Best Ever Compost

This is an excerpt from Composting: Wastes to Resources, a 4-H Leader's/Teacher's Guide written by Jean Bonhotal and Marianne Krasny and published by Cornell Cooperative Extension.

Just Follow the Recipe!

Composting is like baking a cake. Simply add the
ingredients, stir, "bake," and out comes -- compost!

Whether you compost kitchen wastes or yard and
garden wastes, there are a few basic steps to
follow. Here are the necessary ingredients and
general directions for composting.

Ingredients:

KITCHEN COMPOST
Add a mixture of some or all of the following
ingredients:

vegetable peels and seeds

egg shells

fruit peels and seeds

nut shells

coffee grounds

any other vegetable or fruit scraps

Note: (Do not add meat scraps, bones, dairy
products, oils, or fat. They may attract pesty
animals.)

YARD OR GARDEN COMPOST
Add a mixture of some or all of the following
ingredients:

hay or straw

wood chips

grass clippings

weeds and other garden waste

leaves

manure

ashes

shredded paper

sawdust

Directions

1. Choose a "pot" for baking your compost. Any type of composting bin will do.

2. Place kitchen or yard wastes into the composting bin. Chop or shred the organic materials if you want them to compost quickly.

3. Spread soil or "already done" compost over the compost pile. This layer contains the microorganisms and soil animals that do the work of making the compost. It also helps keep the surface from drying out.

4. Adjust the moisture in your compost pile. Add dry straw or sawdust to soggy materials, or add water to a pile that is too dry. The materials should be damp to the touch, but not so wet that drops come out when you squeeze it.

5. Allow the pile to "bake." It should heat up quickly and reach the desired temperature (90° to 140°F, or 32° to 60°C) in four to five days.

6. Stir your compost as it bakes if you want to speed up the baking time.

7. The pile will settle down from its original height. This is a good sign that the compost is baking properly.

8. If you mix or turn your compost pile every week, it should be "done," or ready to use, in one to two months. If you don't turn it, the compost should be ready in about six to twelve months.

9. Your "best ever compost" should look like dark crumbly soil mixed with small pieces of organic material. It should have a sweet, earthy smell.

10. Feed compost to hungry plants by mixing it with the soil.


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Credits

Cornell Waste Management Institute ©1996
Department of Crop and Soil Sciences
Bradfield Hall, Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14853
607-255-1187
cwmi@cornell.edu