Healthy soil is high in organic matter, so adding compost is one way to increase organic matter quickly. Making your own compost is easy if you just follow some basic rules. There are many ways to improve upon these methods, but for beginners it’s as easy as 2 brown + 1 green + air + water + time = compost.
Any compost pile needs a good mixture of carbon-rich “brown” material and nitrogen-rich “green” material. Brown material includes fall leaves, wood chips, straw, seed hulls, husks, cobs, stems, cardboard, paper, or any other dried out plant material. Green material includes food scraps, manure, urine, green leaves, mushroom mycelium, food processing by-products, or any other nutritive plant, fungus, or animal material.
You’ll want to use at least twice as much brown material as green material by volume. If your green material is very high in nitrogen, like chicken manure or foods high in sugar, you’ll want to use more brown material to balance it out. Layer or mix them together so the green material is spread out and aerated. The compost is done when it is evenly decomposed and dark brown or black.
Here are some tips to improve your results:
- Don’t use animal products or cooked food unless you ferment it first to make it unappetizing to pests. See this post to learn how to Compost with Bokashi.
- Chop or shred your brown matter to make it break down faster.
- Moisten the pile with a hose if it starts drying out. It should be moist but not sopping wet.
- Cover the pile with a tarp to keep it from drying out and getting too wet from the rain.
- Turn the pile every couple of weeks to keep it aerated.
Links to More Information
Infographic: Choosing the Best Composting Method https://www.gardensthatmatter.com/infographic-best-compost-method/
The Science of Composting: How Compost Happens https://www.compostmagazine.com/compost-science/
