All The Facts About Organic Composting

Composting is the process of using microorganisms to decompose organic material in a controlled manner in the presence of oxygen. The microorganisms that are used for this purpose include bacteria and fungi.

Location

You can create your own organic compost by building a pile on the ground and covering it with cardboard. If you want to use an enclosed space, you can use a bin. It is best to use a container that is covered and does not have any holes or gaps.

Choose a spot that is at least a couple of feet away from any nearby structures, to avoid the spread of worms and microbes. The ideal location is a sunny spot in your garden.

Ingredients

Composting works best if you use an equal mixture of green and brown ingredients. Green ingredients for composting include manure, by-products of crops, vegetable peelings, and cow manure. Brown ingredients include wood shavings, cardboard, waste paper, and sawdust.

Avoid ingredients such as meat, dairy products, cooked food, and cat or dog litter, as these can invite unwanted vermin. Avoid adding plants that suffer from root rot or other such soil-borne diseases.

Process

Collect a mixture of equal amounts of green and brown ingredients in a bin. The mixture must make a layer around 2 feet tall. Add ingredients such as paper that will aerate the mixture. Mix the ingredients thoroughly, and water it as you mix. As the microbes begin to act on the mixture, it will warm up. Turn the mixture around with a rake every couple of weeks. When the mixture does not warm up anymore, stop turning the heap around, and leave it undisturbed. Always ensure that the heap is moist and aerated.

Organic composting can take anywhere from six weeks to a year. The end result will be a condensed, dark brown, earthy substance that is pleasant smelling. For best results, you can let the compost mature for a couple of months before using it.

Benefits

• When added to soil, compost acts as a fertilizer and supplies all the required nutrients that aid the growth of plants.
• Compost helps plants build resistance to disease and pests.
• Compost helps break down toxins in the soil, and improves its texture.
• Mature compost is high in humus, which improves the soil fertility and structure. Humus also improves water retention in the soil.
• Production of compost is an ideal way of using waste products to produce soil fertilizer. This also helps in reducing the load on landfills.
• Use of compost helps you save money, because it reduces the plants’ requirement for chemical pesticides and fertilizers.
• Compost contains many important nutrients that are not found in chemical fertilizers.
• Compost can be used as mulch. In this form, it suppresses the growth of weeds, and reduces the required irrigation for plants.
• It helps in improving soil insulation.
• Compost releases nutrients to plants slowly, as compared to a large one-time dose provided by chemical fertilizers.
• Compost helps in improving soil porosity and increases soil bulk by addition of humus and organic nutrients.