Compost Is Healthy Food For Plants. Composting. What Goes Into The Compost. Fast Compost. Photo

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Compost Is Healthy Food For Plants. Composting. What Goes Into The Compost. Fast Compost. Photo
Compost Is Healthy Food For Plants. Composting. What Goes Into The Compost. Fast Compost. Photo

Video: Compost Is Healthy Food For Plants. Composting. What Goes Into The Compost. Fast Compost. Photo

Video: Compost Is Healthy Food For Plants. Composting. What Goes Into The Compost. Fast Compost. Photo
Video: How To Make Compost At Home (WITH FULL UPDATES) 2024, March
Anonim

Usually people say that every good gardener should have a compost heap. Making your own compost requires little skill or effort from gardeners and is almost free. Moreover, it undoubtedly saves energy, money and time for purchasing other fertilizers, for watering and weeding, as well as garbage disposal, since garden and kitchen waste will go directly to the compost heap. Let's figure out where to start.

Compost - healthy food for plants
Compost - healthy food for plants

Content:

  • What is compost
  • Benefits of compost
  • Environmental factors affecting organic degradation
  • The fast way to produce compost
  • Leaf humus
  • Using compost
  • What goes into compost
  • What does NOT go to compost

What is compost

Compost (from Latin compositus - compound) - organic fertilizers obtained as a result of the decomposition of various organic substances under the influence of the activity of microorganisms.

When composting in the organic mass, the content of nutrients available to plants (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and others) increases, pathogenic microflora and helminth eggs are neutralized, the amount of cellulose, hemicellulose and pectin substances decreases (they cause the transition of soluble forms of nitrogen and phosphorus of the soil into organic forms), the fertilizer becomes free-flowing, which makes it easier to apply it to the soil.

Compost is used for all crops, in approximately the same doses as manure (1.5-4 kg / sq. M). They are brought in a pair (which means scattering over a freshly plowed field, for example, before planting potatoes), under fall plowing and plowing, in the holes when planting seedlings. In terms of fertilizing properties, composts are not inferior to manure, and some of them (for example, peat manure with phosphate flour) surpass it.

Benefits of compost

Garden compost is good and beneficial in every sense. For plants, compost applied to the soil is an excellent organic fertilizer, saturated with essential trace elements and humus. For soil - a natural conditioner, a soil structure improving agent that has a loosening and moisture-saving effect. Layered on top of the soil, compost is an excellent organic mulch that suppresses weed growth and helps retain moisture at the roots of plants.

Living garden dwellers appreciate the compost heap. This is an excellent "dining room" for birds and small insectivores, as well as a place of mass habitation and reproduction of earthworms, which (along with bacteria and fungi) actually decompose organic matter, producing compost.

When producing your own garden compost, you do not need to burn off garden waste, old leaves, paper, packaging and cardboard, poisoning the surrounding atmosphere and neighbors with smoke. You don't need to buy synthetic fertilizers and quality garden soil. It would not be an exaggeration to say that producing and using your own compost makes life much easier for the gardener and contributes to environmental protection. Waste gardening and the use of garden compost instead of hazardous and expensive chemical fertilizers are important parts of the organic gardening concept.

When producing your own garden compost, there is no need to burn garden pruning waste, old leaves, paper, packaging and cardboard
When producing your own garden compost, there is no need to burn garden pruning waste, old leaves, paper, packaging and cardboard

Environmental factors affecting organic degradation

The decomposition of organic matter is influenced by many factors, of which three main ones should be distinguished:

1. Oxygen

Compost production is dependent on oxygen availability. Aerobic decomposition means that active microbes in a heap require oxygen, while anaerobic decomposition means that active microbes do not need oxygen to live and grow. Temperature, humidity, bacterial colony size, and nutrient availability determine the amount of oxygen required for composting.

2. Humidity

It is necessary to maintain a high humidity in the compost heap (composter), but at the same time it is necessary to provide air access for aerobic bacteria. Different materials have different water absorption capacity and thus determine the amount of water required for composting. For example, woody and fibrous materials such as bark, sawdust, wood shavings, hay or straw can hold up to 75 to 85 percent moisture. Green fertilizers such as lawn grass and plants can hold 50-60 percent moisture.

The minimum moisture content at which the activity of microorganisms is manifested is 12-15 percent, the optimal one is 60-70%. Obviously, the lower the moisture content of the compost mass in the composter, the slower the compost formation process will take place. Experience shows that humidity can become a limiting factor when it drops below 45-50%.

3. Temperature

Temperature is an important factor in the compost formation process. Low outside temperatures during winter slow down the decomposition process, while warm summer temperatures speed up the process. During the warmer months of the year, intense microbiological activity inside the compost heap results in compost formation at extremely high temperatures. Microbes that decompose organic matter are divided into two main categories: mesospheric, those that live and grow at temperatures of +10.. + 45 ° C, and thermophilic, those that successfully grow at temperatures above 45 ° C.

Most compost heaps go through a thermophilic stage in the initial stages. At this stage, organic matter is rapidly dehydrated and must be constantly kept moist and ventilated. The temperature inside the compost heap rises to +60.. + 70 ° C, which contributes to thermal neutralization of organic material. At this temperature, weed seeds and many pathogenic (phytopathogenic) microorganisms are destroyed. But do not forget to achieve such an effect, you need a sufficient amount of organic matter.

The next stage takes place at a temperature of about 40 ° C, while other microorganisms predominate and a more complete decomposition of organic materials occurs.

At the last stage of compost formation, its temperature is equal to the ambient temperature, the smell of earth comes from the heap. The material has been processed into humus.

The simplest and at the same time effective way to speed up the process of compost maturation is to add special compost-forming bacteria to the biomass at the initial stage of preparation.

At the same time, firstly, specially selected microorganisms begin to process biomass immediately and at high speed, and, secondly, the smell of rotten grass and other unpleasant odors practically disappear.

Compost
Compost

The fast way to produce compost

If you put bark, tree branches, cut grass, leaves … and what else comes to hand in the garden in a heap, and leave it all for a while in a secluded corner (so as not to spoil the view), then in the end all this someday will rot and turn into quality compost. This process will only take several years. This is the so-called slow (cold) method of composting.

In contrast, the fast (hot) method takes about 3-6 months and is provided by several indispensable conditions: air access, nitrogen availability, humidity and heat (the temperature in large industrial compost heaps can reach +85 ° C!).

1. You will need a plank or plastic composting structure installed in a designated area. The advantage of a wooden structure for composting is that it is breathable and maintains good ventilation. Such a design can be purchased at a garden center or made by yourself. For a successful process, the volume of the wooden structure must be at least 1 m 3 (1x1x1).

The plastic container, in turn, retains heat well and is more mobile, it can be used in different places in the garden. Any compost system should have an opening top or side surface (some plastic baskets have no bottom or the bottom is removable) for easy access to ready-made compost.

2. Place at the very bottom about a 10 cm layer of rough material such as straw, hay, twigs or twigs. This is necessary to ensure drainage and air access.

3. Place the compost material in alternating layers. For example, on a layer of vegetable or fruit waste, put a layer of shredded paper, then a small layer of cut grass, then a layer of dug up annuals, then a layer of last year's leaves, and so on. It is important that the green ("wet and soft") layers alternate with brown ("dry and hard") layers - this will provide ventilation, speed up the process, and in the future - a good texture of the finished compost. Never push or compact the contents as this will disrupt the composting process.

4. On top of each layer, some soil or rotted herbivore manure can be added to speed up the composting process. Garden centers sell special "accelerators" of compost formation, you can use them. The decomposition reaction is also catalyzed by fresh cut grass and legumes, which collect nitrogen in their root system. Plants rich in nutrients significantly improve the quality of the finished compost: nettle, comfrey, yarrow, dandelion and others.

5. Keep your composting system covered to maintain proper moisture levels and keep warm. Plastic baskets usually have a top already, but for homemade wooden baskets, you can use garden sheeting, a piece of old carpet, or something else. The ideal temperature for compost production is + 55 ° C.

6. From time to time, turn the contents over, providing air access to the resulting compost.

Rotating compostaries are a relatively recent invention. Such constructions make it possible to produce compost in a short time (according to the manufacturers' statement in 2-4 weeks) due to the even distribution of material and heat inside the container. The gardener only needs to rotate the structure twice a day, which is not difficult at all with the help of a special handle. The volume of this model is 340 liters.

7. In dry weather (in open board systems) or when brown materials are prevalent in the contents of the compost heap, the required compost moisture should be maintained by irrigation. Avoid stagnant water in the compost system, this will disrupt the decomposition process

8. Unpleasant odors from the contents of the compost bin indicate that something is broken and the process is going wrong. The smell of ammonia (ammonia) or rotten eggs indicates an excessive amount of nitrogen-containing (green) substances in the compost heap and a lack of oxygen. In this case it is necessary to add carbonaceous (brown) materials.

If you've done everything right, after a few months the contents of the compost heap should turn brown and have a fresh, sweet earthy smell - signs that your compost is ready for garden use. If you filled the system gradually (which is most likely with an established continuous production), then you should start choosing the finished compost from the bottom. Higher layers will thus move downward, making room at the top for new material.

The foliage of any deciduous trees and shrubs is used for composting
The foliage of any deciduous trees and shrubs is used for composting

Leaf humus

The foliage thrown off by trees and shrubs, decaying, enriches the soil with humus. To prepare leaf humus, it is convenient to use a mesh box (the same as for compost), each layer of foliage 13-20 cm thick is moistened with a solution of ammonium sulfate. In the fall, layers of foliage and fertilizer are also placed in black, perforated (for air access) bags that do not take up much space.

Tied bags are left in a remote corner of the garden, and humus forms in them by spring. Leaves left in open boxes in the fresh air take longer to decompose. For composting, the foliage of any deciduous trees and shrubs is used. Sycamore, poplar and maple leaves take longer to decompose than oak and beech leaves. Evergreen leaves are not suitable for making humus. Leaf humus is embedded in the soil or used as mulch.

Using compost

In a properly designed and filled bin, the compost does not require tedding, as the stored material is already effectively decomposed. In spring and summer, maturation proceeds faster than in autumn and winter. Compost, when laid in warm weather, is usable in six months. The condition of the heap is periodically checked and, if possible, the matured compost is removed from the base.

The finished compost is brown in color and has a crumbly crumbly structure. The undecomposed material serves as the basis for the next heap. Mulching is carried out only with well-ripened compost, since weed seeds capable of germination can be preserved in the partially decomposed one. The compost is embedded in the soil during its cultivation in autumn and winter at the rate of 5.5 kg / m 2.

Mulching is carried out only with well-ripened compost
Mulching is carried out only with well-ripened compost

What goes into compost

Household waste:

  • Raw vegetables, fruits, cereals, tea and coffee
  • Leftovers from cooked food (closed system)
  • Waste meat (closed system)
  • Unpainted shredded wood
  • Hay, straw
  • Wood ash
  • Rotted herbivore manure
  • Fresh herbivore manure (in slow heap)
  • Shredded natural paper (napkins, bags, packaging, cardboard)
  • Shredded natural fabrics

Garden waste:

  • Thin branches after pruning trees and shrubs
  • Thick branches, wood, bark and roots shredded in a garden shredder
  • Last year's (half-ripe) leaves
  • Mowed grass from the lawn
  • Young weeds
  • Sea or freshwater algae
  • Other organic garden waste

What does NOT go to compost

Household waste:

  • Large and hard meat bones
  • Pet toilet
  • Coals

Garden waste:

  • Dry leaves of the current season
  • Evergreen Pruning
  • Flowering and perennial rhizome weeds
  • Wastes affected by diseases and pests
  • Insect pests, their eggs and larvae
  • Waste after using herbicides (unless otherwise specified by the herbicide manufacturer)

Looking forward to your advice!

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