Composting

This might sound a little "tree huggerish" but I am going to start composting. The soil that we purchased for our garden last summer was okay but needs a little pick me up. So I have decided to recycle those peelings and junk that can be composted and use it to make my soil a little better. My grandma always had a compost pile but, I never knew exactly how it worked, so I did a little research.

First what is compost? Compost is simply decomposed organic material.

Some different methods for collecting compost: 1-Bins method: You could use a bin with one or multiple areas. However, one place I looked said that this method can be kind of hard because the stuff at the bottom with be ready before the stuff at the top. Making it so you would have take the stuff off the top and to get to the ready  stuff on the bottom. 2-Trenching method: Another method can be digging a 8" trench in your garden and then add the stuff to the trench and cover it over and let it sit for a few months and by the time you are ready to plant it will be ready.3-Pile Method: The last method I found was just having a pile somewhere in your yard. This is what I am going to do that way it will be easier to turn it.

What can you compost?

• Fresh (green) Grass clippings
  
• Fresh manure (horse, chicken, rabbit, cow)
  
• Kitchen scraps (fruit, vegetables, coffee grounds, tea bags)
  
• Weeds
  
• Green leaves
  
• Leftover fruits from the garden
• Brown, dry leaves
  
• Dried grass
  
• Cornstalks (shredded)
  
• Straw
• Sawdust in moderation;

What should I not compost?

• Chemically-Treated wood products
• Diseased Plants
• Human Wastes
• Meat, Bones, and Fatty Food wastes
• Pernicious Weeds
• Pet Wastes
  

For More info on composting visit http://www.thegardenofoz.org/composting101.asp or http://vegweb.com/composting/