How to make humus at the dacha: methods for making compost. How to make garden compost, benefits and applications

Any garden or garden soil needs regular feeding. Our own compost provides plants with environmentally friendly organic fertilizer that does not require any costs. Special knowledge and skills are not required to prepare humus, and the benefits for the garden are very tangible.

What are the benefits of making fertilizer?

Your own compost at the dacha is an excellent source of organic nutrients. Compost is a product of processing organic material (waste) under the influence of a specific microclimate and microorganisms.

Humus made independently is more profitable and healthier than a purchased mixture of unknown ingredients and brings a lot of benefits.

Using a compost pit reduces the time and effort required to remove a large part of the waste (tops, plants, wood waste etc.) from a summer cottage
Compost is accessible means for increase physical properties soil (structuring), as well as organic fertilizer
Uniform distribution of humus on the surface of the garden ensures moisture retention and suppresses the growth of weeds
Preparing humus at the dacha is a natural process in which organic waste is disposed of, fertilizer is prepared and does not harm the environment

Compost container

There are several options for compost bins. The plastic container is mobile, can be installed in any chosen corner of a summer cottage, and retains heat well. Covered metal bins keep rats, mice and other animals out of the compost that might be attracted by the smell of kitchen waste.

You can make your own compost bin. This one is the most cheap option often used by gardeners. Any available boards or timber are suitable for making a compost bin. Wood material should not be rotten, otherwise the box may fall apart before the humus is ready. It is also unacceptable to use boards that have previously been in contact with toxic materials or with traces of paint, oil or varnish.

Chemical materials will poison the compost, making it unusable.

The place for preparing compost is chosen on a hill or on a flat area, away from the resting place. Lay in the lowlands compost heap not recommended due to risk of water stagnation. Excess moisture can cause the bottom layer to sour and ruin the entire process of making humus.

At the selected location, a box with gaps is knocked down for regular ventilation. To the prepared vertical supports 3 walls of the future box are installed from strong wooden planks. The fourth wall of the box is made removable or in the form of a door in order to easily remove ready material. At the bottom of the prepared container, experienced summer residents place a special material that prevents the compost from being washed out ( old linoleum etc.).

The container for humus can be divided into separate cells with an individual door for each cell. Compost material is placed in each compartment at different times. Thus, two or more compost masses will be prepared simultaneously in one container varying degrees maturation.

Organizing a compost heap

Preparing compost is a rather labor-intensive process. Collecting material, organizing a place and other subtleties can repel the idea of getting good humus on your site. For high-quality compost, you can use the following components:

Fallen leaves, straw, hay, grass clippings and plant tops
Seaweed
Kitchen waste that has not undergone heat treatment
Cow and horse manure, poultry manure (fresh for slow cooking and rotted for fast cooking)
Paper and natural fabrics (shredded)
Wood sawdust, shavings
Thin branches and shoots of trees
Chopped weeds (without roots and flowers)
Wood ash

The listed components do not have to be added completely according to the list. Many summer residents have their own time-tested recipe for good compost. It is not recommended to add to compost:

Plants with traces of diseases and pests
Perennial and rhizomatous weeds
Garden waste containing chemicals
Inorganic waste (plastic, glass, etc.)
Bones, meat and fish waste
Synthetic materials

A quick way to make compost

The process takes a couple of months, and such production is available with early spring until late autumn. In one season you can get humus several times. Preparing compost quickly using the hot method has attracted the interest of many summer residents.

Drainage made of straw or hay 10 cm high is placed in a prepared container (box, frame, container, etc.). The material for humus alternates (dry and wet, soft and hard). Each layer is additionally processed with a special process accelerator, which can be purchased in special stores.

Rotted manure and garden soil can be used as an accelerator, but this will slow down the process.

To quickly decompose organic materials, special preparations containing effective microorganisms (EM preparations) are used. The most common are “Baikal M1”, “Tamir”, “Urgasa”, etc. The finer the compost materials used, the faster the preparation process will go. In addition to speed, EM preparations improve the nutritional properties of the finished compost.

The slow way to compost

Traditional and high-quality cold humus is prepared very slowly. The lengthy process takes 2–3 years. This method does not require much labor. A place is chosen on a small hill. It is necessary to dig a wide hole 25–30 cm deep. The width of the hole is selected according to the amount of material that is prepared for compost.

Branches, shoots of trees and shrubs, crushed rotten logs, etc. are placed in the prepared pit. The compost material is covered with earth on top. You can cold compost every season by starting a new compost heap.

Thus, after a few years you can get high-quality organic fertilizer annually.

Properly made compost restores the balance of nutrients and improves soil structure. In addition, thanks to the compost bin, you can get rid of household waste and leaves on the site. And also get free organic fertilizer High Quality.

One of the types of environmentally friendly and safe for human health fertilizers used in gardening is compost.

This is an organic fertilizer produced from various food and plant waste - food residues plant origin, mown grass and weeds, branches, leaves, sawdust, bark and other material. Fertilizer is obtained by decomposing organic waste under the influence of microorganisms with an increase in temperature, which promotes the decomposition process.

The process usually takes place in a pit or container specially equipped for this purpose and is often accompanied by an unpleasant odor.

Many summer residents tolerate these odors and annoying flies circling above compost pit, for the sake of universal and absolutely free fertilizer.

You can make a composter for your dacha yourself, or purchase it in specialized stores, the main thing is to properly organize its operation and observe sanitary standards according to his device.

What you need to know:

place a composter or compost pit must be at a distance of at least 20 meters from water supply sources and at least 10 meters from a residential building;
it is necessary to prevent plastic, protein products, animal and human excrement from entering the container in order to avoid unpleasant odors and the spread of harmful microorganisms;
Plants treated with pesticides and tops of diseased plants should not be immersed in the composter;
When determining the location of the compost pit, it is advisable to take into account the prevailing wind direction in your region in order to avoid unpleasant odors near the house.

Composter design options

The simplest and cheapest way to obtain fertilizer is equipment compost pit.

Each person determines the depth, width and length based on the amount of raw materials supplied to it during the summer season. To improve the rotting process, it is necessary to organize a good humidity regime and natural air exchange. For this purpose, a pipe with holes for the flow of oxygen is placed in the pit, or the raw materials laid in layers of different densities are periodically mixed.

The disadvantage of this type of waste processing is difficult access to the lower layers - ready-made humus.

Some summer residents simply transport waste to a designated area on the site on a layer of sand or gravel. Over time it forms compost heap. Raw materials rot right on the ground.

Often the pile is covered with a layer of grass or plants and looks like a green mound. Vegetables and vegetables can be planted on the compost heap. berry crops. For the winter, it is better to cover the pile with film so that it does not freeze.

Sometimes, to prevent the edges of the heap from crumbling, three vertical walls 1 meter high are built, between which the heap is located.

The next way to set up a composter is to arrangement of a special box, knocked down from boards. It is necessary to leave gaps between the boards for the natural flow of air and the drainage of excess moisture. The box can be one-, two- or three-section.

It is advisable to install a door or window at the bottom of the box through which you can remove the finished compost.

A more attractive option is considered punch industrial production made of plastic. These are containers with a capacity of 400, 600 or 800 liters with a lid at the top (in larger models with two doors) for convenient loading of raw materials and one or two holes for removing the finished product.

You can purchase a plastic composter in two versions. Summer option used only in warm weather before the onset of frost. For the winter, it is cleaned and stored until the next season. Winter option– thermal composter, can be used all year round. It is suitable for people who live in a private house permanently. The principle of operation of such a composter is comparable to the operation of a thermos, which constantly retains heat.

A neat plastic composter fits seamlessly into the landscape. Models are often equipped with a bottom basket made of aluminum mesh, which protects the compost from rodents.

In models called vermicomposters, the process of fertilizer formation occurs jointly with worms. By eating waste, worms turn it into a black mass that resembles soil.

Having a composter on site helps solve several issues at once: recycling organic waste and obtaining excellent fertilizer to nourish the soil.

How to determine the readiness of compost? First of all, by smell. The finished product smells of forest and mushrooms and never smells rotten. To speed up the decay process, special starters are sometimes used.

How to use compost? Compost is the source of everything necessary elements plant nutrition, so it is applied to the upper layers of the soil, no deeper than 8-10 cm from the surface, when planting seedlings. Upon landing fruit trees and bushes it is added directly to the planting hole, sometimes mixed with ash. IN autumn period scattered under mature bushes to feed the roots.

It is necessary to fertilize the soil annually, otherwise it will become depleted. Therefore, the construction of a composter at summer cottage not just desirable, but rather necessary.

Compost is an indispensable component of nutritious soil in the garden of any gardener. In addition, it is also recognized as the most affordable fertilizer in terms of cost, since the main component of its production is waste. That is, it is made from practically nothing, because in any garden there will always be some kind of waste.

You just need to know that in order to get a full nutrient for the soil, the compost heap must be properly prepared. After all, compost will not only fertilize the soil, but will also improve its structure, looseness and ability to retain and absorb moisture.

What is compost

In order for the garden to be well-groomed and provide good harvest, it just needs to be fertilized. You can do this with the help of chemical fertilizers, or you can get by with your own free, useful and safe product.

Compost is a natural organic fertilizer that is obtained by fermentation under the action of earthworms and bacteria.

To obtain such fertilizer, a compost heap is laid. Often it is done by simply digging a hole in the ground, but it is better if it is a specially equipped place - a composting site.

Compost bins are made in the form of closed or open containers, but you can also purchase special plastic boxes equipped with a lid and door.

Prepared compost is added to the holes before planting. garden crops in open ground or for planting in greenhouses. Or it is scattered over the area before planting the seed and lightly mixed with the soil.

What is compost made from?

Many people think that to prepare compost it is enough to throw all kinds of waste into a heap in some corner of the garden. Time will pass, they will rot, and you will get fertilizer. But this is far from true.

To achieve safe and healthy compost, you need to have the right compost piles, so there are a few things to keep in mind. First of all, the composition of such a heap. It may include:

ash, chalk, charcoal, eggshells;
grass clippings, straw and hay;
sawdust and tree debris;
vegetable food waste;
weeds and healthy green plants;
bird droppings and animal manure;
compost stimulants.

Composter dimensions

The components from which compost is made are placed in a compost bin. Proper compost does not release harmful substances into the soil and does not cause inconvenience with a strong unpleasant odor.

It is important to respect the dimensions of the compost bin, otherwise it will be difficult to create a comfortable temperature and humidity regime for the compost. Optimal sizes the heaps are one and a half meters in width and the same or more in length. If you make a bunch smaller in size, then it will quickly lose moisture and will not be able to warm up well. This will cause the composting process to take longer. for a long time.

Ban on compost

Before you make a compost heap, you need to know that you cannot add to its composition:

disinfectants and chemicals;
remnants of weeds with seeds of long-term germination or roots of creeping plants, since they do not lose their germination during composting;
the remains of coated glossy paper, rubber, textiles, as well as animal bones and stones - all these substances do not decompose in compost;
human feces and pet waste, which may be contaminated with worm eggs;
diseased plants that are affected by pests and fungi, such as late blight - such residues must be burned in the garden;
food waste of animal origin, which triggers rotting processes and causes a persistent unpleasant odor.

Open composting facility

You can compost, as advice to gardeners in specialized publications teaches, in the following way:

Prepare a site for the composting bin. To do this you need to select appropriate place at the end or middle of the garden and level the ground. Shaded areas without access to direct sunlight are better suited for this purpose.
Then fence off the area required for the composter with boards, shields or sheets of slate. Or put together a wooden box with slots for air exchange. You can also attach it to metal supports special garden net. This can be one container or two separated by a partition, one of which will be filled this year, and the second - next year.
Dig a hole half a meter deep and add a drainage layer to the bottom. For this you can use sand, gravel, large wood debris. It is necessary to make such a layer, since it is impossible to allow the water that will wet the compost heap to collect in the compost bin. It should flow out of the compost bin without obstruction.
Then it is necessary to lay a small layer of ready-made mature compost from last or the year before on the drainage layer. This is necessary to supply the ingredients of the heap with bacteria, with the help of which the compost is fermented.

Creating a closed composting facility

More reliable and robust construction than an open compost bin is a closed compost bin. It is built with walls that have slits for ventilation, and with a lid that will allow you to mix the compost. Such a compost heap at the dacha has a neater appearance and does not interfere with the aesthetic perception of the space. As a rule, such a container is made of plastic that does not rot, does not fall apart, and will last for a long time.

To install the ventilation system, pipes are inserted into the box, which are protected with a mesh so that they do not become clogged with compost.

The advantages of a closed compost heap are that it allows heat to accumulate quickly and retains it well. This kills pests and speeds up the fermentation process.

Another advantage is that in these containers it is not necessary to strictly observe the proportions of the constituent ingredients. You can throw various acceptable waste, residues and grass into the pile in any convenient quantities. It is only important to mix it all systematically.

How to make a compost heap

To properly prepare the heap ingredients you need:

Prepare the necessary components by grinding them as finely as possible. Branches can be broken and plant debris can be chopped up with a shovel. The smaller the components of the pile, the faster the compost will mature.
Lay the components in layers, the thickness of each layer should be up to 15 cm. In this case, it is necessary to alternate the placement of food waste, wood residues and green mass of plants.
The layers can be covered with manure or droppings, or commercial liquid fertilizers can be used. Compost stimulants are also used at this stage. It is better to use cow or horse manure for the heap, and the best poultry manure is chicken manure.
The top of the pyramidal compost heap is covered with straw, spandbond, boards or plant stems. This is necessary for free air circulation. Gardeners often cover the pile with polyethylene, but this is not recommended: when covering plastic film compost will overheat without air access. And this is fraught with the appearance of a putrid, unpleasant, persistent odor.

Aging of compost

The preparation of compost and the duration of its ripening is directly dependent on what fractions have compost components and what fermentation mode is set. In general, fermentation and composting take a very long time, the minimum period is several months, the maximum is two to three years.

The finer the fractions of the incorporated components, the faster composting will occur. It is also important that the temperature inside the compost pyramid is close to 60 degrees or higher. This will not only speed up the process of decomposition of ingredients, which occurs with the help of bacteria, but will also help to eliminate as much as possible the possibility of germination of weed seeds. Also with such high temperature harmful insects die.

To ensure the correct fermentation regime, it is important that there is good moisture and air exchange inside the pyramid.

Providing fermentation

In order to speed up the composting and fermentation of the components of the compost heap, it is necessary to perform the following actions:

When hot and dry weather sets in, the compost pyramid needs to be watered. Moreover, the water should wet all layers of the heap. This process is most conveniently performed using a garden hose. large section, because it will be required a large number of water.
Watering the heap must be done in the morning; in this case, during the day, the wet compost will have time to warm up well, and the process of active decomposition will begin.
How to water the compost heap? Water it with regular water warm water, but from time to time it is necessary to add a compost stimulator to the water or infuse fresh manure in it.
The compost needs to be shoveled a couple of times a season. This helps bring the well-fermented inner layers to the top. In this case, the upper ones move inward.
Also, when mixed, the compost is saturated with air and gets rid of accumulated gases.
With the onset of cold weather, the composter needs to be insulated, which prolongs the process of active composting. To insulate the pile, sprinkle it with humus or peat, and then top it with tops from harvested root vegetables, sunflower stems or fresh straw. This year, the remains of plants will retain heat, and next year they will serve as ingredients for a new pile.

Compost from fallen leaves

Separately, it is worth mentioning compost from fallen leaves, popularly known as “ leaf soil" How to properly make a compost pile from fallen leaves?

This compost is based on fallen leaves. The advantage of this approach is that at the end of autumn the leaves lose minerals, and only lignin, tannin and hemicellulose, which are valuable ingredients of humus, remain in their tissues. The downside is that these components rot rather slowly, which prolongs the composting time. The foliage of oaks, beeches, chestnuts, willows and plane trees contains a lot of tannin. Therefore, their leaf mass should not be used for laying in a pile, but only for covering it.

Leaf compost matures noticeably longer than usual, about two years. But gardeners do it because it is very valuable because it improves the quality of the soil. It also contains microfungi that decompose hemicellulose and lignin. And this becomes useful for those garden plants whose roots interact with fungal microflora in the process of symbiosis.

To get a good composting result, you need to consider some points:

When creating a compost bin, you need to take into account that microorganisms come from the ground, so you need to set it up in a clean space where no chemicals have been used.
Composting is accelerated by adding valerian officinalis, yarrow, chamomile and dandelion to the pile of herbs.
To speed up fermentation, bioconcentrates are added to the compost. In this case, you get a so-called fast compost heap, which can mature in three weeks.
You need to know that the high content of fresh pine sawdust in compost significantly reduces the potassium balance, therefore such compost at the ready stage must be enriched with potassium-phosphorus fertilizers.
The presence of green components in compost should not exceed one third of the total volume, because herbs ferment slowly and can rot. If it turns out that the bulk will consist of grass, then it must first be dried in the sun.
The highest quality compost is created using a variety of components. Not only organic components must be present, but also mineral ones. For this purpose, the compost heap is supplied with superphosphates, dolomite flour, and complex mineral fertilizers.
It should be borne in mind that manure is a concentrated fertilizer, so its content in compost should not be higher than 10%.
For better stability and increased air exchange processes, the compost heap should be laid in a cone shape or in the form of a pyramid.
In order for the heap to ripen faster, components containing a lot of nitrogen, such as straw, legumes or legumes, are added to it.

How to make compost with your own hands?
Fertilizing the soil is an important requirement of the agricultural technology of any plant, and compost is considered one of the main components for adding to the soil. Today we will learn how to make compost at the dacha yourself.

Many summer residents have been preparing compost with their own hands for a long time, because this not only saves time and money, but also eliminates many unnecessary worries, which are already enough in the country.

What are the benefits of making compost at your dacha?

Compost is considered one of the best fertilizers, which, when applied to the soil, fills it with a huge amount of microelements.
Compost is the cheapest and most practical means for properly structuring the soil, as it increases moisture conservation and creates the loosening necessary for all plants.
By scattering compost over the surface of the soil, you can create the best organic mulch that will conserve moisture and suppress the growth of many weeds in the area.
Preparing compost in a dacha area is a very useful process, as well as a significant contribution to the development and protection environment. None mineral fertilizer cannot be compared with high-quality compost, but a properly formed pit in which organic components rot can become a real incubator for beneficial bacteria and microorganisms.
Preparing compost significantly reduces your physical effort, since now you do not need to remove a good part of the garbage from the territory of your summer cottage; everything can simply be placed in a special pit.

Preparing compost at your summer cottage is very useful!!!

What is garden compost?

Compost is a specific product obtained from organic waste under the influence of the environment and a huge variety of insects and microorganisms. It is used for structuring the soil, mulching, and fertilizing.

The bark and branches of trees, stems and leaves of plants - all this can be placed in a certain order in a special hole or simply on a heap, provide conditions for rotting and processing, and obtain high-quality, truly environmentally friendly compost without any harmful or toxic compounds. Naturally, the process of decomposition of all organic residues will force you to wait seriously, maybe even several years, but you will get real quality, and not a mixture prepared on the basis of unknown components from the store.

What is compost? What does this soil nutrient mixture consist of?

How to make compost?

Professionals are familiar with making compost using the fast and slow methods. They are also called cold and hot methods for producing compost at the dacha.

Before we look at the “recipes,” we would like to talk about building the right container or pit for compost.

It is necessary to prepare compost correctly, because only then can you obtain a high quality product

How to make a compost bin?

Making a container for compost is very simple, the main thing is to assemble a medium-sized box according to certain requirements.

So, initially we need to prepare the material for the production of a compost box in size. Almost any boards or planks that are not rotten and have not previously been in contact with toxic materials are suitable for this. In the first case, during the biological process, rotted planks can deteriorate; in the second, planks covered in paint or oil can simply poison the compost, ruining its quality irreversibly.

A properly constructed compost bin is the key to producing high quality compost.

We would advise you to take unedged pine in boards or beams so that the finished box will last for many years, and work with this material. This way you will make a quality box without spending a lot of money.

We begin the construction of a compost box made of wood

Now we choose a place for compost and begin construction. On a hill or on a flat area, it doesn’t really matter if your terrain is not rainy and the groundwater level is low. In general, it is advisable to place the place for compost slightly above the standard soil level so that it does not get washed away. So, we create four sides of a box, like a standard vegetable box, but much larger in size.

Do-it-yourself ready-made compost box walls

It is imperative to maintain gaps between the collecting slats to ensure ventilation of the compost for the correct internal biological processes.

We install supports at the place where the box is collected, and attach three ready-made walls made of pine boards or timber to the supports. We leave the last side removable so that it is convenient for us to take it out finished product for fertilizing or mulching the soil in the country.

By by and large, if you don’t go into a lot of details, such as how to hold a hammer and where to drive the first nail, the design is ready, and we can safely start preparing.

A ready-made wooden box in which we will prepare compost to fertilize the garden

It is advisable to place some material, for example, old linoleum, at the bottom of the box or, as they say, compost pit.

How to make proper compost quickly?

How to make compost quickly? This question interests many newcomers to the dacha business, and therefore we move on to it without delay.

First of all, we create a special box - a frame that will contain all organic residues entering the compost on a single heap. This could be simply a pit fenced with wooden structures, a special wooden or plastic box that will have ventilation and access to the contents from above or from the side.

Create drainage at the bottom of the container. It can be made from a layer of hay, straw, spruce branches. The layer should be about 10 cm.

Preparing high-quality compost is the goal of every summer resident

Materials and various products for composting are stacked in layers. For example, you can immediately put branches and other fruit waste, then a layer of paper, the next layer of leaves, then a layer of mown annuals or grass, and so on. It is important that the layers alternate approximately as follows, dry waste with wet waste, soft with hard. This method of laying will provide access to air, ventilation, and speed up the composting process. In this case, it is necessary to remember that compaction is of no use here, and may even cause harm.

It is necessary to lay each layer with special process accelerators, for example, nitrogen additives, which are offered in garden stores, manure of herbivores, plants such as legumes, nettles, dandelions, yarrow. You can also use rotted manure or ordinary garden soil.

To maintain the temperature and the correct internal environment, it is necessary to cover the compost storage special materials- oilcloth, old rags, a piece of linoleum or carpet. The main thing is to maintain warmth inside, which will help you make compost at your dacha quickly and correctly.

Do not forget to cover the compost, this is very important for proper preparation.

In the summer, when there is a drought outside, the compost can be shed a little in order to maintain the required humidity inside the storage facility. But remember, only spill, and not fill to the top.

If you smell specific aromas from the compost bin, this may indicate that the composting process has failed and is not proceeding correctly. If it smells like ammonia, there are too many nitrogen components in the pit (the situation can be improved by adding some torn paper). If you smell rotten eggs, this means that there is not enough oxygen in the pit or box, and the contents must be well stirred by sprinkling the layers with straw or shavings.

In such compost storages you can prepare an excellent nutrient mixture for the soil

If you manage to make the compost bin correctly and fill it in even layers, the compost will be ready in a few months. It is better to select it from the lower layers, so that the upper ones fall evenly, pressing on top with new organic residues.

How to compost slowly?

How to make compost from grass or branches? How to get the most correct and high-quality compost? Naturally, this method a little more difficult, or rather, longer, but as a result you will get very high quality compost.

By and large, you don’t have to do anything special, just prepare everything for rotting once and wait for several years. By the way, you can install a new compost pit in the corner of your plot every year so that in 2-3 years you can reach constant, annual volumes.

By choosing a slow composting method, you can obtain the highest quality product

So, how do you make your own compost?

If you can make compost in a barrel in a quick way, then for a slow, cold method, you will need an ordinary pit at some elevation in the area. The hole you dig is small, about the size of a shovel, but wide enough to accommodate enough branches and logs for composting. Next, broken tree branches and arrows, trimmings and rotten logs in a crushed state are poured inside the pit. Our entire pile is covered with soil on top and forgotten for a long time. In the second year, if you are very lucky, or in the third, which is stable if prepared correctly, you will receive excellent fertilizer for the garden.

When choosing from methods of preparing fertilizer, many choose the fast one, and it’s not even worth explaining the reason to anyone. But now I want to talk not about the method, but about what should go into the compost pit and what should not.

What can you make compost from?

If you want to make high-quality compost and also save time, throw only the following into the rotting area:

Kitchen waste (fruits, vegetables, cereals, tea leaves, coffee grounds);
Straw, hay, shavings, sawdust, mown grass;
Thin branches and stems of garden bushes and trees;
Recycled wood from a garden shredder;
Rotted animal manure;
Rotted leaves and other garden waste;
Various algae;
Others natural materials– fabric and paper;
Chopped weeds (avoiding rhizomatous weeds from entering the compost).

What products and components are most appropriate for composting?

What can't you compost from?

When preparing fertilizer, you must remember what should not be placed in the compost storage:

Bones, large and hard, waste of poultry, meat, fish, droppings of domestic animals;

Fresh leaves, rhizomatous and perennial weeds;

Plants or debris infested with diseases or insect pests;

Fresh manure, which can only be added to slow-cooking compost;

Garden waste that contains toxins, poisons, herbicides and so on;

Unnecessary waste - metal, glass, rubber, plastic, polyethylene, etc.

Pay close attention to the recipe and requirements for preparing compost.

How to make compost (video)

Following the simplest rules and advice experienced summer residents who have been preparing a useful “potion” for their garden for several years, you can make compost at your dacha with your own hands very simply, and immediately begin fertilizing the soil to improve the quality of crops.

Garden compost is good and beneficial in every way. For plants, compost added to the soil is an excellent organic fertilizer, rich in essential microelements and humus. For the soil - a natural conditioner, a means of improving the soil structure, which has a loosening and moisture-saving effect. Spread in a layer on the surface of the soil, compost is an excellent organic mulch that suppresses weed growth and helps retain moisture at plant roots. The living inhabitants of the garden appreciate the compost heap. This is an excellent “dining room” for birds and small insectivorous animals, as well as a place for mass habitat and breeding of earthworms, which (along with bacteria and fungi) actually decompose organic matter, producing compost.

By producing your own garden compost, there is no need to burn garden trimmings, old leaves, paper, packaging and cardboard, poisoning the surrounding atmosphere and neighbors with smoke. There is no need to buy synthetic fertilizers and high-quality garden soil. It would not be an exaggeration to say that producing and using your own compost makes a gardener's life much easier and contributes to environmental protection. Zero-waste gardening and the use of garden compost instead of dangerous and expensive chemical fertilizers are important components of the concept of organic gardening.

The word compost comes from Lat. componere and compositum and mean a mixture, something put together. Compost is a composition made from organic matter, decomposed by microorganisms, which is used to improve soil structure and fertilizer. Garden compost should not be confused with ready-made soil mixtures, which garden centers often sold under the name "compost".

Fast way compost production

If you pile up bark, tree branches, mown grass, leaves... and whatever else comes to hand in the garden, and leave it all in a secluded corner for a while (so as not to spoil the view), then eventually all this will eventually will rot and turn into high-quality compost. This process will just take several years. This is the so-called slow (cold) method of producing compost.

In contrast, the fast (hot) method takes approximately 3-6 months and is ensured by several essential conditions: air access, the presence of nitrogen, humidity and heat (the temperature in large industrial compost heaps can reach +85ْ C!).

Compost production at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
Branches, wood, grass clippings and other garden waste, shredded in a garden shredder, are mixed with horse manure, which is delivered from the Royal Mews in Knightsbridge. All this is stored in huge compost heaps, which are regularly moistened with settled rainwater and turned over. The production volume is impressive: 20 tons of manure and 100 tons of garden waste are used weekly! The process takes 10-12 weeks. The results are also impressive: Kew recycles 99% of its own garden waste and all the resulting compost is used for further prosperity Botanical Garden. This is such a constant cycle of economical environmental production! All this is presented to the public, and here you can get detailed instructions to produce compost in your garden

In the UK, gardeners are encouraged to produce compost at local council level. Here you can purchase the equipment necessary for creating compost at significant discounts, as well as obtain the necessary information.

1. You will need a plank or plastic construction for compost production, installed in a specially designated area. Advantages wooden structure for compost production is that it allows air to pass through and maintains good ventilation. You can purchase this design at a garden center or make it yourself. For a successful process, the volume of the wooden structure must be at least 1 m3 (1x1x1). Plastic container, in turn, retains heat well and is more mobile, it can be used in different places in the garden. Any compost system should have an opening top or side (some plastic bins have no bottom or the bottom is removable) for easy access to the finished compost.

2. Place at the very bottom about a 10-centimeter layer of coarse material - straw, hay, twigs or spruce branches. This is necessary to ensure drainage and air access.

3. Place compost material in alternating layers. For example, on a layer of vegetable or fruit scraps, place a layer of shredded paper, then a small layer of grass clippings, then a layer of dug up annuals, then a layer of last year's leaves, and so on. It is important that the green (“wet and soft”) layers alternate with the brown (“dry and hard”) layers - this will provide ventilation, speed up the process, and subsequently provide a good texture to the finished compost. Never push or compact the contents as this will disrupt the composting process.

4. A little soil or rotted herbivore manure can be added on top of each layer to speed up the composting process. Garden centers sell special “accelerators” for compost formation; you can use them. Catalysts for the decomposition reaction are also freshly cut grass and legumes, which collect nitrogen in their root system. Plants rich in useful substances: nettle, comfrey, yarrow, dandelion and others.

5. Keep your compost system covered at the top to maintain proper humidity levels and maintain heat. Plastic baskets usually already have a top, but for homemade wooden ones you can use garden film, a piece of old rug or something else. The ideal temperature for compost production is +55ْ C.

6. The contents should be turned over from time to time, ensuring air access to the resulting compost.

Rotating compostaries are a relatively recent invention. Such designs make it possible to produce compost in short term(according to the manufacturers in 2 - 4 weeks) due to the uniform distribution of material and heat inside the container. The gardener is only required to rotate the structure twice a day, which is not difficult to do with the help of a special handle. The volume of this model is 340 liters. The price for it, unfortunately, remains too high: 300 British pounds (about 600 US dollars)

7. In dry weather (in open plank systems) or when brown materials predominate in the contents of the compost heap, watering should be used to maintain the required moisture content of the compost. Avoid stagnant water in the compost system, this will disrupt the decomposition process.

8. Unpleasant odors from the contents of the compost bin indicate that something is broken and the process is not going well. The smell of ammonia (ammonia) or rotten eggs indicates an excessive amount of nitrogen-containing (green) substances in the compost heap and a lack of oxygen. In this case, it is necessary to add carbonaceous (brown) materials.

If you did everything correctly, then after a few months the contents of the compost heap should become Brown color and a fresh, sweet earthy smell are signs that your compost is ready for use in the garden. If you filled the system gradually (which is most likely with established continuous production), then you should start selecting ready-made compost from the bottom. Higher layers will thus move down, making room at the top for new material.