let it rot - keys to effective composting
DESCRIPTION
Leave it alone long enough, and it will surely decompose. But will it nourish your plants like you want it to? This class, which provides tips for several composting approaches (including pile and sheet/lasagna methods), will cover how and why compost works, and how to make it work for you.TRANSCRIPT
EffectiveComposting
Independence GardensPortland, OR
Download the handout that goes along with
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January 2012© Independence Gardens LLC
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Topics We’ll Cover• What is composting?• Why compost?• Composting methods• How to make compost…
effectively• Harvesting/using compost• Vermi- intro• Questions and hands-on
practice
What We’ll Cover TodayPreview
Got Questions? Please ask as we go along.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
What We’ll Skip Today
• "e process by which organic materials such as grass clippings, leaves, and food waste are broken down and decomposed
• A strategy for recycling organic (living/no longer living) ma#er into a useful and necessary soil ingredient
And Some Other OptionsWhat is composting?
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Why Compost?
• Food & paper are the two largest contributors to land$lls- More than 1/2 of all land$ll waste- More than all plastics, diapers,
styrofoam, and tires COMBINED• Food is the #1 least recycled
waste product- NOT taking into account the food
that goes down sink disposals • But composting food waste and
paper is easy, and FUN!
Why compost?
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Columbia Ridge Land$ll 137 miles
When stuff goes “away”…
"e Metro region land$lls 270,500 tons of food and non-recoverable paper per year: 21% of the waste stream
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• It does not (have to)- Involve chemicals, huge amounts of
power, or transportation
• It does…- Offer “closed loop” sustainability
• From table to compost to garden to table
- Reduce land$ll waste & runoff
- Help your plants survive drought- Discourage pests
- Encourage microbial life in soil- Act as a healthy soil amendment
• Improve tilth• Offer steady release of nutrients
What does compost do?
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Backyard composting methods
• Hot/fast• Cold/slow • Pile• Trench• Pit• Container
- Ex: 3-bin systems- Ex: Earth Machines (a.k.a.
Darth Vader hats)
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• Sheet mulching- a.k.a. “lasagna gardening”- Slow; use to prep beds for later planting
• Vermicomposting- Red wriggler WORMS!- Slow method that breaks food waste down
into “black gold”
• Commercial- Hot/fast: don’t try this at home- Can break down a wider variety of
materials than backyard scale
Other composting methods
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• Ingredients/recipe- 3 parts “brown”- 1 part “green”
• Particle size• Moisture• Air• Temperature• Turning the pile• Duration
Compost considerations
BROWN (C)1
BROWN (C)1
GREEN (N)1
BROWN (C)1
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• “Browns” (Carbon)– Examples:
• Brown leaves• Dry grass• Straw• Small sticks
• “Greens” (Nitrogen)– Examples:
• Food Waste• Manures
– From herbivores!• Green grass
Remember the Recipe….3 parts brown to 1 part green
Ingredients/recipe
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
GREENS - fruit & vegetable scraps- coffee grounds- rice & pasta- eggshells - tea bags- %owers- plant trimmings- hedge clippings and other
fresh yard debris - fresh grass (small
amounts)- animal manures (e.g.
chicken, rabbit, goat, horse, cow, alpaca)
- seaweed/kelp
Compost: YES
BROWNS - coffee $lters- stale bread- houseplant cu#ings- paper napkins & towels- dryer lint (mostly co#on)- hair (yours/your pets’)- clean cardboard/paper- wood ash (NOT Dura%ame/
Presto logs!)- leaves- straw or hay- small twigs/chips- dried grass & weeds- co#on rags- animal bedding (sawdust)
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
MEAT
- chicken, beef, $sh- bones
- fat
DAIRY
- milk
- yogurt- cheese
Compost: NO
PLASTIC
- bags- straws- juice boxes
METAL
- wrappers- aluminum foil
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• Smaller is be#er!• Chop it up!• Bury food in pile!
Particle size
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• Damp enough to leave hands moist (like a wrung-out sponge)
– O!en becomes not the case in the fall / winter/ spring
• When squeezed, water should not drip out
Best Practice:TARP IT!
Covering your pile retains...
• Heat
• Appropriate nutrients
• Moisture content
The Monsoon Continues!Moisture
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• Aerobic microbes are good– Breathe in oxygen– Release CO2
• Anaerobic microbes are smelly!– Release methane
Air
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• Hot pile = good pile– 140°F for 3 days to kill
pathogens and weed seeds
Temperature
Best Practice:USE A COMPOST THERMOMETER• Allows you to measure
temps accurately
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• Makes food more available for microbes
• Aerates the pile• Keeps the pile hot• Make sure you turn all of
the pile• Yes, you can turn in
all seasons
Turning the pile
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• Turn until pile stops warming up… - Food is gone, so microbes
dead/dormant/less active
• Average backyard compost pile is "nished in 4-6 months
• Other methods can be faster or slower
Duration
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• Much slower composting method than pile or trench- Give yourself 6 months to 1
year for a whole area to be plantable
• But it’s more #exible- You can compost in place
around existing plants
• Step-by-step…
Sheet mulching basics
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
1. Mow down existing grass/plants and remove invasives2. Add a 2” N layer (grass clippings, manure, kelp, co$onseed
meal, "sh product, urine, coffee grounds, kitchen scraps)3. Aerate soil with a digging fork & water4. Lay down a C weed barrier (cardboard or 10ish layers off
newspaper)5. Add ~ ½” N layer6. Repeat steps 4 (with any C source) & 5 to desired thickness7. Water well8. Add a 12” blanket C layer (straw, leaves, wood chips,
shredded paper)
Sheet mulching how-to
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Harvesting Compost• When pile is cooled,
compost is ready to use- Can be tarped and stored for
6-12 months
• Screening- Use chicken wire or hardware
cloth in wooden frame- “Overs” can be used to start
new compost pile
• Curing- Le$ing "nished compost sit
for 2-3 months will make it darker, more stable nutrients
Harvesting
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• Fertilizer- Mix compost into soil
around plants
• Po$ing Soil- 1 Shovel compost- 1 Shovel good black soil- ½ Shovel perlite- 1 Shovel sand
• Topsoil- 1 Shovel compost- 1 Shovel sand
Recipes
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• Compost “halo”- Good fertilization method- Lay a ring of compost on
ground around plant stems- Cover with soil
• Planting with compost- Mix with dark surface soil- Put at bo#om of planting
hole- Plant!
Recipes
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• Know your habits- How much kitchen/yard
waste do you produce?- How will you collect
scraps? (countertop unit, fridge or freezer...)
- How much time/desire do you have to tend?
- Do you have household/neighborhood buy-in?
- Could you share the work?
And then there is you...
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Got Questions?
Tuesday, January 31, 2012