Composting Information
Bookmark and Share

What is Composting

Put simply, composting describes the process of breaking down organic materials into nutrient rich fertilizer for soil. In a regular household, the organic materials are various kitchen wastes and even human waste if you are looking to use composting toilets. The fertilizer that is created through composting can be used in your own garden to grow flavorful produce which will also help reduce your grocery bill. There is a lot to know about composting, but rather than read a bunch of books and do years of research, you should learn the basic idea and get started. You will learn much more by doing and if you run into problems, check our compost troubleshooting and composting tips pages. Easy as pie right? Right!

The organic matter in a compost pile is broken down in various ways. First, if you are using the method of worm composting (or vermicomposting or vermiculture) then it is the worms that eat the organic matter. Their excrement comes in the form of black castings, which are to enrich your soil. Worms are not required for composting, but they speed up the process. The other work horses of the compost pile are bacteria which use aerobic respiration to break organic matter down. Aerobic means that the bacteria use oxygen in their processing (I am glossing over the subtleties of aerobic respiration because you are here to read about composting, not microbiology).

Once your composting bin is set up and running it is basically free as far as money is concerned, but it will cost you a bit of your time and effort. The initial costs are the building or buying of the composting bin and buying composting worms. If you have friends who compost with worms you may be able to get some from them to get your composting started. Mary Applehof (who has written a great book about the how to’s of composting called Worms Eat My Garbage) says that for every pound of organic matter you bury in your compost pile you should have two pounds of worms (about 2000 worms). Luckily, when your compost system is operating the worms multiply rapidly so you do not have keep buying more worms, which can get expensive.

There are so many benefits to having your own composting system, here are just a few:

  1. You are keeping your kitchen scraps out of the land fill where they would rot (probably through anaerobic respiration which creates unhealthy acids which the seep into the soil and ground water).
  2. You are creating your own garden fertilizer so you don’t have to buy commercial chemical fertilizer. Let me explain why that is a powerful way to help our environment:
    • For the most part, fertilizer’s are nasty chemicals that cause all sorts of problems including illness in humans, so you might be saving lives or at least reducing the chance of genetic mutation in your family by avoiding potent fertilizers
    • The process of making fertilizers is bad for the environment
    • The transport of fertilizer with trucks, trains or cargo ships further contributes to carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Such transportation, which if you believe it like I do, is a major culprit in the global warming trend
  3. You save money because you are not buying commercial fertilizer while still having a productive and successful garden.
  4. Knowing that composting does wonders for vegetable and fruit growth may encourage you to plant more produce in your garden which will reduce your grocery bill
  5. Peace of mind knowing that your making an effort to reduce your carbon footprint and make our planet a better place for your children and grandchildren

There are many more benefits, but I think you get the idea. Now, let’s get into how you can start composting. I’m going to assume that you want to use worm composting, so let’s go from there.

First things first, drill 8 to 12 holes (about one-quarter to one-half inches in diameter) in the bottom of your compost bin so that excess fluid can drain and for aeration. I recommend that you set your compost bin on bricks and put a tray underneath to collect the drained fluid (it can be used as liquid plant fertilizer). If the contents of your compost bin are still too wet then drill more holes.

The second thing you have to do is create bedding for your worms to live in. The bedding is basically a thick layer of biodegradable material that the worms will live in. Then you bury the things you want to compost (we’ll get into what you should and should not compost a little further down) and worms eat it. Easy street.

The bedding has to have the dampness of a wrung-out sponge for the worms to feel comfortable. To create the bedding you can use shredded fallen leaves, shredded cardboard, shredded newspaper, mature compost, dead plants, and/or aged manure. Add a few handfuls of sand to aid the worms in their digestion. The bedding should fill your compost bit about three-quarters full. Make sure that you have a cover for you compost bin to keep it dark and conserve moisture for the worms. Once you have the bedding installed and your worms are squirming around, you are ready to add compost.

When you add compost, bury it somewhere in the pile. This will help to control flies and odors. Bury the next load of compost in another part of the pile. Keep burying the added compost in another part of the pile until you have buried something everywhere, then start burying in random locations again.

What Can I Compost? Glad you asked, here is a partial list (for more click the "what can I compost" link):

  • Scraps and peels of fruit and vegetables
  • Ground egg shells
  • Coffee grounds and tea bags

What should I NOT compost? Another great question.

  • Meats
  • Dairy products
  • Oily Foods
  • Grains

Although all of these can be composted you should not add them to your composter because they generate unwanted odors and attracted flies and rodents.

Basically, if you follow those few steps you will be making your own fertilizer in no time. Then when your friend asks you, What is Composting you can go on for hours. To keep things fresh and exciting (and to compost faster) you can loosen up the bedding every few weeks to allow more space for the worms to move and give them more air. Every few months you may also want to turn the compost pie and remove any mature compost to fertilize your garden with.

To recap:

  1. Build or buy a compost bin
  2. Drill holes in the bottom and collect seepage
  3. Install bedding for the worms
  4. Bury worms in the bedding
  5. Bury compost in random parts of the bedding
  6. Loosen and turn the compost pile
  7. Remove mature compost and incorporate it into your garden

Now you know the basics and you can get started right away, but wait, where should you place the compost bin?

This part is key; composting depends on warmth, air and moisture. If you live in a cool climate you will want to put the bin where it gets the most sun and perhaps even take it inside for the winter (ideal temperatures for composting are between 40 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit). If you live in a hot climate you may want to keep your compost bin undercover if the sun is too hot and you will likely have to add water to keep the compost moist.

If you enjoy composting, which I am sure you will, you may want to look into composting toilets since the can help our water conservations efforts in a major way.