The Basics and Benefits of Composting

Ask any gardener what is one of the most, if not the most, important physical parts of having a successful garden, and the majority of them will tell you it’s the soil. And what is a huge part of high quality soil?

Compost! 

But what the heck is it? Compost is a mix of ingredients that improve the soil in which plants grow, and it's usually made from decomposed organic products. Adding compost to your garden is especially important because it adds in beneficial microbes and organisms to help fight away pests and disease. Regular topsoil does not have this capability, so that is why you need to add compost.

Other ways compost directly helps your garden include:

• Retaining water
• Improving drainage
• Increasing air flow
• Stabilizing pH
• Preventing erosion

There are, of course, other benefits of using compost, especially if you are making it yourself. These include:

• Reducing nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere
• Preventing landfill buildup, which increases methane gas release
• Reducing cost of waste buildup
• Reducing cost of gardening
• Helping clean stormwater drainage

Finally, your plants are more productive and your future food is healthier when you grow them in compost-rich soil.

Compost vs topsoil

Compost adds beneficial microbes and organisms to the soil, and these little guys help your plants fight pests and disease. Topsoil does not add these beneficial organisms.

Compost vs fertilizer

Now, a lot of people mistake compost with fertilizer. One of the main differences is that compost improves the structure of the soil, as well as the water retention, whereas fertilizer does not. On the other hand, different fertilizers may add specific nutrients to the soil that compost does not include. In most cases, you are going to want some combination of the two.

Compost vs mulch

Another mistake is thinking that compost is like mulch. Compost is mixed into the soil, whereas mulch is laid on top. Both can improve the soil and bring many benefits to the garden, but they are used structurally in different ways.

Ways to Compost at Home

There are lots of different ways to compost, but all of them can be slotted into one of the following categories: aerobic, or hot composting; anaerobic, or cold composting; and vermicomposting.

Aerobic, or hot composting, involves a manner in which organic material breaks down with the presence of oxygen, meaning it is in an open space with access to the air. This is usually preferred over anaerobic, or cold composting, because it produces less odorous gases, occurs quicker due to the heating of the pile, and kills pathogens and weeds inside.

Anaerobic composting occurs in a closed space underground, like a trench or pile, and takes much longer because it produces less heat.

Vermicomposting involves using different species of worms to break down the organic matter.

Make a compost pile

If you want to start composting in the easiest way possible, simply make a pile of material in an open space outside your home. No need to do anything to the pile other than add different materials as they come, although turning it with a shovel or pitchfork here and there will speed up the process. A lot of people choose to do this and will enclose the sides of the pile with logs, cinderblock, old bricks, chicken wire, etc. to keep it from toppling over.

A negative of this method is that it can look unsightly and animals can get into the pile. But compost piles require the least amount of work possible.

Use a compost barrel

A next step up from a compost pile would be to compost in an enclosed space, like a constructed box with a lid, a trashcan, or a tumbler. This can help speed up the process in that it will get warmer inside, and you can usually turn the pile a lot easier.

I personally have a tumbler and love it as it is off the ground and is easy to use; I have it on the side of my house where it's out of view but still easily accessible.

Just be sure with any of these methods you still have some air flow inside the container, usually with vents or holes. If these larger containers are too big for your needs, you can buy a small compost pail to keep in your kitchen. I have a pail that I keep under my sink to dump scraps in, and when it fills up, I carry it outside to my tumbler.

Compost Food Cycler

The top of the line way to compost is a machine that breaks everything down for you. They are very expensive but definitely get the job done. An example is this one from Vitamix (pictured below). Most of them require electricity, and their size can range from a countertop unit to one the size of a large trash can.

(Watch Nicole Burke's review of the Lomi kitchen composter here.)

How to Actually Compost

Let’s get into the steps to actually start and maintain your compost. Many people worry that it will smell or attract pests, but if you do it correctly, it won’t. Well-made compost has a rich, earthy smell and looks like very dark soil, hence the name “black gold.”

What goes into the compost bin?

The first thing to understand is that a proper compost pile needs the right amount of carbon to nitrogen ratio. Usually this is a 2:1 or 3:1 ratio. So that means that for every amount of nitrogen you are putting into your pile, you are adding twice or three times as much carbon.

Compost greens and browns

What exactly classifies as a carbon or nitrogen product? The easiest way to remember is that carbon products are typically brown while nitrogen products are green. See the list below.

Carbon:

• Wood chips
• Dried leaves
• Dried plant products (no weeds or seeds!)
• Paper (colorless)
• Cardboard (remove any plastic)
• Sawdust
• Wood ashes
• Old topsoil
• Nut shells
• Straw
• Pine needles
• Bread

Nitrogen:

• Fruits (no citrus)
• Vegetables (no onion)
• Herbs
• Eggshells
• Coffee grounds
• Tea bags
• Fresh grass clippings
• Fresh plant clippings (no weeds or seeds)
• Manure ONLY from animals that eat only plants

What NOT to compost

There are a number of items that should not go in a compost pile because that they do not break down, they can lead to diseased or harmful compost, or they can attract animals and pests. These items include:

• Pesticide-treated grass or plants
• Diseased plants
• Weeds and seeds
• Large branches
• Construction debris
• Cheese or dairy products
• Meat, fish, or other animal products
• Colored or glossy paper
• Plastic, metal, or glass
• Coal or charcoal

There are some easy rules to follow to make sure your compost pile is at its best.

Make sure you layer greens with browns, and try to keep a brown layer on top. As said above, try to keep a 2:1 or 3:1 ratio of browns (carbon) to greens (nitrogen).

Add a bit of moisture (water) to the pile every so often. You want it moist but not wet, like a wrung-out sponge.

Turn it at least once a week, or more often if you like. This allows oxygen to enter the pile, which will speed up the decomposition process.

Keep a small pale in your kitchen (like the one pictured below) to collect scraps so that you take advantage of every nutrient-dense ingredient for your compost.

How to Fix Compost Issues

Now you may run into some problems when you are starting out, but don’t worry. Most can be fixed.

Compost taking too long

If you feel like your compost is taking a long time to break down, go through the above rules to make sure you are keeping an adequate level and ratio, keeping it moist, and turning it properly. And remember that composting speeds up in hotter temperatures and slows down in the cold. If you want to add a compost accelerator to speed up the process, you can try adding in urine, grass clippings, blood meal, or coffee grounds, or you can purchase a compost starter like this one from Jobe’s Organics.

Compost starting to smell

This is almost always because you either put in something you shouldn’t have or, more likely, there is too much nitrogen, or green products. The quickest way to fix this is to add more carbon, or brown products. As said above, your compost should smell like rich, earthy soil and not stink. Stinky compost just attracts pests and animals. Adding more brown products can also help if your pile becomes too wet, which is likely to happen if you have an open pile during rainy weather.

Compost attracting bugs

You may encounter some living creatures in your compost pile. Of course, vermicomposting uses worms, but in a regular pile, you may also see maggots, roaches, or mites. While this can look pretty gross, they are actually helping the compost pile break down faster and can be a good thing. And if they are still there when you go to use your compost in the garden, no big deal! They will continue to benefit your soil or, at the very worst, become food for the birds.

Bad bugs in your compost would include slugs, spiders, ants, bees, flies, or centipedes. If you see any bad bugs, try to remove them, add more brown to your pile, and keep it a bit drier.

Compost Time!

So how do you know when your compost is ready to use? Quality finished compost should look like crumbly dirt and smell like rich soil. The easiest test is to remove some, place in a container, and plant radish seeds. Radish seeds germinate quickly, and if you see at least 75 percent sprout, you know your compost is good to go!

Now that we have gone over all the ins and outs of composting, I hope you will give this a try. There are so many incredible benefits to composting at home!

Dani Boss — Summer Skye Gardens

Dani is a Gardenary-certified garden coach and proud owner of Summer Skye Gardens in Spring, Texas. She loves giving tips for how to make your home and garden more sustainable or how to set up your own pollinator garden, complete with cut flowers and roses.

As a garden coach, she's passionate about helping families get started growing their own food with confidence and success in their very own backyard gardens. She offers design service, one-on-one coaching, and consultations.

Follow Summer Skye Gardens on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and Pinterest to see how Dani is helping others grow in health and happiness. If you're in the Spring area, sign up on her website to receive a free seasonal planting guide and see how Dani can help you make your kitchen garden dreams come true!

Thanks to Dani for supplying the pictures of a compost pile and her compost tumbler for this article.