Picture Source: Our farm where we do vermicompost; refer to this one for details basics of vermicomposting for beginners.
If you are here then the reason must be making organic compost for your own home garden. You must be knowing that the best supplement that you can give your plants in the garden is none other than composts. Composts are organic and useful for all the plants, be it flowers or vegetables and fruits. In this blog, we will give you insight regarding- organic composts at home and how to make your garden look fresh and be more fruitful.
Most importantly, there are various types of composts and the reason why we all use compost for gardening is very simple. Plants and trees require nutrients, most of the farmers give chemicals but when we choose organic methods; we need to put natural nutrients. Nutrients given in proper quantity gives a boost to the plant is shaping the fruits and flowers and vegetables.
What are the benefits of Composting?
Improving the condition of the soil
When you apply compost, be it of any kind; you are ultimately adding nutrients and rich humus to the garden soil or to the farm. The addition of such compost gives the soil the ability to retain the moisture; the strength to hold on to a fruit or vegetable till it matures.
There are thousands of people who have been in this agricultural sector for years and they know that composts are very important for plants as supplements.
Yet they use chemical pesticides for quicker growth and faster results. You can also specifically try vermicomposting as that is one of the best ways of giving supplements to the soil and the preparation is also very easy.
Make use of Yard and Kitchen leftovers and wastes
There are many kinds of composting if we try to get an overview. As here we are focusing on homemade compost; So, we can surely try that out from the kitchen wastes which usually go to the bin and becomes garbage at the end of the day. We all can collect organic waste, like peels of vegetables or eggshells for composting.
It is very important to know that we cannot keep the peels and shells for garbage as making it garbage is careless work which ends up in the formation of methane gas which is contributing to the increasing rate of global warming.
Clearly, if we use that waste for composting then not only we are making compost for plants but also reducing individual contribution to global warming at large. Let’s make more compost and let’s stop contributing to climate change and global warming.
Reduction of methane gas formation
As mentioned earlier, peels and other organic leftovers break down and form methane gas when kept carelessly in the garbage area over a longer time period.
We all know that methane gas is one of the components that increase global warming and contributes to the irregular change of climatic conditions. If we make the organic waste useful as compost then the generation of methane gas will reduce; and simultaneously the global warming will be controlled when done by a major population.
Environmentally beneficial and sustainable
When we are using organic compost for the soil we are not harming the environment by using chemical pesticides and fertilizers. We are doing good as a gardener, as a human and composts are helping the environment revive it’s lost nutrients.
Reviving the fertility of the soil
Not using chemicals is anyway very good for the soil, now adding organic manure is a plus point for the soil. The compost is not only helping the plants by being the supplement. But also helping the soil to regain its microscopic organism and naturalness.
What to use as composters?
Basically, this is a curious part of the entire topic, the doubt is very obvious that whether to make carbon compost or nitrogen compost. For those who have no idea of the types, it is for the purpose of knowing that there are mainly two types of composting.
All the things that can be composted are either classified under nitrogen base or under carbon base. Now, whether to make a nitrogen compost or a carbon compost is the dilemma.
The conclusion is pretty much diplomatic like a typical answer, so the compost can be a combination of both types. We can keep a good ratio of both the bases; if we can successfully strike a good balance between nitrogen and carbon then the results can be outstanding
Tables showing recommendable carbon composters:-
|Dust of wood||Brown Paper bag waste||Paper waste||Corn leftover||Wood|
|Coffee filter||Coffee beans||Coffee dust||Egg shell dust||Dry Straws|
|Wood ash||Peat Moss||Bark dust||stalks||Cardboard|
Tables showing recommendable nitrogen composters:-
|food scraps||kitchen waste|
|Lawn clippings||leaves (green)|
What are the things that you shouldn’t put in the making process?
This is a very important point that we need to know, we have understood that the above-mentioned items can be used for composting.
Although the list is not exhaustive here; So, we need to know what are items that we should not use while composting or what are the unnecessary things here.
- Be careful about the don’t; leftover bones of chicken and fish leftovers might lead to pest attraction so do not use that;
- Do not use the mentioned items if there is any kind of chemical added when it is a waste or extra;
- Pet manures should not be used if the soil is specially meant for growing food crops;
- Try not to use peels of those fruits and vegetables which are not organic. This causes the unintentional involvement of chemicals that were previously used for growing such fruits and vegetables;
- Don’t make compost out of the black walnut leaves.
- carefully add clean sawdust as it often contains harmful things. Make sure it is free from chemicals and harmful substances.
Ways of composting:-
Since we are using variety substance that decomposes at different time frame so we must decide the process beforehand. So, the compost can be just of leaves or maybe using cow dung and worms. One can simply use the kitchen waste and wastes from the yard.
We recommend that you put stuff that decomposes in the same time gap else you won’t be able to figure out how long the composting process would take to finish.
- Firstly, you can use a ceramic bin for making the composts out of the kitchen waste and keep it in your house for a while.
Although it might be stinky unless you feel uncomfortable, you can keep it inside.
- Secondly, find a big pot and make the compost outside your house, could be your lawn or garden or even terrace.
Make sure you make it easy to decompose; do that by chopping up every little chunk you get while initiating the process.
- Lastly, if you are using a mixture of nitrogen and carbon base or mixing the yard waste and kitchen waste; Then put some soil from the garden over it to reduce the aeration.