You do not have to buy anything or follow any recipe. Nature WILL make compost.
What Is Compost?
Compost is garden soil made out of things that used to be alive. Plants
love it. What is the easiest way to start a compost pile? Designate a
space in your yard to be the compost pile, about three feet wide.
Then add weeds, straw, leaves, dirt, water, and kitchen scraps.
That is all you have to do. If animals get into your compost, enclose it
in a cylinder of stiff wire mesh fence.
What Goes Into a Compost Pile?
Air. Compost needs air; do not enclose it in an
airtight container. You can stir the compost if you want but I rarely do.
Water. Add enough water
to keep the pile damp but not soggy. A dry pile will also work, but more slowly.
Yard Waste.
Grass clippings, leaves and weeds are good. Avoid crab grass, ivy, blackberries, or other
aggressive growers.
Soil. Ordinary soil
contains organisms that help the compost break down. Soil also
helps control odor. You can use a shovel-full of finished compost.
Kitchen Waste. Most of what you normally put down the
garbage disposal can go into the compost instead. Keep an
open compost bowl in your kitchen and dump it on the compost every
day. Do not use a closed container; it will cause the scraps to
stink. Good
materials include: peels and rinds, smashed egg shells, fruit and
vegetable trimmings, non-greasy leftovers, coffee grounds, and stale bread.
Avoid meats and sweets and greasy foods because they attract pests.
(Optional) Manure. Manure speeds and enriches the
development of compost, but you do not have to use it. Avoid dog doo; dog
waste
contains harmful microorganisms. You can put dog doo into the soil
under a non-food tree where you do not expect to be working in the soil.
Good manure comes from horses, cows, rabbits and chickens. You can get manure for free,
but it might be infested with flies and fly eggs.
I generally compost without manure.
Other good ingredients for compost include: earthworms (night crawlers or red worms,
from a bait shop),
unbleached paper products (such as brown paper bags), and wood shavings.
When and How Do You Use Your Compost?
The compost is ready to use when it has turned
into rich soil, and you can barely see individual ingredients anymore.
Three months after starting your pile, start a new pile. Give your original pile two more months to decompose.
The amount of compost will be MUCH less than what you put into it;
it will have broken down. Mix it into your garden soil, or just spread it on top.
You will be contributing to the topsoil of the Earth.
