 Natural
Home Gardening - The Fine Art of Composting
By Barbara Shorrock
After weeks of rain we have lush green foliage and lawns that need cutting
twice a week. What to do with all the trimmings and clippings? Compost them,
of course!
Compost is defined as “organic matter, usually garden debris, that has been
allowed or encouraged to decay”. There are whole books about the mechanics
and chemistry of composting, but in a nutshell, anything organic, left
alone, will decay. Plastic compost containers or wooden boxes work great.
The City of Calgary encourages gardeners to make their own compost by
selling black plastic bins for a reasonable price. You can pick them up at
Clean Calgary Association (230-1443 -
www.cleancalgary.com
). Garden centers and home renovation stores also offer a variety of
containers and water barrels.
To turn organic matter into useable compost, it has to decompose or “cook”.
The four ingredients needed are:
1) Brown stuff -- last fall’s leaves, shredded newspaper, etc.;
2) Green stuff -- vegetable kitchen refuse like potato peels, weeds, grass,
etc.; 3) Soil -- it has organisms that get things started; and 4) Water --
from your rain barrel, no chlorine. Because leaves break down into much
smaller volumes, plan to use about three times as much brown matter as
green. Gardeners who think ahead save the fall’s leaves in piles or bags to
be used in the compost bins throughout the year. The green element is
absolutely anything that is not animal-based (eggshells are the exception -
crush them up and throw them in, or spread around your precious plants to
discourage slugs). Keep a bucket beside your sink - it is amazing how fast
it fills up with fruit and vegetable peels. This goes on all year round.
Even in the dead of winter, the peels go out into the composter, waiting for
spring’s warmth to start decomposing.
The mixture needs to be turned and mixed up occasionally, to encourage the
decomposing process. If you have an empty container, simply toss the whole
mess from one to another. If not, stir, adding water as needed. Containers
with lids will need to be moistened, not dripping wet, but kind of spongy
wet. A full container will “cook” better than a partially full one, so keep
adding stuff as it settles.
If you can, locate your compost bins where they can see the sun for at least
part of the day, as heat speeds things up. The bin you filled in the spring
should be ready by fall. The finer the material is shredded, the faster the
decomposition. Dig the compost in to the flower beds or simply spread it on
top and let the rain trickle the nutrients down to the roots. There is no
magic to making good compost...it’s a mix of ingredients, some manual
labour, and patience. Happy gardening!
Barbara Shorrock is a real estate agent with Royal LePage Benchmark
with a passion for gardening. She may be reached at 403.301.7222 or
bshorrock@royallepage.ca
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