How to Compost?
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Any advice on how to make compost would be appreciated. I live in central Illinois so we have somewhat cold winters.
http://www.sodgod.com/composting/
You want 1/3 brown (dead leaves) 1/3 green (grass clippings) 1/3 soil. I made a super simple compost pile without all the fancy cans and turners and cost. I stack several layers of brick in a square at the edge of my yard. About 4' x 4'. Add the above ingredients and start adding food scraps. Never meat. You can use all vegetable and fruit peelings coffee grinds egg shells smashed into very small pieces (put in a plastic bag and step on them till they are little pieces). Add your kitchen scraps (from above) after each meal or pile in a carton on the counter til the end of the day. Dump in your compost heap and turn with a shovel each time you add more. Every year it was also fun to see what grew from last years seeds. Tomatoes, melons, squash, peppers. You can also add the content of your paper shredder. Sprinkle onto the heap and cover with mower clippings and you will understand how this breaks down. Put your fingertips in the pile about 2 days after you have added grass clippings and you will see how hot it gets. Let overwinter and start again in spring. Continue to add brown green and food scraps in equal portions.
I think this is what you are looking for, Meera.
https://www.bhg.com/gardening/yard/compost/how-to-compost/
Start with dead waist in a layer. Then some form of nitrogen as a layer on top of that. Dirt n sand mix or animal manure. Then another layer of dead, etc. believe it or not you can even save on your water bill, by peeing in a container, instead of flushing it. ( just think 4-8 0z of urine to flushing 1or 2 gallons of water.) this is pure nitrogen and pour it on as a nitrogen layer. Buy a 24” moisture thermometer or just ask for a compost thermometer from a nursery or garden shop. You can even order them on line. When the temperature is high stir the container or flip your pile into a new pile removing the good earth off the bottom. Save the worms and put them elsewhere. “You might want to put your pile in a chicken wire fence. As a bare pile in a fence or ground can attract vermin’s.) remember to water your pile or container as this speeds up the process and keeps the material cooler, hot piles have been known to combust and start fires.🔥 water about every two to three days depending on the weather. Use the spray pattern don’t drown your mix remember the heat is what burns the dead matter. Oh it’s wise to put equal amounts of matter with equal amounts of nitrogen. Enjoy good earth. 3D
This works for me - I gathered up rocks and made an oval about 4 feet long. I just dump my garbage in the area, rotating each time. Sometimes I cover it, sometimes I don't. The garbage will disintegrate in just a few days.
You build it the worms will come.
LOL William! The worms will come.