composting 101

HERE, IN THE COMPOST HEAP, is life and death and life again—proof positive of “from dust to dust.” But too many gardeners waste the raw material of future soil amendments by getting hung up on silly details, like what shape of pile or kind of bin to use, what can and can’t go in the pile, or how much work they fear composting will be. It doesn’t have to be much work at all; even without turning and other human intervention, the leaves on the forest floor break themselves down in time, don’t they? So will your pile, if it’s made sensibly.

What method of composting you use should be determined by the volume of material created in the yard (and to a lesser degree, in the kitchen, where vegetable scraps, egg shells and coffee and tea grounds can be collected for the heap, too). I create far too much raw material for a mere bin-type system, the commercially available kind made of metal or heavy plastic or mesh that are about as big as a washing machine. I have one of those, a metal one that shuts tight and thereby keeps animals out, to hold my vegetable food wastes, alternating them with layers of garden debris and a little soil or finished compost to get things activated and reduce any chance of unpleasant odors.

The latest rage is all about lobster-trap-wire bins, meaning really durable even under the ocean day in and out. But my main heap is about 40 feet long and 5 or 6 feet wide, a long, open pile that in composting jargon is called a windrow. In the peak of fall cleanup and leaf raking, it gets to be about 5 feet tall, too, but as the material begins to settle, and eventually to break down, it’s usually more like 3 to 4 feet high.

Whatever style of composting you choose, from a simple, small pile to a long windrow to an

composting how-to garden prep organics for beginners