Make Compost Faster With This Easy Step!
One of the most valuable materials that you can add to your garden is rich, nutrient-dense compost made from kitchen scraps and yard waste materials!
Most of us have all the materials at our disposal, (or in our disposal!) that can be used to make compost, but it does take time to break down. The solution is to "pre-compost" materials before adding them to the compost bin. Your compost materials will decompose much faster when they are cut up into small pieces.
I came across a very useful tool, a pre-composting machine. The one I use is an EcoTonix, but you can find machines that work similarly. It's not high tech and it runs on human power.
There is an inner basket where you place your full size kitchen scraps on top of sharp, rotating, tines. A hand crank facilitates the action. As you turn the handle forward, and alternately, backwards, the tines cut and split the food scraps. It's that easy.
The chopped kitchen scraps drop into a small holding area that you access as a drawer. The now, small food scraps can be buried directly in your yard, about 1 foot deep, where they will decompose in the following months.
On the other hand, if you have a composter, you can add your "optimized" green materials to it and expect to shave off some time for finished compost!
Nitrogen-rich kitchen scraps are considered a "green" material.
Carbon-rich yard waste includes dried leaves, stems, and paper.
Shoot for a ratio of 30 parts carbon-rich material, (browns) to 1 part nitrogen-rich material, (greens).
Frequently asked questions
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