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Composting for Beginners – Do’s and Don’ts, Bins and Tumblers

In order for your garden and plants to sustain a healthy and long lifespan, having soil rich in nutrients is a necessity. Composting is the solution to this dilemma that many new gardeners come across, and this article explains what composting is, what you should and shouldn’t use, and the composting systems available for you to get started.

Lots of novice gardeners believe that their plants and vegetables only need plenty of water and sunlight in order to sustain a healthy and fruitful lifespan. However this is not entirely true as plants also need healthy soil rich in nutrients to be able to survive and grow properly. The solution to this dilemma is composting.

Now, most of us aren’t too sure of what the heck composting is or what it even entails – I know I didn’t! An easy way to explain it is composting is a way for us to give back to the earth by using organic materials such as food scraps, vegetable scraps, grass clippings, leaves and manure from grass eaters like cows, sheep and rabbits. In general, composting is a wonderfully organic process that benefits your garden and the environment tremendously. In today’s article we’ll go ahead and talk about the benefits of composting, what you should and shouldn’t compost, and some composting systems you should consider investing in.

We all know that when anything dies it starts to decompose – humans, animals, plants, it’s all a very natural process. But did you know that in turn, the soil becomes very rich in nutrients and new life starts to grow? That’s the true benefit of composting and that’s what you want for your garden. In addition to improving your soil, it saves you money, makes for terrific mulch for your garden, and places less burden on landfills.

Before you start undertaking a large composting project, there are a few key things you should keep in mind, like what you can and can’t use for composting. Let’s start with what you shouldn’t compost; this includes weeds full of seeds and/or diseases, pesticide infested plants, wood ashes, lime, barbeque charcoal, meat, grease, bones, dairy products, cat, dog and/or human waste, plastic, metal, glass, branches, wood chunks, anything contaminated, and large loads of soggy matter. Obviously anything in the aforementioned list would have an adverse effect on your compost, or won’t decompose properly, especially the bones, but we’ll go more into that later on in a future article.

With that said, it’s highly recommended that you use grass clippings, leaves, non-diseased and seed sprouting weeds, dead plants, food scraps like fruit and veggie wastes, cow, sheep or llama manure, straw/hay, coffee grounds, and even hair and lint when composting. These items break down quick and easily, giving you the end result that you’re looking for.

The next thing that you need to keep in mind is where you’re going to be doing all of this composting work. While some don’t mind working on their compost heap out in the open, like in the woods or in an open area preferably away from prying eyes (I never said it was a pretty looking process), I suggest looking into a compost bin or tumbler system. There are a couple of compost bin systems that you should consider: the one bin and multi-bin systems. For the money conscious the one bin system is the preferred method since it is easy and most municipalities even work with manufacturers to make this method available to the public. In addition, it’s easy to move about, most can hold heat well and is sturdy enough to keep rodents and other wildlife out. The multi-bin system is for households that produce a lot of waste; it generally does the same thing as the one bin method but it allows you to stockpile your materials in one bin and in the other when more materials become ready. Both methods take anywhere from three to eight months in terms of ready to use compost.

Another method you can consider is working with a compost tumbler, which isn’t cheap, but it is small if you’re working with limited space. Think of the benefits though: tumblers rotate which keep your compost aerated and generate heat, which in turn means that you’ll have a batch of ready to use compost in about three weeks. The wire collector is another option to weigh. Great for garnering up quick, ready to use composting, it’s cheap and you can even make one yourself out of rabbit wire or field fencing. However, I don’t really recommend it too often because it’s easy for wildlife to break in to and it doesn’t hold in heat very well. But the great thing about it is after your compost is done and ready, all you have to do is just remove the wire covering.

Do keep in mind the laws of your city. You wouldn’t think it, but check with your local government agency to see what your city will let you compost, like food scraps and what not. After all being cited for not composting within the legalities of your city isn’t very green. And when choosing the ideal composting system, think about your needs, how much waste you can you’d regularly add to it, how animal-resistant it is, and whether you can easily remove your ready to use compost. I know it’s a lot to think about before you begin, but trust me, it’s well worth the effort. In our next installment I’ll go ahead and talk about the science and art of composting – stay tuned!

*Referenced from Home Composting Made Easy by C. Forrest McDowell, PhD and Tricia Clark-McDowell, 2002.

Composting for Beginners – the Science in Perfecting the Art of Composting

Contrary to popular belief, it takes patience and science in perfecting the art of composting. Read on to find out how finding the perfect balance between carbon and nitrogen will give you many successful batches of compost.

Behind every scientific equation in composting lies an art form that’s different for everyone. Composting isn’t necessarily a hard thing to do; other than the materials, equipment, waste and space, all it truly needs on your end is patience and commitment. We’re not exactly painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, but we’re going to make a healthy, sustainable garden fit for one with just composting alone! Remember, it’s a trial and error method until you find the perfect scientific solution to make your ideal batch of compost.

Let’s begin with an explanation of the carbon/nitrogen ratio, or the C/N ratio. In order for you to have a successful, usable batch of compost you have to have the right balance between the brown stuff and the green stuff. Get your mind out of the gutter! It’s not what you really think it is! The brown stuff, like dried leaves, tree bark, straw and hay have a lot of carbon, and the green stuff like fresh grass clippings, fresh leaves, chicken manure, fruit wastes and food scraps have a lot of nitrogen. This is where the simple scientific equations come in; actually it might be better if you think of it more as a cooking recipe because it really is!

According to Home Composting Made Easy, it’s best if you try to achieve the ideal 30:1 C/N ratio for your compost. This average ratio basically describes the chemical composition of your materials, NOT 30 times the amount of brown stuff to one of the green. With this ratio you’re bound to reach a hot temperature of about 140 degrees Fahrenheit, which is ideal for the microbes in your compost to eat up all the carbon and nitrogen rich goodies.

Another recipe that you can follow is the "2 parts green, 1 part brown" recipe also found in Home Composting Made Easy. This basically means that you can achieve the 30:1 to 50:1 ratio, the latter being ideal for low temperature compost batches, by including two parts of green stuff to one part brown stuff. For example, if you mix grass clippings (17:1), non-diseased and seedy weeds (20:1) with dried leaves (60:1) and divide that up by three, you have a product of 32:1, which is close to the 30:1 average. Of course, you should play around with your recipe to find the perfect fit for your batches. As long as you don’t have too much green or too much brown, you should have a successful batch of ready to use compost!

Remember, composting is a science and an art form. Keep working at it and use these basics to find the perfect C/N ratio.

*Referenced from Home Composting Made Easy by C. Forrest McDowell, PhD and Tricia Clark-McDowell, 2002.

Composting for Beginners, Bins and Tumblers
Composting for Beginners, Bins and Tumblers. Composting for Beginners – Do’s and Don’ts, Bins and Tumblers.

Beginners Guide to Home Composting
Composting your kitchen and garden waste is a great way to reduce the amount of waste you dispose of in your rubbish bin. By composting your waste you can generate a free source of rich compost to help improve your garden.

Beginners permaculture garden
The garden can include compost generated from appropriate food scraps and yard waste. What’s the easiest and cheapest way to get started with this? Some options include an indoor worm composter and various backyard units.

Chipping Away at the Big Numbers
Composting for Beginners. According to the U.S. EPA and as of 2006, Americans generated a whole bunch of trash. One of the reasonably easy ways to reuse certain types of home-generated ‘trash’ — as well as help your flowers and grass, is to compost.