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Composting Made easy
The document provides an overview of composting basics, including essential materials, optimal carbon to nitrogen ratios, and the importance of moisture and oxygen. It discusses decomposition methods, encouraging aerobic processes for effective composting, and offers tips for achieving faster composting results. Various local composting resources and references are also included for further guidance.
Composting Made easy
- 1. Composting Basics Ken Freestone, M.C. greenwestmichigan@yahoo.com www.greenwestmichigan.org
- 2. What you needfor composting: Vessel Open air Piled Fenced Contained Materials Carbon - Brown & Dry Nitrogen - Green & Moist Air Water Heat You and your Microorganisms
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- 6. $119.95 $399 $15.88 $39.95 $225 $495 to $99.95
- 16. How Do YouChoose?
- 17. What you needfor composting: Vessel Open air Piled Fenced Contained Materials Carbon - Brown & Dry Nitrogen - Green & Moist Air Water Heat You and your Microorganisms
- 18. What is theright mix? Too many browns and your compost doesn't decay swiftly. The bacteria are not getting enough nitrogen to grow the colony.
- 19. What is theright mix? Optimally, you want to target a 30:1 Carbon:Nitrogen ratio in your compost heap. Most greens have a 20:1 C/N ratio on there own. You are just making up the difference. So double up your browns to your greens and your C/N ratio for your compost should even itself out. So, a 1.5:1 brown/green ratio (or approximately 60%/40%) should approximate the 30:1 Carbon Nitrogen ratio targeted by your compost pile.
- 20. What is theright mix? Layer two parts leaves and one part grass clippings and presto, your compost heap creates its own balanced C/N ratio
- 21. For the backyardcomposter, the 30:1 Carbon to Nitrogen (C:N) ratio is more easily estimated by a 2:1 ratio of C:N by volume, i.e., 2 bags of leaves per 1 bag of grass clippings
- 22. What you needfor composting: Vessel Open air Piled Fenced Contained Materials Carbon - Brown & Dry Nitrogen - Green & Moist Air Water Heat You and your Microorganisms
- 23. Oxygen Another essential ingredientfor successful composting is oxygen. There are two methods of decomposition based on oxygen availability: Aerobic Occurs as microorganisms use oxygen to transform carbon in to energy, producing carbon dioxide in the process. Oxygen concentrations greater than 5% are considered optimal for maintaining aerobic composting. This is the preferred method of decomposition in the backyard situation.
- 24. Oxygen Anaerobic Occurs when theoxygen level is below the optimal amount. Without oxygen, a different group of microorganisms convert organic matter into carbon dioxide gas, methane, various alcohols, volatile fatty acids, ammonia, and hydrogen sulfide gas, most of which produce noxious odors. This method produces compost, but much more slowly (and with more odor) than aerobic processes.
- 25. What you needfor composting: Vessel Open air Piled Fenced Contained Materials Carbon - Brown & Dry Nitrogen - Green & Moist Air Water Heat You and your Microorganisms
- 26. Moisture A moisture contentof 40 – 60% is generally considered ideal for composting. You can estimate the ideal moisture content using the “squeeze test”. Basically, the compost moisture should feel damp to the touch and, when squeezed, contain about as much moisture as a wrung-out sponge. Moisture content of compostable materials : •Lettuce 87% •Peaches 80% •Dry dog food 10% •Newspaper 5%
- 27. What you needfor composting: Vessel Open air Piled Fenced Contained Materials Carbon - Brown & Dry Nitrogen - Green & Moist Air Water Heat You and your Microorganisms
- 28. Super Fast For thosewho want to do a little more and produce composted material faster and a little richer, follow this procedure: •Build or buy a container for the compost pile. This will prevent the material from blowing away or being scattered by dogs or wild animals •Spread a portion of the materials to be composted in a layer 6 to 8 inches thick
- 29. Super Fast With morecare, it is possible to compost organic waste in about two weeks. The main requirements and materials are: •Need Animal Manure •Need to Shred all Plant Materials •Pile must heat to 130° - 150 °F •Keep well Watered •Pile Must be Aerated
- 30. What you needfor composting: Vessel Open air Piled Fenced Contained Materials Carbon - Brown & Dry Nitrogen - Green & Moist Air Water Heat You and your Microorganisms
- 31. Who Does theWork? You and your Microorganisms
- 32. NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC NGM/Central Park - VIDEO
- 54. Local Composting Resources KenFreestone, Master Composter www.greenwestmichigan.org greenwestmichigan@yahoo.com Angela Topp-West Shore Mall, Holland www.thetreehuggerstore.com 616.396.1710 Dave Smith-Holland www.gogreenstep.com
- 55. Wall Street Journalcompost system testing video/Hosted on Sierra Club website http://tinyurl.com/2ej8s8h Wall Street Journal compost video follow up http://tinyurl.com/25mom5g Gardener’s supply company http://www.gardeners.com/ Gardener’s supply company - How to choose a composter http://tinyurl.com/dedorf Red Worm Composting Video http://www.redwormcomposting.com/worm-composting-videos/ Clean Air Gardening Website http://www.cleanairgardening.com/ Clean Air Gardening Newsletter – April 2010/composting http://tinyurl.com/2df3f79 MSU Extension – Simple Compost Pile http://tinyurl.com/2bohog2
- 56. Composting Basics Ken Freestone, M.C. greenwestmichigan@yahoo.com www.greenwestmichigan.org