IN MINUTES

One of the best times to start your compost bin is in the fall. A key component of making compost is brown material, and dried leaves are abundant in autumn.

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WHAT HAPPENS INSIDE A COMPOSTER?

Heres the dirt on compost

BUILDING A COMPOST PILE YOUR FIRST DAY: AFTER A COUPLE WEEKS:
Add green and brown materials egg shells, vegetable peelings, broken up cardboard, grass cuttings, etc. Will look a bit moist, air-pockets will let it breathe

Shredded organic materials heat up rapidly, decompose quickly and produce a uniform compost. The decomposition rate increases with the size of the composting materials. If you want the pile to decay faster, chop up large brous materials. You can add new materials on an ongoing basis to an already established pile.

SIZE MATTERS

Microbes will start eating the greens rst.

GREENS
7
Bright-red worms known as brandling worms help to aerate the compost as they travel to the top of the bin to get at the freshly added material.

Energy produced by decomposition increases the temperature in the bin, generating even more microbes. Mould starts to appear.

Temperature inside the bin starts to cool down and this is when fungi starts to work on the browns along with creatures such as slugs, snails, beetles and millipedes.

Kitchen refuse: Almost everything that cycles through your kitchen such as vegetable peelings, tea bags, any fruit scraps (melon rinds, apple cores, banana peels), co ee grounds and lter paper . Meat products, dairy products, and high-fat foods such as salad dressings and peanut butter will decompose eventually, but will smell bad and attract pests. Eggshells decompose slowly, so they should be crushed. Manure: Manure for composting can come
from bats, sheep, ducks, pigs, goats, cows, pigeons, and any other vegetarian animal. It contains large amounts of both nitrogen and benecial microbes. Avoid manure from carnivores, as it can contain dangerous pathogens.

Many helpful insects such as worms, woodlice, fruit ies, ants and other insects further break down the plant material.

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Insects need air, so aerating your compost is a good idea. Simply push a garden fork or broom handle deep into the bin to create air pockets.

The insects and organisms will have broken down the greens after a few months, leaving only browns.

BROWNS
clippings, straw & hay Ashes: From wood, paper or lumpwood charcoal

items starting to decompose and looking quite damp; fruit ies, slugs and worms may also be present

Fibres: Dryer lint, cardboard/paper products Plant prunings: Dry leaves, twigs and hedge

brown material and eggshells still visible, some worms and bugs left, but most creatures will have moved on to nd fresher food

IS IT READY?
Compost that is ready to use will be: dark brown in colour have a spongy texture smell earthy.

If the pile becomes too dry, the decay process will slow down. Organic waste needs water to decompose. Keep the pile as moist as a wrung-out sponge. In an overly wet pile, water replaces the air, slowing decomposition.

After nine to 12 months, your kitchen and garden waste will be successfully transformed into healthy, natural compost.

Heat indicates the activity of the decomposition process. Feel the compost pile if its warm or hot, everything is ne. If its the same temperature as the outside air, the microbial activity has slowed down and you ned to add more nitrogen (green) materials such as grass clippings, kitchen wate, or manure.
SUSAN BATSFORD, GRAPHICS EDITOR, TWITTER @SBATS1; QMI AGENCY

TEMPERATURE MATTERS