Organic Compost
Aug0
With so many talking about the activity of composting on the odd occasion, and with so many doing it or proceeding to it every single day, it seems almost instinctive to expect a discussion on the final product of it all.
This product may be formally named “organic compost”. Organic compost can be divided loosely into two types: green and brown.
Green compost is made by collecting left-over food items, from vegetable and fruit peelings to tea bags to coffee grinds to egg shells (…the list goes on and on) and assimilating it in a single place before “letting nature take its course” (i.e. just allowing the oxygen in the air to decompose the final pile of it all, over a period of several months.
Brown compost comes in the form of paper and other wood properties that has been allowed to decay by wholly natural means in the same way.
Research has made it possible for some non-biodegradable materials to take forms which are “more biodegradable” – polythene is the most well known example of this.
Organic compost is proof that so many materials can avoid ending up in landfill sites – anaerobic decomposition results in greenhouse gases.
A soil additive, like coir or peat, organic compost works as a tilth improver, supplying humus and nutrients to the soil it is made to come into contact with, much to the health of any and all plant and tree life residing in such a body of soil.
Worm Compost
Aug0
Worm compost is perhaps better known as vermicast, worm castings, worm humus or worm manure; it is the output of earthworms’ feeding on dead cell matter. Worm compost, well-known as a widely used horticultural product, is usually obtained from organic waste like raw and cooked vegetables, fruit, teabags, eggshells, coffee grounds and small amounts of cardboard.
However, meat, fish and dairy products should not form part of a body material that is to be made into worm compost.
In its status as a widely used horticultural product, there are many benefits attributed to worm compost: such as how it improves soil conditions and enriches it with micro-organisms by adding enzymes such as phosphatase and cellulose. (Water holding capacity is improved as well.)
This has its benefits for plants – technically, germination, plant growth and crop yield are enhanced; and it enables root growth and structure.
From an economic perspective, it means a lower waste flow to landfill sites and it creates low-skill, practical jobs in local areas. And it’s good for the environment in that it reduces greenhouse gas emissions.
There are a number of vermicomposting bins on sale, which can be made of old plastic containers, wood, Styrofoam or metal containers. However, there are types of wood which are avoided in worm bin construction: some cedars, Yellow cedar and redwood contain resinous oils that may harm worms – although Western Red Cedar has been seen to have excellent longevity in composting conditions.
Worm compost is recommended as fertilizer material.
Organic Gardening Compost
Aug0
Organic Gardening is one of the most environment friendly and healthy ways of gardening. It is beneficial to both your garden’s soil structure and plants.
Organic gardening compost is the integral part of organic gardening and is comprised of twigs, leaves, rotten fruit, manure and other natural wastes which after decay resulted into much needed nutrients for plants that can’t be even provided by best sandy loam soil.
Organic gardening compost is really vital for offsetting the soil by improving the soil structure, its ventilation and the ground water retention capacity. There should be a compost pit for preparing organic compost and you should be prepared with all garden tools to start digging. The size of the hold is matter of concern as it should be large enough to contain natural waste.
Organic gardening compost can also be prepared above the ground but it is avoided most of the times due to presence of microorganisms, insects and the smell which are hazardous for health.
When it comes to turn over the compost or carry the material to plants, composting equipments like a shovel or a pitchfork could prove to be handy. You need to ensure, while deciding about the location of compost pit, that you pay attention to the creatures like earthworms dwelling in soil which break down the organic matters and thus discharges the nutrients needed by the plants.
You may add coffee or tea grounds, eggshells, and cow’s manure to organic gardening compost in order to make ideal ground for gardening. You should keep your compost pile always away from bones, animal fat and trimmings infected with plant diseases as they may pollute the final compost product and may prove to be unfavorable for gardening.
How to make compost
Aug0
With composting being such a common activity, and with its product having such a large number of listed uses, and given that composting is an environmentally friendly action, let the answer to the hypothetical question “how do you make compost?” be outlined!
It is very straightforward and does not require any real thinking. One continues to find “compost bins” on sale throughout the world, but it is easy enough to allocate a space in your front or back garden to create there a compost heap.
In either case, making compost is simply a matter of gathering a body of biodegradable material(s) in a single place, or adding to an existing one, before just leaving it for a period of between six months and two years to create the compost product.
Given that composting cannot take place without oxygen, for the needed oxidization process, it is always wise to consider having your compost gathering spot in a well ventilated area. In practice, this means that large trees and shrubs, and the sides of buildings etc., may obfuscate the access of wind via gusts; those wanting compost in a short a period of time as possible would be wise not to overlook this.
And even though bins cost money whereas a self-made compost heap doesn’t, a pile of compost located in the former is a lot more mobile, and for this reason it can be a lot more easily relocated as and when deemed appropriate. Also, aim for moist areas.
Organic Gardening
Aug0
So many manufacture compost but not quite as many people use it. However, even those new to composting will remember as one of the first facts about it that it’s most common use lies in organic gardening: indeed, improving soil conditions and nurturing plants with the nutrients of dead cell matter carry positive implications for us all.
With this being the case, gardeners and horticultural experts are always among the first to use it to best effect. In the UK, there is even a national charity dedicated to organic growing – Garden Organic, http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk
In all reality, “organic gardening” is merely defined any kind of gardening without the use any chemical means, such as artificial fertilizer. As such, this document might as well, at least in part, be considered a document of advice on “traditional gardening”.
Let’s start with techniques. Get to know your lawn-mower from your spade, and your shears from your rake. And be careful of back strain if you’re going to be doing it for an extended period of time.
Then there’s the notion of pest control. Organic gardening is not about breaking out the fly spray. There are certain plants you can grow in your garden that work against pests (and this is not limited to the Venus fly trap!).
If you want to know more about organic gardening, suggestions include visiting the website of Garden Organic or buying the publication Organic Gardening. Show-offs can talk to celebrity gardener Alan Titchmarsh.
Worm Composting
Aug0
Worm composting is the process of administering worms to dead cell matter for composting it. Worm composting works much more quickly than traditional composting, and it is often referred to vermicomposting.
The earthworm species most used in the process (composting worms) are mostly Red Wigglers (Eisenia foetida), but European nightcrawlers (Eisenia hortensis) may also be used, as well as more acid-tolerant worms called dendrobaenas or dendras.
Worm composting is a common activity in locations over the world, although it is particularly large-scale in Canada, Italy, Japan and the US. Worm composting has its uses in farming and landscaping, such as in the manufacture of compost tea.
There are two systems of larger-scale worm composting, the first type using a windrow, which is just a body of bedding materials for the earthworms to live in; and there is always an abundance of organic matter for them to feed on, which is continually added to.
The second system is the raised bed flow-through system, which locates an inch of worm food across the top of the bed while an inch of castings is harvested from below when a breaker bar is pulled across the large mesh screen which constitutes the base of the bed.
Worm composting operatives may wish to note that the most kinds of worm composting worms – Eisenia foetida, Eisenia andrei and Lumbricus rubellus – feed most rapidly at temperatures of 59 to 77 degrees Fahrenheit (15-25 degrees Celsius). They can survive at 50 degrees Fahrenheit (10 degrees Celsius).
Worm farm composting
Aug0
Worm farm composting is a frequently applied method of increasing soil fertility – what happens is that the structure and drainage of the soil is improved, together with the holding of water and the breaking up of clays. It is widely noted among gardeners as being a secret ingredient to a healthy garden.
And because compost worms eat up to half their own body weight in waste material, they are very efficient in the production of organic compost.
Dendrobaena worms are used again and again in worm farm composting. And they compost a wide range of substances – anything that has lived and died; vegetable peelings; cooked vegetables; vacuum dust; pet hair; lawn clippings; animal waste; inner tubes from toilet / kitchen rolls; cardboard egg boxes.
One administers 1kg of worms for every cubic meter of soil – these measures at approximately 1600 to 2000 worms. The worms themselves are asexual and they can breed every couple of weeks; and without predators they have a life expectancy of up to 15 years.
Normal composting involves the collection of a body of dead cell matter in a single place before letting nature do the composting business by the process of oxidization. By contrast, worm farm composting works much faster. Furthermore, they do not produce any smell.
When creating a worm farm, know the natural habitat of worms. Worms survive and thrive only in warm areas which are moist and continually dark – they should be kept indoors during the cooler months.
Composting 101 – What is Composting
Jun0
“Composting” is a common activity. It involves the gathering of once-living material (such as dead foliage) in a single place; it is all left to decompose together over a period of time. Eventually there becomes a rather earthy kind of substance, which crumbles easily. Once this is obtained it can be applied to plants, or to garden soil. The collective nutrients in this material may be absorbed by plants, to further their growth, while soil will take it in and become more fertile; universally favored results. The best composting product is none other than that which is homemade, and which doesn’t cost you anything.
