My neighbor bought a chipper. He's gathering pine and cedar needles, chipping up elderberry branches and other yard debris and wants to know the best way to compost and make good rich soil for growing organic vegetables and flowers.
He's well on his way to making garden gold. Now he'll want to add some green to all that brown, and pile it up. Here's the formula.
50% Brown Material (the chipper stuff)-Carbon
25% Green Material (fresh grass clips, green leaves, weeds without seeds, fruit
and vegetable peels, coffee grounds)-Nitrogen
25% Soil or compost. This will introduce micro-organisms to the pile and speed the decay
process.
Water. Keep the pile as moist as a wrung out sponge.
Never add meat or fish scraps, dairy products, or cooked food.
Building Your Compost Pile
Layer the brown (carbon), green (nitrogen) and soil. Add water to dampen as your build your pile. Continue your layers of brown, green and soil like layers of a lasagna. Build your pile until it is 3-4’ high.
The more time you put into your bin, the faster the results will be. You may want to turn your compost pile once a week to speed the decay process, but you don’t have to.
Composting does not smell if it is done properly. If your pile is creating odors, add more carbon material.
Now, maybe he'll share with you, if you share this info with him!!
Happy Gardening!
the best way to compost is to "turn" your compost heap every other day so that it won't turn into a stinky rotton mess or catch on fire. Put in things like wood chips, leftover vegetables, fruit peelings, egg shells, shredded cardboard…..just nothing like meat or milk, or cheese or anything. Also, you can even add cow poo to make it rich.
References :
Wood chips don't make a good soil conditioner unless they have been composted for several years. The reason is that they use up too much nitrogen from the soil in order to decay, and this can kill plants. It's better to use them as a mulch on top of the soil or as a covering for a path/walkway. It will be more useful to him to mix leaves and kitchen vegetable scraps (not woody items) and compost them, or dig them into a hole in the garden to let them decay there. Turning the soil over every year and digging organic material (compost, organic fertilizers, etc) into it will also help. It won't happen overnight, though.
References :
Nothing "builds" better soil than compost. Compost is best made by laying organic matter with soil. The soil provides the bacteria that drives the composting. Any organic matter can be used: needles, leaves, kitchen vegetable and fruit scraps, moss, seaweed, etc. Leaves are usually plentiful and I find that they make the best compost. You will be surprised how hot the compost pile will get once it starts to cook. When it begins to cool down it is time to turn the pile. When it has been turned several time, stops heating, and begins to look dark and rich, work it into your garden. The more you put in…the richer your soil becomes. BEWARE….if you try to use too much woody material such as ground up brush, sticks, etc…..the pile will not heat well AND you will deplete the nitrogen in your garden. It takes a lot of nitrogen to break down cellulose.
References :
Composting your lawn clippings, coffee grounds, fruit and veggie discards and fallen leaves are the choice materials for adding to your soil. We add small amounts of soil to the compost to aid in the breaking down process. It needs to be watered occasionally and turned over. It takes several months until it is ready for use. Sprinkle with lime to control odor. You can add a small amount of of the chips but I wouldn't put too many in, as this is mulch, not soil material. We till our compost into the soil each spring about a month before planting and you can use it as mulch as well.
References :
He's well on his way to making garden gold. Now he'll want to add some green to all that brown, and pile it up. Here's the formula.
50% Brown Material (the chipper stuff)-Carbon
25% Green Material (fresh grass clips, green leaves, weeds without seeds, fruit
and vegetable peels, coffee grounds)-Nitrogen
25% Soil or compost. This will introduce micro-organisms to the pile and speed the decay
process.
Water. Keep the pile as moist as a wrung out sponge.
Never add meat or fish scraps, dairy products, or cooked food.
Building Your Compost Pile
Layer the brown (carbon), green (nitrogen) and soil. Add water to dampen as your build your pile. Continue your layers of brown, green and soil like layers of a lasagna. Build your pile until it is 3-4’ high.
The more time you put into your bin, the faster the results will be. You may want to turn your compost pile once a week to speed the decay process, but you don’t have to.
Composting does not smell if it is done properly. If your pile is creating odors, add more carbon material.
Now, maybe he'll share with you, if you share this info with him!!
Happy Gardening!
References :
http://www.rrrasoc.org/homecomposting.html