One of the true thrills of gardening is making your own compost. In addition to this you will need to handle plants, soil, rocks, fertilizer and soil conditioner. A pair of gloves will not only come in very handy it will be a necessity.
Composting is the process by which materials that are destined for the landfill are used to create nutritional products for the garden and lawn. Compost is a soil-like substance that will function as a soil conditioner, a mulch and fertilizer. It will feed your garden the microorganisms that plants need to grow healthy and strong.
It is usually best if the compost pile is located near your garden and at the same time has enough concealment to not affect the overall look of your garden. You want it to be close to the garden for convenience but you do not want visitors to see the compost pile. A corral or a fenced area would do fine.
After you set up your composting area you begin the compost pile by arranging a 3:1 ratio of brown and green items. Green ingredients contain nitrogen the brown ingredients contain carbon. Together these components make up the foundation of a compost pile. The green organic items of gardening include grass clippings while the brown items are the dry leaves and other wood products.
If you are concerned about the bad smell that would come out of your compost pile, don't worry about it. If you have the right combination of green and brown material you do not have to worry about a bad smell. Compost will have an earthy smell and it will not smell like rot.
One way to insure that your compost pile has the right combination of green and brown material is to collect a nice gathering of material before you make your pile. When you are ready to make your pile begin with a one part of green material and follow it up with three parts brown material. The next layer should be some very course material such as twigs or straw, aeration between the layers is very important. Think of a composting lasagna.
To get the process started quickly add some already composted material. This will help to start the process and introduce microbial activities in your compost heap.
Make sure that you add enough moisture to the pile. Dampness in the compost pile will help the breakdown of the organic materials. Think of a damp sponge.
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If you care about the environment then you will be in favor of a
compost heap. This method is about giving back to the land what it has given you, and starting a
compost heap is the best way to do that.
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