pile of leaves next to the compost in the fall for easy addition all winter. I like to save my dryer lint and shredded junk mail all year until the winter when I need a boost in brown waste.

I think that's a good start! Now go out there and get dirty! 

Ahh, much better!