Here’s a cheat sheet for you — a listing of all the steps involved in hot composting.
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Have you ever wondered what to expect in terms of how many stages your compost pile should go through, how hot the pile gets, and how to know when the composting cycle is finished? If so, follow along as I explain how to identify the different stages of a hot compost cycling.
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Mmmm! Smell this beautiful aroma of brand new compost! Nothing like it! With this finished compost you can add nutrients and organic matter to the soil, improve its texture, and increase its ability to hold air and water.
Because finished compost does not burn plant roots, large quantities of compost can be applied to the soil at any time. Here are a few ways you can use your finished compost:
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If you are using a compost bin and have a compost pile in it, you will probably find that the summer’s high heat accelerates the composting process (providing the pile is humid and it has been turned to allow more air/oxygen to circulate).
On the other hand, perhaps your pile won’t heat up. What can you do? What are compost activators? When and how can compost activators help?
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Now that we’ve covered what are compost pile ingredients (see previous posts), let’s look at what must be done to build a hot compost pile.
1. Before you actually begin to build a hot compost pile, gather an equal amount of both “green” and “brown” ingredients, (see post on “Compost Pile Ingredients“).
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Equally important to knowing what materials can be added to the compost pile is what materials must absolutely be left out of your compost pile — unless you’re looking for problems. Below is a list of materials to be left out of your compost pile and why.
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Adding assorted materials to your compost pile is the third and a very important requirement if you want your compost recipe to work well. Best results are obtained if 1) there is enough air to provide the oxygen necessary for the bacteria to carry out “aerobic” decomposition; 2) your compost pile is as damp as a wrung-out sponge, and 3) you have a mixture of both “brown” and “green” compost ingredients added to your compost pile. Read the rest of this entry »
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The second most important requirement that helps keep the decomposer organisms working just the way they should is having just the correct amount of moisture (water) in your compost pile.
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When backyard composting, you must often add air to your compost pile because air penetrates only the first few inches of the pile; it cannot easily get through to the middle of the pile.
If you suddenly get that nasty rotten egg smell around the compost, Read the rest of this entry »
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In order to end up with a crumbly, dark, soil-like humus, regardless which process you choose to use (and there are many processes you can choose from), you must supply your compost pile with this basic compost recipe: the right combination of food, air, and water.
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