reuse

The Pros of composting Versus the Cons

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There are obviously downsides to composting or everyone would be utilizing this resource instead of buying commercial fertilizers and other lawn care additives. The downside is the time it takes to upkeep, the space to house a composting bin and the amount of time before your first mature compost will be ready.

The benefits of composting far outweigh the downside. For the time you invest, the space you give up in your yard and some patience you and your yard will get:

  • A lesser need for commercial fertilizer or eliminate it altogether (saves money)
  • Increased water retention in your soil. If there is a dry spell your garden and lawn that has been treated with compost will fair better than those that have used commercial products.
  • Improved plant growth. You will also find an increased amount of fruit or vegetables that your plants produce when using mature compost.
  • Protection for your plants from diseases or pests that can destroy your vegetation.

 

The environment also benefits from the time you invest into composting. In addition to eliminating the amount of waste that goes to the city dump. In some cases organic material makes up to 45% of the garbage that ends up in a dump – this can be greatly reduced by composting.

  • If there is an area of contaminated soil, you can add compost to assist in the “cleaning” process
  • Compost can help prevent and stop erosion
  • Eliminates the need for adding chemical pesticides to your garden or lawn
  • Decreases the amount of methane gas that is produced at the dump (by reducing the amount of organic matter that is thrown away)

 

Like any new project or habit, composting will take some time to get used to. Once you have completed the initial start-up process the time and energy you need to maintain the pile is not a lot.

Composting Problems

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There are five problems that can arise when you are composting. All of the issues are relatively easy to troubleshoot and fix. During your routine monitoring of the pile keep a look out for signs of a problem and try some of the suggested solutions listed below.

If you see a swarm of flies around your compost bin chances are you have not put enough brown food (leaves, twigs, hay) on top of your kitchen scraps. The kitchen scraps are very inviting to fruit and house flies, make sure you don’t leave them exposed.

Your compost bin has a bad smell. The most likely cause is not enough air is getting through to all parts of the compost. Give the compost a good turning and add a bulky substance such as woodchips or sawdust. They are bulky and created pockets where the air can move freely.

If you find that your pile is very dry, add some moisture in the form of water. You should not soak the pile, just enough to get it wet. If the pile is continually drying out look at other factors such as location and what you are adding – you may have to move the bin to a less sunny location or add more wet scraps (fruit and vegetable waste).

Your compost pile seems to be working (it is moist and warm) but only in spots. Either your pile is not large enough or you are not rotating it enough. Make sure you are regularly adding new scraps and are rotating the pile every second day.

Like the problem of flies, if you have pests visiting your pile you need to make sure you are covering all kitchen scraps thoroughly. Moreover, do not add any animal products such as meat or bones.

Common Uses for Finished Compost

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Now that you have put in the work, waited the required amount of time and have your finished compost material – what are you going to do with it? There are more uses than just laying it down on your flower beds. Some are practical everyday uses and others are more specialized.

You can make a tea with your finished compost; it is not for drinking though. To make your compost tea, add your humus to a water-tight container and fill with water. Let the tea “steep” anywhere from a few hours to a couple of days. After it is done, put the liquid compost through a fine screen to collect any debris. What you have made is a liquid fertilizer that can be sprayed on plants or other garden areas.

Compost can be used to help stop the spread of erosion. It can be laid down thickly on the area that is eroding away or it can be mixed with water to make a thick slurry and then sprayed on the area that is in danger.

Humus (finished compost) is used as a final layer over a finished landfill to help new plants grow with little to no erosion. Finished compost can also assist in revitalizing an endangered wetland. The nutrient rich composition can be used to create a new wetland as well.

Of course there are the traditional uses too – in gardens, planting beds, or other areas that plants or vegetation grows. If you are starting a new compost bin, in place of a layer of topsoil for the base you can substitute an equal amount of compost material. Farmers and cities use mature compost on a large scale; it helps the environment and reduces the
amount of garbage that ends up in a landfill.

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