let it rot - keys to effective composting

EffectiveComposting

Independence GardensPortland, OR

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January 2012© Independence Gardens LLC

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

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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.


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?


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?


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


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• 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?


Backyard composting methods

• Hot/fast• Cold/slow • Pile• Trench• Pit• Container

- Ex: 3-bin systems- Ex: Earth Machines (a.k.a.

Darth Vader hats)


• 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


• 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


• “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


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)


MEAT

- chicken, beef, $sh- bones

- fat

DAIRY

- milk

- yogurt- cheese

Compost: NO

PLASTIC

- bags- straws- juice boxes

METAL

- wrappers- aluminum foil


• Smaller is be#er!• Chop it up!• Bury food in pile!

Particle size


• 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


• Aerobic microbes are good– Breathe in oxygen– Release CO2

• Anaerobic microbes are smelly!– Release methane

Air


• 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


• 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


• 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


• 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


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


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


• 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


• 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


• 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...


Got Questions?


let it rot - keys to effective composting

Self Improvement

composting food waste

food paper

good pile

hot pile

food waste manures

compost thermometer

tons of food

green grass