compostbasics - Getting Started

Getting Started - Page 1 of 3

Place your composter in a level spot on bare soil. Sun or shade is fine. The heat of the sun does not cause the chemical heat of composting. Here at compostbasics^TM, we put the composter on our raised beds in the spring before planting and make compost there. This encourages earthworm activity in the beds and keeps the composting material right where we are going to plant. Later we compost in any spot that is convenient.

Alternate layers of "green" and "brown" material in your compost pile. Sprinkle in some soil or finished compost every now and then. Green materials are usually freshly cut and full of moisture -- veggie and fruit peelings, grass clippings, weed stems and leaves. Surprisingly, coffee grounds are nitrogen rich and in the green group, too. Brown materials are dried and often brown in color -- leaves, hay, straw, dried grass clippings, woody chips, a little sawdust from untreated wood. Add about half brown and half green. It's also helpful to sprinkle in some finished compost or soil to add some of the microorganisms that help with decomposition.

Keep a container of brown material right next to your composter. Add some brown every time you dump in kitchen scraps or weeds or grass clippings.

Stockpile brown material in the fall. One of the most frequent problems that folks have with composting is having enough brown material in the summer when there is an abundance of green. Collecting bags of leaves and storing them for later solves this problem. City dwellers can also collect leaves and mulched hay in the spring when the neighbors rake it off their gardens and put the material out by the curb.

Keep adding kitchen scraps and brown material all through the winter even if your compost pile freezes. When the pile thaws in the spring, it will be all layered and ready to start cooking.

Cut up, shred, mash or chip the material before you put it into your pile. Remember that the smaller the pieces of material you put into the composter, the more surfaces that will be exposed to each other and the faster the materials will break down. Use a knife, food processor, chipper or machete to cut things up into smaller pieces. Playing in big leaf piles with children is a great way to shred up leaves.

Cut sticks into very small pieces before adding them to your pile. We don't encourage you to add sticks and branches to your pile unless they are in very small pieces -- preferably chipped up. Sticks take a much longer time to break down and are a hassle as you turn and screen your compost. If you don't plan on turning your pile very often, you could put a jumble of sticks in the bottom of the pile to help keep the air intake vents open.

Do not add meat, oil, bread products or dairy products. These materials attract a wide variety of animals to the compost pile.

Keep your pile at 130° F or higher for 3 days if you add manure. Manure is an excellent source of nitrogen rich, green material but it may carry harmful pathogens. Some experts advise against adding any manure to a home compost pile. If you do, you should turn your pile often to keep it hot and use a compost thermometer to monitor the temperature of your pile.

Water your compost pile as you layer it. The material should always be as wet as a damp sponge. You should be able to squeeze a couple of drops of water out of the material. Cover the pile so it does not get saturated with water when it rains. Too much moisture stops the composting process. To dry out the material if it does get saturated, just open the composter and spread out the material to dry before turning it back into the bin.