Ask for several fruit or vegetable lug boxes at a local food market or build your own earthworm box. A large earthworm box can be built from 1 sheet of 4- by 8-foot plywood: Saw 1-foot pieces from each end of the plywood, as well as 1-foot pieces from each side. You now have a bottom for the box which has dimensions of 2 by 6 feet. Nail the 6-footlong side pieces to the bottom of the box. Cut a 4-foot end piece in half and nail each piece to the box to enclose the ends. Drill 1/2-inch holes in the bottom of the box and some around the sides to provide aeration and drainage. Set the earthworm box on concrete blocks or several sawhorses. Spread a layer of small rocks or gravel in the bottom of the box.

Order 2,000 to 3,000 “bed-run” (mixed ages) worms (or 1/2 pound for each fruit lug box). Now you are ready to prepare bedding for the earthworms, so it will be ready when they arrive. The bedding must be of a material which will remain moist and porous. Aged horse manure and compost are good bedding materials to use. Sprinkle ground limestone over the bedding material to neutralize any acidity. Moisten the materials thoroughly and spread a 4- to 5-inch layer in the box. Be sure that the materials are no longer heating up when you add the worms. Earthworms will not thrive in bedding which has a temperature much higher than 27°C (80^°F) or 32^°C (90°F).

To add the earthworms to the box, push aside some bedding in several places in the box (or in the center of a smaller box) and gently cover the worms. Place a loose- fitting cover over the box to keep it dark, warm, and moist.

After several days, begin to feed kitchen garbage to the worms. You can add up to 1 pound of garbage to the box each day. Chop the materials with a knife or in a blender to make it easier for the worms to feed. Push aside enough bedding to make a hole for the garbage and cover it with some of the bedding. The following day, put the garbage in another part of the box. Each addition of garbage is consumed in 3 or 4 days.

Keep the bedding in the earthworm box moist. If excess water drains out of the bottom of the box, collect it in a container and use it to water your house plants. After approximately 1 month, the population of earthworms will have doubled and will need several more inches of bedding. When the earthworm box is full, remove half of the compost and spread it in several small piles on a tarp in bright light. The worms, disliking bright light, will cluster together in the bottom of the piles. Add them to another earthworm box or to your compost heap. The earthworm castings can be added to your garden soil, spread on your lawn (1/2 inch thick), or used for indoor planting mix.

If your compost contains many materials which have not broken down and is very fibrous, allow it to mature longer. You can leave the compost in the heap or add it to the soil. Do not plant immediately after you add half-decomposed compost to the soil. If you plant too soon, before the compost materials have decayed further, the plants will suffer from nitrogen hunger. The microorganisms use nitrogen from the soil to decompose the compost materials. When the compost is decomposed, nitrogen is gradually released back into the soil as the microorganisms die and decompose.

Adding Compost to your Soil

Loosen your garden soil. By using a spading fork, you can loosen and aerate clay soil without subsoil clods being brought to the surface. Spread a layer of compost at least 1 to 3 inches deep and lightly mix it with the topsoil. Use compost liberally. Compost will not burn the plants, as commercial fertilizers do when too much is used. One or 2 pounds of compost (1 cubic yard of compost weighs approximately 1,000 pounds) for every 2 square feet of soil will support the growth of an abundant, healthy crop of vegetables and fruits.

Using Compost in Seed Flats or Cold Frames

Compost used for germinating seeds needs to be of a fine texture. The texture of compost which has been sifted through a screen is ideal for planting seeds or young plants. A simple sifter can be made of a wooden frame with a 1/4- inch mesh screen attached to one side. The materials which are sifted out can be used in the bottom of the seed flats to provide drainage or as an activator in other compost heaps. For cold frame soil, mix 1 part sifted compost with 1 part sand and 2 parts rich soil. For seed flats, mix equal parts of compost, sand, and soil or create your own planting mixture. Allow the mixture to age for several months before planting the seeds.

Compost as a Mulch or Top-dressing

Compost, partially decomposed or matured, can be used as a mulch or top-dressing around growing plants. Lightly cultivate the soil and spread a layer of compost around the plants. When fertilizing trees with compost, spread a ring of compost around the trunk. Begin about 2 feet from the tree trunk and spread the compost 1 foot beyond the drip line of the tree leaves. A thick layer (2 to 3 inches) of compost will conserve soil moisture and provide plants with additional nutrients.

Transplanting with Compost

Compost increases the survival rate of transplants by helping the soil retain moisture and supplying essential nutrients. Apply mature, sifted compost liberally around the roots of transplants. Spread a 1- or 2-inch layer over the soil surface after the plant is in place.

Compost and House Plants

Sifted compost, combined with equal parts of rich soil and sand, makes a good potting soil mixture. Special potting mixtures of oak leaf or pine needle compost can be made for acid-loving plants. Older house plant soil can be rejuvenated by adding a thin layer of sifted compost and lightly scratching it into the soil surface.

Coarse, woody compost materials can be placed in a separate compost heap. This rough heap is built in the same way as a regular compost heap, although a much longer period of decomposition is needed. Since the hard-todecompose materials are composted separately, it is easier to sift the compost of your regular heaps. The materials from a rough heap can be used to activate another compost heap. Composted separately and composted again in a regular heap, the hard-to-decompose materials are given at least twice the usual amount of time for decomposition.

Mushroom compost is the source of food energy for mushrooms. Unlike green plants, mushrooms cannot manufacture any of their own food. Mushrooms need an abundance of decaying organic matter to grow and develop.

Strawy horse manure, commonly used in mushroom growing for many years, makes an excellent mushroom compost. Mushroom compost can be made by combining straw with fresh horse manure. The straw should be moistened thoroughly several days before mixing it with the manure. Manure which contains a liberal amount of straw can be placed directly in a heap for composting. Manure which has been mixed with wood shavings or sawdust is too acid to be used for mushroom compost. Other kinds of manure, like chicken or rabbit, can also be used for the compost.

As you build the compost heap, sprinkle gypsum (about 20 pounds for 1/2 ton of manure) over the straw and manure mixture.’ The gypsum provides calcium and helps keep the compost loose and aerated. Turn the compost heap every 5 or 6 days, moistening the materials as needed.’ After 3 or 4 turnings, the compost is ready to be used. It is important that the compost heats up well to eliminate any organisms potentially harmful to the mushrooms. A half ton of compost will provide 60 square feet of growing space (from which you can harvest about 100 pounds of mushrooms).

A machete, a cleaver, or a sharp spade is the simplest (and least expensive) tool to use for chopping compost materials. Chop up stalks of corn and cabbage and crush them to expose more surface area. Cut up tomato vines and stems of garden vegetables like beans and peppers. Chop up green leaves or let them dry and then crush them. Crush eggshells and cut up kitchen scraps into small pieces while you are preparing vegetables and fruits.

A wire mesh leaf shredder can be built from a wooden box. Replace the bottom with 1/2-inch wire mesh. Add 2 pieces of wood on the bottom to act as legs to provide clearance for the finished material to fall through.’

A reel (hand) lawn mower can be converted into a shredder. Remove the handle and braces of the mower. Mount the mower so that the cutting bar is in a vertical position and is flush with the bottom of the feeding trough of the wooden table. The feeding trough should have sides 3 or 4 inches high and a bottom which will permit easy feeding of the plant material into the machine. The trough can be lined with galvanized metal. Drill a small hole halfway between the center and edge of one wheel and attach a handle with a bolt and nut. The machine can be operated by hand, as shown in the drawing, or with a motor mounted on a platform attached to a leg or frame of the machine. The pulley attached to the motor should be relatively small, while that on the lawn mower wheel should be much larger, so that the machine is not turned too rapidly and does not choke up easily. For feeding the plant material into the machine, use a rectangular piece of board with a handle attached to one side as a pusher.

A rotary lawn mower can be used to shred compost materials. The materials to be shredded are piled on the ground near a wall or fence, and the mower is moved over them several times. If you already own a rotary lawn mower, use it for shredding your compost materials. If you don’t have a rotary lawn mower, don’t worry about buying one. Chopping your compost materials by hand is sufficient to make good compost.

A commercial power shredder can be used, although they are expensive to buy and not necessary for making good compost. The noise generated and the fuel consumed by power shredders makes their value in home composting rather doubtful. Power shredders are helpful in shredding materials for use in mulching. The most efficient use of power shredders is on a neighborhood or community level.

PHOSPHATE ROCK

Phosphate rock is a good source of phosphorus for the compost heap. It also contains minerals such as iron, copper, zinc, and magnesium. If you have tested your soil and found that it is rather low in phosphorus, add phosphate rock to the compost heap. When the compost is added to the soil, phosphorus is incorporated in balance with other nutrients. A light sprinkling of phosphate rock in various layers of the compost heap will supply enough phosphorus to maintain a healthy soil. Phosphate rock also helps to preserve nitrogen in the compost heap by combining with ammonia. If your soil is very low in phosphorus, add phosphate rock directly to the soil, as well as adding it to the compost heap. Phosphate rock can be found at nurseries and garden-supply stores.

Phosphate rock is made available to plants gradually as it is needed. It remains in the soil until plant roots grow in the surrounding area. The plant roots give off carbon dioxide (CO₂) and acids which help dissolve the phosphate rock, releasing its nutrients. The microorganisms help to combine the minerals of the phosphate rock into compounds which plants absorb easily.

Superphosphate is not a substitute for phosphate rock. Many of the minerals found in phosphate rock are inactivated when superphosphate is processed. Superphosphate is treated with sulfuric acid to make it more soluble and can create an imbalance in the population of microorganisms living in the compost heap and the soil. The bacteria that break down the sulfur multiply and feed on particular fungi which help to break down cellulose.⁵ A large proportion of plant tissue is made of cellulose. Superphosphate would, therefore, slow down the decomposition of such compost materials as hay, leaves, and sawdust.

COTTONSEED MEAL

Cottonseed meal is made from the cottonseed which has had its lints, hulls, and its oil removed. Cottonseed meal is primarily used as a good source of nitrogen, but also contains phosphorus, potassium, and trace elements. The meal, easy and pleasant to handle, is acidic and is a good material to use in making compost for acid-loving plants.

SEAWEED

Easily found on or near shore, seaweed is a good material to add to a compost heap. Seaweed should be quickly rinsed to remove excess salt and used in the compost heap immediately. Some of the seaweeds generally used are kelp or driftweed (Laminaria), bladder wrack or cutweed (Fucus), and sea lettuce (Ulva). Seaweed contains some nitrogen and is a particularly rich source of potassium, minerals, and vitamins. The main structural material of seaweed is alginic acid. Alginic acid can act as a colloid in the compost heap, combining with minerals and holding moisture, helping to prevent the loss of nutrients through leaching. Seaweed, combined with manure or another nitrogen source, makes a good mixture that aids in the rapid decay of straw or similar compost materials.

HAIR

Hair and feathers are high in nitrogen content. Hair is easily gathered at barber or hair-styling shops. To prevent matting, the hair should be cut in short pieces and combined with other materials.

LEAVES

Leaves contain many minerals absorbed and brought up from deep soil by the tree roots. Many of the nutrients which have leached out of the surface layer of the soil are replenished when the leaves fall and decompose. Leaves are made up of large amounts of fibrous organic matter, giving them a good soil-building quality. It is best to chop and mix green leaves with other materials as they tend to obstruct air circulation in the compost heap by matting. Dry leaves can be crushed.

Not all leaves are good to use in the compost heap. Eucalyptus, California bay, walnut, juniper, camphor, acacia, cypress, and pittosporum either decompose too slowly to be mixed with other materials or contain resins or acids which can impede the growth of microorganisms and plants.’ Walnut leaves contain juglanic acid, which is toxic, and hinders the growth of such plants as apple trees and tomatoes.’ Some leaves can be used abundantly in a compost heap, as long as a good source of nitrogen is provided. Oak leaf compost is good material for acid-loving plants, such as tomatoes or blueberries.

GRASS CLIPPINGS

Grass clippings are a good, abundant material containing nitrogen. When a pile of freshly cut grass is left undisturbed for several days, you will find that it becomes very hot in the center. The heat generated by the pile of grass clippings is an indication that it is decomposing. When green grass is not mixed with a drier, absorbent material, it tends to compact and prevent air circulation. The moisture contained in the grass may transform the pile into a wet, brown mess. When using grass in the compost heap, it is important to mix green grass clippings with a coarser material such as dry leaves or wood shavings. Alternatively, you can dry the grass before adding it to the compost heap.

It is important to choose your source of grass clippings carefully. Avoid grass which is growing along busy streets. Roadside vegetation accumulates lead from continuous exposure to car exhaust. Do not use grass which has been sprayed for dandelions or other unwanted growth. Grass clippings are so abundant that there is no need to ever consider using any that are of questionable quality.

WEEDS

Weeds and garden debris are good compost materials. Many plants accumulate particular minerals, such as dandelion which accumulates calcium. Minerals which have been accumulated in weeds can be returned to the soil through

Composting.

Weeds such as Bermuda grass, couch grass, and bindweed should be thoroughly dried in the sun before being added to the compost heap. Green succulent material should be withered so that it decomposes, rather than continuing to grow in the heap. Thick stalks of cabbage, corn, and other garden vegetables should be chopped into short lengths and crushed to break up some of the tough fibers.

Weed seeds are not a problem if the compost heap is built correctly. The heat produced in the heap is sufficient to make the seeds inviable. Of course, the easiest solution is to “harvest” the weeds before they flower and go to seed.

The various vegetable and fruit trimmings available in households, groceries, and restaurants are rich in nitrogen and other nutrients, including trace elements. If you decide to build your compost heap gradually, kitchen waste can be put in a tight-lidded container until enough has been accumulated for a layer. Sawdust placed in the bottom of the container absorbs the juices of the garbage. An occasional sprinkling of limestone or wood ash helps prevent odor, discourages flies from laying their eggs, and neutralizes the acidity of the raw garbage. Manure or rich soil can be added to give the kitchen garbage a good start on composting.

A layer of kitchen waste in the compost heap is covered with a layer of manure and a thin layer of rich soil. Manure and rich soil contribute microorganisms and nutrients and also prevent flies from laying eggs on the garbage. A properly built compost heap does not give off strong odors and does not attract rodents or flies . . . or outraged neighbors.

Banana skins are rich in potassium and phosphorus. The skins readily decompose, indicating a high nitrogen content.

Bones are a good source of phosphorus, as well as nitrogen. When bones are steamed (in a pressure cooker) or boiled until soft, their fatty materials are removed and they can be ground more easily, hastening their decay. Bone meal helps to reduce acidity in the compost heap because of its lime content.

Citrus rinds are easily composted. If the rinds are thick, they tend to be richer in nitrogen. Orange, lemon, and grapefruit rinds contain varying amounts of phosphorus and potassium. You can encourage decomposition if you chop up the rinds somewhat before adding them to the compost heap.

Coffee grounds contain nitrogen and small amounts of phosphorus and potassium. Coffee grounds preserve moisture well and, because of this, they sour easily. Mixed with ground limestone, the grounds are a good addition to the compost. They have been shown to contain many minerals, including trace elements, plus carbohydrates (sugars) and some vitamins.

Corn cobs are fairly resistant to decomposition, but, cut up or ground, they are a good material for compost. The cob, in nutrient value, is said to be 2/3 that of the kernel. Corn cobs can be combined with leaves to prevent the leaves from matting and hindering aeration of the compost heap.

Eggshells consist mainly of calcium. The shells provide lime, thus helping to reduce acidity in the compost heap. Crushing the shells aids in their decomposition.

Grease (including oily salad scraps): DO NOT USE. Grease decomposes slowly. Grease can coat other materials in the compost heap, hindering their decomposition.

Nutshells such as walnut, almond, and pecan may resist breaking down. These can best be used in a special compost heap made of hard-to-decompose materials or as a mulch. Peanut shells break down easily and are a good source of nitrogen for the compost heap.

Tea leaves are good to use in the compost heap. The leaves add various minerals, nitrogen, and small amounts of phosphorus and potassium. Tea leaves contained in a filter bag can be added as is. The filter paper will decompose with the other compost materials.

to be continued

Good insulation of an open compost heap is important, especially if your area has frequent, heavy rains or particularly cold winters. A layer of soil and a thick covering of hay is generally used for insulation. Burlap material can provide additional insulation. Plastic is not a good material to use because it does not allow the circulation of air.

Large-scale composting, as is done commercially, usually involves the use of windrows. A windrow is a long compost heap, perhaps 8 to 10 feet wide at the base. Tractor plows are used extensively to turn windrows. A large machine has been developed which straddles the heap, turning it as it passes over. Commercial windrows are turned often to increase the rate of decomposition.

Windrows may also be used on a smaller scale, allowing for new materials to be added at one end, while finished compost is removed from the other. If necessary, turning can be done by hand or with the help of a small garden plow.

Compost Bins

Small-scale composting often requires the use of a bin. Small compost heaps do not retain heat well. The temperature of a compost heap is most affected by the cooling, drying effect of wind. A compost heap needs to have dimensions of at least 3 feet by 3 feet by 3 feet (1 cubic yard) in order to be sufficiently self-insulating to retain its heat. In colder climates, a larger volume may be needed for sufficient insulation. A compost bin alleviates problems of insulation for small heaps or heaps that are accumulated gradually. A bin also helps to protect the compost heap from scavenging animals.

Bins can be built in many different ways. Try building your bin from secondhand materials. It is best to leave spaces in the walls of the bin in order to allow air to penetrate the heap. Leave 1/2- to 1 1/2-inch spaces between wooden slats, depending on their width. Concrete blocks or bricks, stones, straw bales, barrels, boxes, or wire fencing can also be used.

A wooden bin provides a sturdy container for a compost heap. A double wooden bin with a removable middle wall provides an easy way to turn the compost heap.

A series of bins can be built to accommodate more than one compost heap. This would allow you to build a new compost heap while another is “ripening.” The top bin is filled first, and when the material is ready for turning, it is dropped into the bins below.

A picket fence bin is easy to assemble. The sections of fencing can be fastened in 2 angled sections and hooked together. When the compost heap is ready to be turned, you simply unhook the sections of the bin and reassemble it next to the original compost heap.

A cylinder of wire fencing, the ends of which are fastened together with chain snaps, makes a simple compost bin.

A wire bin can be insulated by surrounding it with leaves and straw. A piece of burlap helps to protect the top of the bin from rain and snow, enabling you to make compost during the winter months.

A wooden bin with finished dimensions of 3 by 3 by 3 feet can be constructed with readily available materials.

Several important ideas may help you to decide on the location for the compost heap: It is helpful to have enough space for a wheelbarrow or wagon in order to easily move materials to the heap and the resulting compost to the garden. A nearby water supply is needed at times to maintain the moisture in the heap, in case there is not enough rainfall. A place sheltered somewhat from the sun, wind, and excessive rain will help prevent the compost from becoming too dry or waterlogged, allowing it to stay warm and moist.

Trees or shrubs provide some protection from sun, wind, and rain. Alder, hazelnut, birch, elderberry, and oak are a few types of trees under which it is good to build your compost heap. The compost heap should be a distance of at least 3 feet from the tree trunk, so as not to provide a shelter for insects which may be harmful to the tree.

Some types of trees or shrubs may not offer good shelter. Various substances contained in the leaves and other litter which fall from the trees into the compost heap may have an adverse effect. Plants to avoid are poisonous plants (oleander), plants whose leaves decompose slowly (magnolia), plants whose acids are toxic to other plants (eucalyptus), or those which contain substances that may interfere with decomposition, such as pine needles, which are very acid and contain a form of kerosene.’