compost mg notes for class 2011 jan 26 part 2
TRANSCRIPT
Compost 101Linn Benton Master Gardeners
January 26, 2011
Lecture notes part 2
Vermicomposting
Composting
non-meat and
non-dairy
food waste
using worms
Types of bedding
Soak the bedding
Worms like
75% moisture
Let excess drain away before adding to bin
Bury food waste in bedding
Vicki’s worm bins are filled with horse manure mixed with stable bedding.
The bins are made from plywood bottom and top on 1”x12” wooden frames.
Castings Harvest MethodsDivide and Dump
put part of the castings in the garden
Add new bedding
move finished castings to one side of bin
add new bedding
add food waste to new area – worms will move there
Screen and start new bin
screen castings – transfer to garden
overs return to new bin
Soil incorporation
Raised beds built with layered organic matter and amendments
Compost uses
MulchSoil AmendmentPotting SoilSeed Starting MixCompost Tea
Mulch = Side Dressing
Use compost as a soil amendment each year.
Initially, spade 3 inches of compost into the top 8 inches of soil.
Each year after the first, work in 1 – 3 inches of compost.
http://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/potmix.html
Compost Tea
Make tea bag
Steep in water
Foliar application
Or drench wet soil
Don’t drink!
These compost bins provide greenhouse heat
and provide warm air that is piped to the germination beds on right
Way cool!
Seed starting mix and teaBasic Mix with Compost2 parts Compost 2-4 parts Sphagnum Peat Moss 1 part Perlite 1 part Vermiculite
Basic Mix with the Addition of NutrientsAdd ½ cup each per every 8 gallons of mix: ½ cup Bone Meal(Phosphorous) ½ cup Dolomitic Limestone (Raises soil pH and provides calcium and magnesium) ½ cup Blood Meal or Soybean Meal or Dried Kelp Powder (Nitrogen)
Found on About.com
The four components of soil:
Organic matter• Small constituent by weight, but huge
influence on soil properties
• Made up of partially decomposed plant & animal residues + organic compounds synthesized by soil microbes
• A TRANSITORY component of soils
O ni
What is Soil Organic Matter?
SOIL ORGANICMATTER
The Living: BIOMASS
<5%
The Dead:DECOMPOSING MATERIAL
45%
The Really Dead: HUMUS
50%
organic = carbon-based
Decomposition = transformations of SOM (remember, matter is neither created nor destroyed)
Symbol for control: often by temperature, moisture...
Detritus (fresh)
Humus (way dead)
Microbes (biomass)
Plants (biomass)
CO2, energy
Functions of Organic Matter
1. Stabilizes soil structure, making soil easily managed does not change soil texture.
2. Increases the amount of water a soil can hold (and availability of the water)
3. Major source of plant nutrients
4. Main food/energy for soil organisms
Aggregates held together by:
– Fungal hyphae– Bacterial “glues”– Organic matter
sand
silt
hyphaeclay
bacteria
organic matter
Effect of OM on aggregate stability
Effect of OM on aggregate stability
Available Water
Capacity
Inherent depends
on texture
Measure of water available to plants
Impact of soil organic matter content on soil water content
Cover Crops
=
Green
Manures
=
OM
For best growth
sow fall covercrop
before cold weather
Sept 15
Oct 15
Oct 1
Healthy soils maintain a diverse and active community of soil organisms that:
• Suppress plant disease, & insect and weed pests
• Form beneficial symbiotic associations with plant roots
• Recycle essential plant nutrients
• Improve soil structure for better water and nutrient retention
Ultimately, increase growing capacity and protect the environment!
A cup of soil contains...
Bacteria
Fungi
Protozoa
Nematodes
Arthropods
Earthworms
200 billion
100,000 meters
20 million
100,000
50,000
<1
The immobile ones all primarily found in the rhizosphere, the zone of soil closest to plant roots
From NRCS Soil Biology Primer
Photo by Suzanne Paisley
• shred plant material
• feed on bacteria and fungi associated with organic matter
Macrofauna
General roles of microbes
• Aggregate stability
• Disease suppression
• Cause diseases
• Nutrient cycling
• N capture and fixation
• Decomposition of organic matter
C:N = 5
C:N = 305:15:16 X
Root uptake of nutrients
• Mass flow
• Diffusion
• Interception
N capture and N fixation
fungi
bacteria
Management Impacts SQ
Soil Organisms
Soil Structure
Organic Matter
Water Infiltration
Vegetation
Healthy Soil
Soil structure under landscape fabric
