«. ‘What: ‘is - composting?

“the: biological -
position | of the” organic
constituents of wastes under
controlled conditions.” _—

-~

In simple English, it's ‘the.

breakdown: ‘of. -food. . and.

-garden—-wastes into a--soil materials until the canis full, | material isavailable=. yer

conditioner. It -adds
nutrients to the soil, im-

“Cover. with - -splastic ‘or.
in and the flies: ‘out: After :10 .

days, start ‘turning. it over.
with a ‘garden. fork every 3 or
| days until it is ready. ,
The experts ‘describe “it. as. .
decom-

2)" Punch holes in ‘the
sides and. bottom of an old
garbage. can or oil drum.

This gives the needed ©
ventilation. Boe
Ada layers of the different

then moisten and keep
goverede

proves the soil’s water.

holding capacity, improves
‘tilth and” aeration, “and
makes plant...

available tothe. plants.-

Many different
posting
been developed. Which one
is best for you? It depends on
the amount of your organic
waste and the time you want
to invest.

com-

e Basic ingredients. A
successful compost program’
needs good ventilation,
moisture and nutrients
(especially nitrogen).

The usual way to be sure
of adequate nitrogen is to
build up the compost using
layers, of materials: green
materials (lawn clippings,
leaves, green plant stems,
roots, flowers, etc.); animal
manure and rich soil; and
alternatively dry materials
(dried grass, mature flower
stalks, branches without
bs pe nollenyeigptenw ee cai

Rv :
“ey
PERT AN Wie oie apa wer uacnrenea

‘starting your compost with a
nutrient-rich material such
“as COmposted cow or sheep
manure,
commercial starter., ~~”

e Basic models. You can
make a compost heap
yourself. Here are three
simple ways to do it:

(1) Dig a shallow pit about
12” deep in a corner of your
garden. If ro is any
chance of smalf children or
animals falling into it, put a
simple wire fence around it.

Put a layer of organic
material in the bottom and
sprinkle it with cither
compost starter or com-
posted manure’ or bone
meal, then a layer of carth.

Moisten and add suc-
cessive layera of organic

material to be composted..- -----heap.-- --

nutrients.
: already in ‘the’ soit more.

techniques have .

bone meal or a-°

Your compost should be

“ready: in'a few weeks. In-

stead of a drum, you: rcan also -

use a.cylinder of wire mesh.”

9); Construct. a. wooden -

: box without a ‘top or bottom.

The size will depend on your

_ needs, but 4’ long by 2’ wide

by 1’ high should do nicely.

Dig a hole 18” deep and
slightly smaller than the box, °
so the box rests firmly on the
ground above the hole.

Earth should be added in
layers to the compost. Drive
wooden stakes into the
bottom of the pit, 12” apart.
When the box is nearly full
with layers of compost
materials, moisten, and then
remove the stakes so you
have “chimneys” of air
ventilation,

Keep the box covered
with a wooden or wire lid
moisten |

and akan

SMe ia pron wt peeomiend.— break-down ~

You can: also purchase
small composting units
which come complete with

. instructions and starter.

* Materials you can add,

Almost any organic material -

is suitable for composting —

grass clippings, plant
trimmings, leaves, weeds,
kitchen wastes such as

vegetable and fruit peelings,
coffee. grounds, tea leaves,
egg shells, nut shells, floor
sweepings, feathers, hair,
ashes from wood fires and
cotton.

To provent contaminating
the soil with weed sceds, do
not put ripened weeds in the
compost heap. If the weeds
are green and tho seeds have
not matured, they may safely
be added to the _compst

rr eee ne

your was e

Fats’ ate not. acceptable .
_ “burlap to keep the moisture. because they. don't. break:

.down~ very -well.. Cooked~ ©
*foods, meat and bones may ~* ©
elthough: ~

‘you may.solve ‘this. problem. .
. .With a covering ofearth... _.

attract” animals,

_can: start. your, ‘comp
“any time of the year}

“perhaps best because this ae

- when. the: largest amount, of

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“Those are consistentand positive results.

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about |
material is ground up.

Otherwise it can take up to.

six. months or‘ a_ year,

- depending.on the: amount of,
: Ventilation available:.:

v ‘s

To be sure you have a
constant supply from spring
te late summer, start a new

pile while you" re waiting for .

the first to “ripen”. A dark,
ich colour tells you it's
ready to use.

When that time comes,
place it in several cone-

shaped piles on boards:or a.

tarpaulin and leave it to dry
in the sun for an hour or two.
(At the bottom of each pile
you'll find balled up carth
worms; put them back into
the emptied pit and start the
process again.) Then turn

' your garden soil and add a

one-inch to three-inch layer
of rich compost. ws.

Pate can also apply half-

ig As PSO MB OSt EN YOUR a
- par ‘in the fall and:Iet- thie—--

eee

soil do the rest.

¢ Good advice. Your
bookstore will have a variety
of books: dealing with
composting and gardening,
The ideas in this chapter are
drawn from The Basic Book
of Organic Gardening by
Robert Rodale (Ballantine
Paperback, 1971) and
Composting: A Study of the
Process and Its Principles by
Clarence Golucke (Rodale
Press, 1973). Both are
recommended.

You can also send for

Agriculture Canada
Publication No. 868,
Manures and Compost

available from:

Agriculture Canada _ In-
formation

Sir John Carling Building

930 Carling Avenue

Ottawa, Ontario,

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