home composting
TRANSCRIPT
HOME COMPOSTING
A SIMPLE GUIDE TO REDUCE
YOUR WASTE
By:Daniela e Liane
WHAT IS COMPOSTING?
Compost is organic material that can be used
as a soil amendment or as a medium to grow
plants. Mature compost is a stable material
with a content called humus that is dark brown
or black and has a soil-like, earthy smell.
IT IS CREATED BY:
combining organic wastes (e.g., yard
trimmings, food wastes, manures)
adding agents (e.g., wood chips) as
necessary to accelerate the breakdown of
organic materials;
allowing the finished material to fully
stabilize through a curing process.
Yard Waste
TYPES OF COMPOSTING
Natural composting or biological
decomposition began with the first plants on
earth and has been going on ever since. As
vegetation falls to the ground, slowly decays,
providing minerals and nutrients needed for
plants, animals, and microorganisms.
TYPES OF COMPOSTING
Mature compost IS a complex organic
material that has been transformed into a
stable humus by microorganisms.
It gives plants an advantage in increased nutrients and water availability and reduces disease pressures.
DID YOU KNOW THAT COMPOST CAN…
Suppress plant diseases and pests.
Reduce or eliminate the need for chemical
fertilizers.
Facilitate reforestation.
WHAT TO COMPOST
Animal manure
Clean paper
Coffee grounds and filters
Eggshells
Fireplace ashes
Fruits and vegetables
Hair and fur Yard trimmings
Houseplants
Leaves
Nut shells
newspapers
Tea bags
Wood chips
Wool rags
etc
WHAT NOT TO COMPOST
LEAVE OUT:
1. Black walnut tree leaves or twigs
2. Coal or charcoal ash plants : Might contain
substances harmful to plants
3. Dairy products (e.g., butter, egg yolks, milk,
sour cream, yogurt)
4. Fats, grease, lard, or oils
5. Meat or fish bones and scraps : Create odor
problems and attract pests such as rodents
and flies
6. Pet wastes (e.g., dog or cat feces, soiled cat litter) : Might contain
parasites, bacteria, germs, pathogens, and viruses harmful to
humans
7. Yard trimmings treated with chemical pesticides : Might kill
beneficial composting organisms
8. Diseased or insect-ridden plants : Diseases or insects might
survive and be transferred back to other plants
A basic guide to composting
STEP 1 :
First select a spot to set up your bin. It should be out of
the way but convenient to reach with plenty of room to
work around. Some good places would be near your
garden or in a back corner of the yard. It is also a good
idea to choose a location close to a source of water.
A basic guide to composting
STEP 2
Now for the recipe for compost:
micro-organisms that recycle leaves and other plant
parts with a mix of brown stuff and green stuff. They
also need air and water to live and work. Put all this
together and in time you will have compost!
A basic guide to composting
Recipe Ingredients Recipe Ingredients
Air Water
Brown stuff Green stuff
A basic guide to composting
Brown stuff is dead, dried plant parts like leaves and pine needles. Brown stuff is high in the element carbon.
Green stuff is fresh, living parts like grass clippings, kitchen vegetable scraps, weeds and other plants. Green stuff is high in the element nitrogen.
A basic guide to composting
Don't Use Don't use meat, milk products because
pets and other animals may try to dig them up out of your compost bin.
Also don't use diseased garden plants. They can spread disease back into the garden later when you use the compost.
A basic guide to composting
Step 3
This is the easiest way to build our compost bin in
layers of ingredients:
Start with the brown stuff by spreading a layer of
leaves or pine needles.
A basic guide to composting
STEP 4
Next, for the green stuff, add a layer of grass clippings.
It is helpful to mix the layers up a little as you make them.
A basic guide to omposting
STEP 5
Sprinkle a shovelful of soil or compost to add microorganisms to the bin.
A basic guide to composting
STEP 6 Each layer gets a good sprinkling of water to wet the
ingredients. It is important to wet each layer as you
build it. Repeat each of the layers until the bin is full.
A basic guide to composting
STEP 7 - Finished Bin!
The microorganisms will go to work breaking down the
ingredients into humus. If you want faster compost.
you can mix the ingredients every few weeks but this
isn't necessary.
A basic guide to composting
FINAL RESULT:
This is compost! the dark, earthy-
smelling stuff is rich in nutrients.
Plants love it! Let's talk about how
to use compost to help plants grow.
Handful of Compost
A basic guide to composting
Use Compost as Mulch
You can use compost as a mulch around garden plants. Mulch protects the soil and shades out weed seeds.
Nutrients are washed out into the soil with each rain to feed the roots of plants.
TYPES OF BINS
Thanks for watching
The Portuguese team:
Prof. Rute Barroca Daniela Bernardo
Liane Burger