Home Composting

By Judi Bysterveld

We all know how enjoyable a summertime garden can be. For many, the planning and purchasing begins long before the snow is even gone. The hours spent tending to a colourful, abundant garden seem anything but work, especially when harvesting armloads of squash, tomatoes, carrots and the like, truly the fruit of your labour. Nothing sounds quite so nutritious as serving your family a fresh salad composed only of your garden’s produce.

Now let’s take that natural and self-sufficient scenario a step further with prospect to home composting. There are several benefits to the practice, the main one being the elimination of chemical fertilizer usage which costs money and has untold affect on your soil and water. Compost, on the other hand, is a very natural occurrence and it’s virtually free. If you can generate kitchen scraps, you’re certainly capable of making compost!

Compost can be started months before its use in the garden, which means no more disposing of those eggshells, melon rinds, coffee grounds etc. It’s also a great way to get rid of grass clippings and leaves around the yard. Peanut shells, tea bags, even shredded newspaper can be used for compost.

A simple compost box can be constructed of untreated wood, and there are many plastic compost bins on the market as well. It can also be left as a simple pile in the corner of your yard, though this can be unsightly to neighbors. The ideal size for a compost pile is 3ft x 3ft.

Good composting is all about happy bugs… big bugs like worms, millipedes, and sow bugs, as well as tiny bugs like bacteria and fungi. The compost pile is a natural place for bugs to congregate and they are essential for effective composting, though bugs will die or leave without proper moisture. The materials in your compost pile should feel like a wrung-out kitchen sponge. If the pile is no longer warm, it is too dry and water should be added. If the pile is too wet, add shredded paper or dry grass clippings. Any additions made to your compost pile should be scattered over the existing matter and turned in with a shovel. The entire pile needs to be turned every few days to ensure even decomposition and will give you a sense of the compost pile’s overall progress.

Finished compost should smell fresh, like the forest floor. It can be spread around the base of your plants or mixed in with the soil. Compost is great because its nutrients are released slowly and it also provides aeration and absorption to the soil.

So, why not give home composting a try? Unless, of course, you already had plans for those orange peels and carrot tops.