How to make a compost pit with your own hands. Expert advice

Before you start building a compost pit at your dacha, think about whether you need it and for what purposes. Such a structure performs the functions of recycling household organic waste. A compost pit is also useful for producing the fertilizer necessary for the garden and vegetable garden, if you are not going to plant green manure on your plot of land to fertilize the soil.
You can, of course, put the waste together with leftover vegetables and fruits in bags, and then take it to the city garbage containers. But you shouldn’t do this - it’s pollution environment. If built on a summer cottage compost pit, you can recycle the vast majority of organic waste into a wonderful nutrient mixture for your plants called compost. And no time will be wasted on waste removal.

Purpose of the compost pit

Each compost pit has a set of corresponding design features, which depend on the needs for which it will be used. If you don't know where to throw your garbage, you may be interested in a nice bonus that you can get in a few years - valuable compost. Then you need to arrange a compost pit using the appropriate diagram.

Obtaining and using compost.

If you want to quickly prepare fertilizer from available materials, which can be leaves, grass clippings, or manure, then the compost pit will have a different design. There are some requirements that must be followed when setting up compost pits.

How to set up and use a compost pit?

When choosing a location compost pit try to take into account some rather important points:

Set up a pit at a distance of at least 25-30 meters from the sources drinking water– wells, boreholes, streams or other bodies of water.

On summer cottages with a slope, the pit is located at a level below the well.

Compliance with such precautions is necessary because otherwise rotted waste may end up in drinking water, which is dangerous and undesirable.

When building a hole, take into account the wind rose so as not to poison yourself and your neighbors with unpleasant odors.

If you place the compost pit in an open, sunny area, its contents will overheat. This will stop composting. That's why the best option The pit equipment will be installed in an area shaded by tree crowns.

The optimal place for a compost pit is a corner land plot adjacent to a fence or blank wall.

It is also necessary to decide what waste is placed in the compost pit and what waste should not be thrown into it.

Waste that can be used to fill a compost bin

Raw vegetables, fruits, berries, tea, cereals, coffee, cleaning residues;
Hay, grass clippings and straw;
Leafy;
Branches, tree bark, roots of bushes and trees that need to be slightly chopped;
Weeds;
Wood ash;
Needles;
Napkins, cardboard, paper bags (the paper must be natural) - all this is crushed;
Unpainted wood waste;
Second-year manure of herbivores.

How can you fill a compost pit at your summer cottage?

What is prohibited from filling the pit?

Bones;
Experiment with pets because they may have helminth eggs;
Insect pests and their eggs;
Disease-affected plants (tomato tops affected by late blight, pumpkin and powdery mildew, and others);
Plants from soil areas that have been treated with herbicides;
Inorganic waste, which can be in the form of plastic, iron, rubber or synthetic fabrics.

All waste that cannot be composted should be burned or disposed of if it is excrement.

Rules for sorting household waste for use in a compost bin.

Organic waste is processed by microorganisms and earthworms. Do not insulate all the walls of the compost pit below ground level, because if you dig a hole in the ground at a depth of 50 cm and then line it with impervious material, worms and microorganisms will not enter it. In this case, it is necessary to move them in independently.

As can be seen from the above, the rules cannot be called complex, but they must be followed.

Setting up a compost pit or heap

The most important thing when constructing a compost pit is the necessary provision of good moisture and looseness if you want the composting process to be of high quality. There are no specific recommendations on this issue.

Arrangement of a compost pit at a summer cottage.

To maintain humidity compost heap it can be watered regularly, or covered with a film, which will create a steamy effect. The looseness of the structure of the contents of the compost heap is maintained by the fact that it is periodically crushed using ordinary forks, or materials having different densities are laid in layers.

Optimal compost pit sizes

Width – no more than 1.5 meters;
Length – up to 2 meters;
Maximum height – 1.5 meters;
Go deeper into the ground no more than 0.4 meters.

There are several different compost pit designs, which can meet the preferences of any owner.

Compost pit with two sections

It takes about 2 years for organic waste to rot and compost, unless you use the services of additional effective microorganisms along with those present in the soil on your site. In order to make the use of the pit more convenient, a two-section structure is constructed:

Fresh waste is stored in the first section;
The second section contains waste that has been composted since last year.

Prepared in the second section compost taken out and laid out in beds where they want to improve and saturate the soil useful substances. The compost pit can be fenced on all sides in the form of a box, but use only material that allows free access of air.

Wooden box for arranging a compost pit.

The box can be made from wooden pickets, which are nailed down while maintaining a small distance between them. At the same time, the contents of the pit will not clog and will not smell unpleasant. You can build such a compost pit yourself in just 1-2 days - the duration of the work depends on the material chosen for fencing.

compost pit, having free access from below the structure:

Such a pit will perfectly replace the first option, because it does not require breaking into sections. Fence the pile 30 cm from the ground. The finished compost accumulates at the bottom. If necessary, it can be easily removed with a shovel and used to fertilize the garden.

Building such a pit is very convenient and causes little trouble. Constantly, when compost is reached from below, the contents of the heap sink lower and take up the free space, at the same time being saturated with oxygen. No special loosening or tossing is required.

Compost heap equipment

Not all summer residents like artificial creation unnecessary complications. The best way out From such a situation comes doing nothing, in which nothing is dug up, fenced off, or divided. Only a certain place is selected where organic waste is stored, gradually forming a heap.

Food waste for compost pit.

If desired, this heap is watered with EM preparations, or covered with an opaque film to speed up the composting process. If you have nowhere to rush, then there is no need to cover the pile - its contents will rot on their own, this just takes time.

Use of plastic containers and barrels

Using plastic containers for preparing compost is convenient for those who do not spare money and want their compost pit to look presentable. The container is installed in any convenient place, since there is no risk of contamination of drinking water due to the tightness of the container. In addition, the container has special ventilation to prevent water from stagnating.

Using plastic barrels to make a compost bin.

When using this option, you need to know that it requires the use of drugs that accelerate the decomposition of organic waste, or the introduction of earthworms into the pit.

Self-construction of a compost pit

An example would be a self-built compost pit on one of the summer cottages. If the structure is fenced on all sides and has a height of one and a half meters, its contents must be shaken periodically, but this is a very inconvenient task. Therefore, it was decided to arrange two heaps, or rather, one heap on two sides.

After choosing a good place - the corner of the site near the fence itself, organic remains were placed in the corner. It is very good if you alternate between grass, manure and soil. First, before the formation of a heap, a place for it is laid with branches of trees and shrubs.

Building a compost pit with your own hands.

When the heap reaches 1 meter in height, deep holes are made (several pieces) into which the EM preparation is poured (this can be “Oxyzin”, “EMochki”, “Bokashi”). On the advice of experts, you can cover the compost heap with an impermeable film - this will maintain constant humidity and temperature, but not everyone does this. When covered with film, the compost will be ready in 2-3 months, but composting uncovered waste requires at least six months to a year.

You don't have to use EM drugs. California worms or prospector worms will do the job well. However, there are also disadvantages to using worms. Worms love warmth, so they do not work in the coldest months of the year. And it is enough for microorganisms that the temperature in the compost heap rises to only +4°C.

It is necessary to water the pile with water from a hose during dry times. If you need to obtain ready-made compost to transfer it to the beds, you can transfer top part heap to another place and select the ready-made humus accumulated at the bottom of the heap. After the humus runs out, waste is again thrown onto this place.

When setting up a compost heap, some summer residents think of spreading it on the ground. plastic film, onto which they then dump organic waste. They make such a design, believing that this way there will be no leaching of useful elements into the soil. However, they are wrong; this cannot be done for the following reasons:

By isolating the base of the compost heap from the ground, conditions are created that cause moisture to quickly evaporate from the heap. At the same time, moisture does not rise from the ground, despite the fact that even on hot days, thanks to a natural mechanism, moisture should rise upward from the depths of the earth using special capillaries.

If the pile is isolated from the ground, this prevents humus from leaching out of the compost. Washed out mineral fertilizers, since microelements are combined with organic substances and are constantly in top layer soil.

But these properties are quite convenient for use in gardens - neither rain nor downpour is scary. And when limiting minor leakage, which may still occur, add a 10 cm layer of peat, which perfectly solves these problems: it prevents leakage nutrients into the ground. Peat also allows groundwater to rise into the pile.

Requirements for a proper compost bin

If, after reading the article, you still have questions about building a proper compost pit, get advice - don’t build it at all. Why?

The labor of dragging grass and other organic waste from one place to another can be considered unnecessary and meaningless work. When composting, carbon dioxide vapor is formed - this is an irreplaceable food for plants, which is mediocrely lost on the heap, at the same time getting on the nerves of you and your neighbors with an unpleasant odor.

Proper arrangement and use of a compost pit.

You may be called an eccentric, but it is better to place organic waste directly on the beds, where it rots well and does not emit unpleasant odors. In addition, microorganisms will multiply in them right on the beds and crawl earthworms who will appreciate such an abundance of work for them. Grass clippings can be used as mulch. Chop and lay branches in paths between the rows, and clear away fresh vegetables and scatter fruits in the garden.

This will allow:

Retain moisture in the beds;
Feed plants with carbon dioxide;
Do not allow weeds to grow in the beds;
Prepare compost in places where it is needed;
Prevent the leaching of humus;
Reduce the amount of work.

The work proposed above for the sale of organic and food waste is simple and does not require any effort. additional skills or effort.

If you have bad land on your plot where nothing wants to grow, start enriching it. The easiest way to bring black soil is, but it’s not always possible to get it, especially in urban areas. Adding chemicals in abundance is also unprofitable: in the end, you yourself will consume it. There is only one thing left: to make nutritious soil yourself. Or rather, learn how to prepare healthy compost. It is only ignorant people who are afraid of compost pits, because they think that they emit a stench that spoils the air in the entire area. In fact, compost does not smell if it is laid correctly and bacteria are kept active. Let’s find out how in more detail.

So, first of all, they select on the site comfortable spot for a compost pit. As a rule, it is assigned an area in the backyard of the garden, behind outbuildings, where the appearance of a pile of waste will not spoil the overall landscape. The only caveat: during heavy rains, look where the water flows. It should not run towards the well (if there is one), otherwise rotting waste products may get there, which will affect the quality and taste of the water.

There are two options for arrangement: you can dig a deep hole and put raw materials for compost in it, or knock down a wide box from wooden planks with a removable wall for ease of use.

Pit creation technology

deep hole the more convenient it is that all the plant material will be hidden in the ground and will not hurt the eye, but the compost in it takes longer to prepare, and it is more difficult to mix it. If, however, only this option suits you, arrange the pit correctly, because oxygen and ventilation are necessary for the normal decomposition of organic matter. But the dense earthen walls and bottom will not let any air through. Therefore, the hole is dug as follows:

They take out soil no more than a meter deep, three meters long and one and a half meters wide.
They retreat 20 cm from the walls of the pit on each side and knock down wooden box, digging 4 posts in the corners and nailing planks to them.
There is a distance of about 5 cm between the boards so that all layers of compost are ventilated.
Divide the pit into two equal parts using wooden shield to fill only one half.
The bottom is covered with thick tree branches, bark, spruce branches and straw (whatever you find). This will be a drainage that removes excess moisture and helps the compost to ventilate from below. The height of the drainage layer is 10-15 cm.

Plant waste is stored in one part of the compost pit, but during the season it is transferred several times from one half to the other to saturate the pile with oxygen.

The hole can be made halfway in the ground, rather than completely buried, then it will be easier for you to stir up the contents and air access will improve

The second option for storing compost is in a box made of unpainted wood (or a factory-made one made of plastic). By appearance it is absolutely identical to ordinary boxes, only several times larger. When creating the frame, do not forget to leave gaps between the planks and make one side removable to make it easier to lay and mix the raw materials. Alternatively, you can hang the door.

The plastic composter has perforated doors on each side at the bottom, through which the contents are ventilated, but you will have to moisten the waste yourself

Since such structures are usually made to last for many years, the floor can be concreted and drainage laid on top (the same as in the pit). Some owners put wooden or plastic shields on the bottom. True, over time the tree will become unusable, but nothing lasts forever.

Now all that remains is to fill the prepared area with the right raw materials, which will rot into high-quality compost.

Two compost bins located side by side are convenient because you can transfer waste for ventilation from one to the other without littering the nearby area

Features of proper waste disposal

In order for your pile to successfully rot and turn into nutritious soil for the new season, you need to throw only plant waste into the compost: leaves, mown grass, remains of root crops and fruits, turf, weeds, finely chopped branches of trees and shrubs.

By putting waste from your own garden into a compost pit, you thereby solve the problem of removing plant waste and get fresh, high-quality soil

To make the composition of the compost even more nutritious, put in it everything that you didn’t eat yourself: leftover soups, coffee grounds, tea leaves, yesterday’s salad, etc. In a word, place another container in the house next to the trash can for vegetable waste, and you'll be surprised how quickly it fills up. Old ones are suitable for composting carton boxes, newspapers (black and white), worn-out items from natural materials(cotton, wool).

Unwanted Ingredients

Now let’s focus on waste that is harmful, from the point of view of experienced gardeners. It is strictly forbidden to put the remains of animal products into the compost: dead birds and animals, old lard, fats, intestines, spoiled milk, sour cream, etc. All this begins to ooze when decomposed bad smell and will be pulled to the heap harmful insects, neighbor's dogs, cats and crows. In addition, putrefactive processes in animal remains proceed more slowly than in plant remains, and your compost will not have time to ripen by the next season.

But the summer residents still haven’t decided on the sea inhabitants. Some do not add them, so as not to attract animals to the pile, but others are happy to throw into the compost everything that remains when cleaning the fish (heads, scales, entrails), citing the fact that they contain phosphorus, valuable for plants. You just need to bury such waste deeper in the pile so that cats don’t smell the smell.

Indeed, fish supplements are useful. Therefore, we advise everyone who is sorry to throw away a valuable product: do not put them in compost, but bury them directly under the trees, in the circles around the trunk. Just dig a deeper hole. This way you will feed the garden and will not attract stray animals.

If you build a compost bin with an opening roof, then feel free to put fish waste inside, because animals will not fit into such a container

You cannot put plastic, glass, metal objects, rubber, washing water, etc. into the pit. They are harmful to the soil. All paper products with a laminated base or with colored designs will not be useful either. There is too much paint and chemicals in it.

An undesirable ingredient in compost is tomato and potato tops. In the fall, it is completely infected with late blight, and the spores of this disease will be transmitted with the compost to healthy plants.

Weeds that have begun or completed their flowering period should not be added to the compost. For example, if a dandelion has managed to form a flower, the seeds will still ripen, even if it is picked and placed in a pile. Therefore, try to mow the weeds before the flower buds appear.

If there is nowhere to put the nightshade tops and large weeds that have already become seeded, lay them out on a solid base (concrete, linoleum) near the compost pit and let them dry. Then throw all the vegetation into iron barrel and set it on fire. Everything will burn, along with diseases and seeds. Useful ash will remain. Add it to your compost pile.

How to compost waste?

In order for waste to decompose quickly, moisture, oxygen and accelerators of putrefactive processes are needed. You provide moisture yourself by watering the pile abundantly during periods when it is hot outside. Oxygen will penetrate into the compost more actively if you arrange the layers of raw materials correctly. So, dry waste ( potato peelings, straw, hay, fallen leaves, husks, etc.) should be alternated with green ones (tops, fresh grass, rotting vegetables and fruits), soft with hard ones to avoid excessive compaction. It is very important that the compost is prepared from brown and green components, added in equal parts. Fresh waste is the main source of nitrogen needed by all plants. Brown (i.e. dry) act as a layer that prevents the compost from sticking together. They are considered a kind of fiber that makes the soil airier and lighter.

Try to put green and brown waste in equal proportions, as too much green will cause compaction, and too much dry material will suck the nitrogen out of the compost.

If you need compost for next spring, add decomposition accelerators to it. These may be purchased from garden store concentrates that need to be diluted warm water and activate the work of beneficial bacteria contained in the drug.

Fresh manure (horse or cow) is an excellent accelerator. They find a couple of flat cakes in the field, place them in a bucket of water and let them brew for two days. Then the prepared solution is poured into the compost and the contents of the heap are mixed. If this goodness is not near your dacha, finely chop dandelion leaves, nettles, legumes, pour into a bucket warm water and place it in the sun. After 4 days the mixture will begin to ferment. Then pour it into the compost.

To avoid nitrogen leaching, the top of the compost heap is covered. non-woven material or black film. When closed, rotting occurs faster, and a sign of this will be the active release of heat. The temperature inside the compost should be at least 60 degrees.

Cover with film wooden box from bottom to top it is extremely undesirable, because by doing so you will block the path of oxygen, and the quality of the finished compost will be much worse

During the season, the pile is shoveled 3-4 times to ensure uniform rotting of all layers. By spring, plant waste will turn into rich, loose soil with the smell of earth, which can be applied under trees, mulched for strawberries, or mixed with garden soil to improve its composition.

Before you start doing it at the dacha DIY compost pit, it’s worth thinking about, what exactly do we need it for?
The main functions of such a structure are the disposal of household organic waste, as well as the production of fertilizer for the vegetable garden, unless, of course, you intend to simply plant green manure on your site to fertilize the soil.

Rules for the arrangement and operation of a compost pit

When choosing a place where we would like to make a compost bin, we should consider several very important points:

The distance to the source of drinking water: well, borehole, stream, reservoir should be at least 25 - 30 m.
Also, if the area has a slope, the pit should be located below the well. Such precautions are necessary to prevent rotting waste from entering drinking water.
It would not hurt to take into account the wind rose, so as not to annoy the neighbors too much.

Additionally, I would like to clarify that in open sunny areas the contents of the pit can become very overheated, then the composting process stops, so it is advisable to shade the structure with trees. It is better if the compost pit is located somewhere in the corner of the site, adjacent to a blank wall or fence.

Let's also decide what can be thrown into the compost bin and what cannot.

Suitable for composting:

Raw vegetables, fruits, berries, tea, cereals, coffee. Residues from cleaning as well.
Hay, grass clippings, straw.
Leaves.
Branches, bark, roots of tree bushes, lightly crushed.
Weeds.
Wood ash.
Needles.
Napkins, cardboard, paper bags made of natural paper, shredded.
Unpainted wood waste.
The manure of herbivores is second year.

Cannot be used for composting:

Bones.
Pet excrement. Helminth eggs may remain in them.
Insects - pests and their eggs.
Disease-affected plants (tomato tops with late blight, pumpkins and cucumbers with powdery mildew, etc.).
Plants from areas treated with herbicides.
Inorganic waste: any plastic, iron, synthetic fabrics, rubber.

It is advisable to either incinerate or dispose of non-compostable material. cesspool if it's excrement.

Organic matter is decomposed by microorganisms and earthworms. Therefore, it is not necessary to insulate all the walls of the pit that are below ground level. If you dig a hole 50 cm deep and fence it with impenetrable material, worms will not be able to get inside. They will have to be housed yourself. The rules, as you can see, are quite simple, and the benefits of following them are extremely great.

Construction of a compost pit

The main thing to consider when constructing a compost pit is the need to provide good moisture and looseness for a high-quality composting process. How to do it - of great importance does not have.

The humidity of the compost heap can be maintained by regular watering or covered with film on top to create a steam room effect.

In order for the structure of the contents of the compost bin to be loose, it is necessary either to crush it with a pitchfork from time to time, or to lay materials with different densities in layers.

The dimensions of the compost pit should be approximately the following: width - about 1 - 1.5 m, length - 2 m, maximum height 1.2 - 1.5 m, it can be buried approximately 0.2 - 0.4 m into the ground.

Moreover, the design can be completely different and depends on the preferences of the owner.

Compost pit in two sections

If you do not use additional effective microorganisms, in addition to those present in the soil on the site, the reheating and composting of organic matter will take approximately 2 years. For ease of use, you can make the design two-section:
in one section - what we put away this year, in the other - what is composted from the previous year.

When the second section has ready-made compost, we will take it out and spread it on the beds where we want to improve the saturation of the soil with useful substances. The compost pit can be fenced on all sides like a box, but always with material that will ensure air penetration, for example, wooden picket fences, nailed at a distance from each other. This way the contents will not rot and emit an unpleasant odor. Such a compost pit can be built with your own hands in about 1 - 2 days, depending on what fencing material is chosen.

Compost pit with free access at the bottom of the structure

This will be a good replacement for the first option - there is no need to break it into sections. The heap fencing begins at a level of 25 - 30 cm from the ground. Ready compost accumulates at the bottom, which, if necessary, can be easily picked out with a shovel and used in the garden. Convenient and less hassle. Each time compost is reached from below, the contents of the pile will sink, occupying empty space, thereby becoming saturated with oxygen. There is no need to specially transfer and loosen.

What should a proper compost pit look like?

If after everything you've read you're still wondering: how to make the right compost pit, then here’s your answer - don’t do it at all.

Firstly, dragging grass and other organic matter back and forth, from a plot to a heap, from a heap to a garden is unnecessary, pointless work.

Secondly, formed during the composting process carbon dioxide, which is an indispensable food for plants, is mediocrely lost on the heap, unnerving you and your neighbors with its not very pleasant “amber”.

If you are not afraid of being considered an eccentric, lay out organic remains directly on the beds. There they will rot wonderfully and will not emit an unpleasant odor, as, for example, in a closed heap. Microorganisms will multiply on their own, worms will come too, they know their job - and here there is such abundance.
Use grass clippings as mulch. Even branches can be chopped and laid in paths between rows. Also take the peelings from fresh fruits and vegetables to the garden. So you:

Retain moisture in the beds;
You feed plants directly with carbon dioxide;
Prevent the germination of weeds in the beds;
Make compost directly where you need it.
Prevents the leaching of humus.

And most importantly, there is less work!

As you can see, the DIY compost pit I proposed is not a difficult task at all. It will not require any additional effort or skills. Now all that remains is to dispose of what is not suitable for composting next to food products. I think you have already guessed that this is...

The compost pit is the most simple design, which will allow you to prepare fertilizers from compost in the country.

They enrich the soil, allowing for a larger harvest. But to prepare fertilizer, you need a place for its production - a hole/box.

Making a compost bin is much more difficult than digging a hole. A DIY compost pit can be prepared in just one day, but lasts for years.

Humus as a result of composting is a very valuable mineral fertilizer.

Basic rules and nuances

Although setting up a pit is extremely simple, this process has a lot of nuances that must be observed both during construction and during operation of the pit in order to obtain fertilizer:

The size of the pit is selected taking into account the garbage that will accumulate over 2 years + the garbage that will constantly rot in the country;
If the pit structure is closed, then the compost smell should not penetrate outside;
The process of lifting compost humus from the pit should be simple;
The pit can be covered or open;
The pit can be built with a lid for constant air access;
It is better to dig a hole in the area behind the yard so that it does not spoil the landscape;
If the pit is concreted, then you need to put earthworms in the compost so that they accelerate its “ripening”;
The pit must be arranged so that straight lines do not fall on it. Sun rays, otherwise the compost will dry out;
Sheets of metal or slate cannot be laid at the bottom of the pit, but the walls can even be made from tires;
If you pour soapy water into a hole, you moisten the compost and enrich it with phosphorus, sulfur and ammonia, from which bacteria extract compost nitrogen;
The distance from the pit to the well should be as large as possible. This way you will protect groundwater;
To make fertilizer from compost, it takes from several months (with the participation of special additives) to 2 years! So it’s better to make either two pits, or one into 2 sections;
Pit close up fruit trees at the dacha - their certain death;
A concrete pit is preferable to a simply dug one;
If you don’t know how to mix concrete, you can easily put a brick wall on the sides of the compost pit.
Minimum dimensions of a compost pit: 1.5 x 3 meters, depth - up to 1 meter;
The compost will need to be constantly shoveled/sorted with a pitchfork, so the hole should not be very deep;
It is advisable to arrange two pits: the compost matures slowly, while one pit is being prepared for the coming season, you are preparing a second compost for the season in a year;
Please note that if the pit is open and the wind blows, the compost smell will “kill” any appetite, both at your dacha and among your neighbors;
Always be careful about the ingredients you add to your compost. Not all of them are useful for crafting! They will be discussed separately at the end of the article.

Features of the pit design

The design of a compost pit has its own nuances that must be taken into account when creating it. Compost loves good moisture and looseness to enrich it with oxygen, which is extremely important not just for rotting, but for the decomposition of organic matter into minerals.

You need to regularly water the compost heap and cover it with a lid or cover it with film to create Greenhouse effect in the pit and compost.

Use a fork to loosen the compost, or alternate brown and green materials when filling the hole (they will be discussed separately).

The design of the compost pit may be different, but if we take into account the standard 6 acres and calculate the approximate need for organic matter for the soil, we will get the following dimensions: width up to 1.5 m, length - 2 m, and height - maximum 1.5 m.

We will not consider options for a compost bin, for which such a height is always justified, but we will find out why such a depth is needed.

If we do not use special microorganisms when preparing compost, then the organic matter on the site will decompose “on our own” in about 2 years.

For this reason, it is illogical to make a small compost pit, and just one. Two sections – minimum!

In one pit, the laying of the year before last is already “reaching”, and in the other, compost is being prepared for next year. You can also use barrels instead of the second pit.

It is important to note! Many people think that they dug a hole and they’re done. How to loosen compost?!

In the dimensions indicated above, the height of 1.5 meters is measured as follows: 0.5 m of the pit itself and 1 meter of the fence that will hold the compost.

This forces us to build a fence, but such a hole is considered the most effective.

In any case, you can dig exactly big hole and prepare compost in it, but think about how you can make the work of loosening easier for yourself.

You can build a fence from wooden pallets or tires.

Pit manufacturing options

This section provides examples of technologies on how to properly make a compost pit in a suburban area.

Method 1 - a pile of compost, without a hole and a box:

Choose a secluded place in far corner a yard in a country house where there are no plants;
As soon as organic waste appears, immediately put it in compost;
Alternate the bookmarks in layers: add waste from the kitchen, immediately add grass/manure, etc. on top;
As soon as the compost pile grows a full meter in height, make several holes right in it and fill in the compost preparation;
Cover the compost with film on all sides so that there is constant heat and humidity;
Water the compost once a week with water and after 3 months the humus will be ready!

Do not lay any film, slate, tires, pallets, or especially metal under the compost! Moisture from the soil will not be able to rise, and humus will not be washed out, unlike other mineral fertilizers;
If it often rains in your area, then cover the pile with film, and to prevent “leaks”, sprinkle a small layer of peat under the bottom of the compost;
Once a month, worms can be added to the growing compost pile to loosen it and enrich it with oxygen.

Method 2 - simple pit:

We choose a place in the far corner where there are no trees/shrubs;
We dig a hole 50 cm deep and 1 m wide;
Place straw, dry grass, small branches, and bark on the bottom;
After throwing away household waste, immediately cover it with a layer of grass to prevent flies;
Each piece of waste must be covered with grass - this is how we alternate brown and green materials.

Don’t throw everything you don’t need into the compost – it’s still not a cesspool;
If the pit is not in the shade, then the compost needs to be watered regularly;
If the pit is in the shade, then for ripening you need to constantly cover the compost with film.

A “sandbox” is the same compost pit, only surrounded by wood (optionally, with slate, rubber tires, metal sheets).

Method 3 - sandbox:

We remove the turf along the entire perimeter of the future compost pit to a shallow depth (30-40 cm);
If the sides are wooden, then we hammer/bury pegs along the edges of the exposed area;
We nail boards to the supporting pegs, leaving 2 cm of clearance between them;
This creates a structure midway between a pit and a box. The advantage of this design is that it is easy to turn over the contents, since they are at a shallow depth;
If desired, you can use several wooden pallets as a ready-made replacement for stakes.

Cut down plant residues without compacting them, otherwise you will end up with silage.
Instead of wooden stakes and boards, you can use vertically driven sheets of slate.
In hot weather, you need to constantly water the compost. Cover the top of the pile with a lid/sheet of plywood/film.

Method 4 - concrete pit.

Such a compost pit always consists of at least 3 compartments: one for old compost, and the second for constant replenishment.

The pit is equipped with a lid for collecting fertilizer and tedding.

The construction process is as follows:

We measure out an area in the far corner of the site measuring 2x3 m and make markings;
On the marked area, we remove the turf evenly, but do not throw it away - it will come in handy;
We dig a hole 0.8 m deep;
We build formwork and pour concrete (10 cm thick).

How to prepare the solution:

Pour gravel into two 10-liter buckets and shake well;
Add water using a measuring cup. If 5 liters of water enter the bucket, then the voidness of the gravel is exactly 50% (a ratio of 2 to 1 is required);
Add 10 liters of river sand.

Stir the solution.

Attention! If there is more water than required, the concrete will contain bubbles. Pledge good concrete– the ability to mix thoroughly!

The concrete will dry in 2-3 days and you can start pouring the compost components into the finished pit.

Instead of concrete, you can use barrels buried directly in the ground, as a result of which they will be both a hole and protection at the same time, as well as brickwork or a stack of tires (the sides need to be sawed off).

There is another popular option - creating a compost bin according to Finnish technology, but it requires significantly more time and effort.

How to prepare compost?

First, you need to know what you can and cannot put in your compost pile.

Fruits, vegetables, cereals, berries in any form;
Ash, leaves, straw, grass, branches, bark;
I love any pine needles;
Shredded paper, napkins, cardboard;
Sawdust, wood shavings and dust;
Manure, bird droppings.

Any bones;
Excrement of carnivorous animals (cats, dogs);
Tomato and potato tops;
Inorganics: plastic, rubber, iron, synthetics;
Any organic matter that has been treated with insecticides or herbicides.

The balance of the mixture in the composter is the key to successful ripening, therefore it is necessary to correctly combine green material (bird droppings, fruits, vegetables, peelings, coffee grounds and tea leaves, fresh weeds) and brown (fallen leaves, sawdust, straw, hay, bark, pet hair).

We will send the material to you by e-mail

If the soil on the site is poor, then a container is built to create humus, which is an important part of any garden plot. The use of fertilizer in the form of compost allows you to grow environmentally friendly plants and vegetable crops. Recommendations from experienced gardeners will help you understand how to create a compost pit with your own hands, manufacturing options, photos and installation features of which can be considered in detail below.

Tanks can contain multiple compartments, which increases their productivity

You can easily create a compost pit with your own hands. In this case, manufacturing options can be seen in the photo. Simple products can be made from pallets, which are taken after sale building materials and are purchased for a small amount.

It is important to choose the right location. It should be far from housing. This should be a well-ventilated area. This will prevent the appearance of foul odors. Containers made from scrap materials are highly accessible. Finished design allows you to dispose of weeds from the site.

Helpful information! Vegetation is compacted over time and, under the influence of bacteria and humidity, is transformed into excellent organic fertilizer. Excellent for processing different cultures in the garden or garden.

What is the purpose of the pit?

An excellent method for disposing of various waste is a do-it-yourself compost pit. Manufacturing options, photos and drawings can be found in sufficient quantity find on the Internet. This building allows you to get quality fertilizers V as soon as possible. This involves the use of mown grass, leaves and manure.

How to make a compost pit with your own hands: video and installation requirements

Many gardeners and summer residents are interested in the question: how to properly make compost pits. The containers are constructed from three parts. In this case, 8 columns are installed, which are treated with a protective solution. This can be fuel oil, machine oil and tar.

An important point is the installation of ventilation holes. Also, the container must be closed with a special lid during precipitation. For this, ordinary polyethylene film can be used.

You can make a product from pallets. To do this, they need to be disassembled. Using boards, they are divided into separate pieces. All boards are fastened vertically. In this case, the front board is attached using an adhesive solution.

To ensure that the pallet product remains stable, it is necessary to level the slats at the bottom using a level.A compost pit using Finnish technology differs from standard pits. She has several distinctive features. Filling must begin from the first compartment. When removing humus, the container is filled from the adjacent compartment.

All processed material must be stirred periodically. Also, the container should maintain an optimal level of humidity.

Installation of such a structure consists of the following steps:

wood planks are treated with a special compound;

The side walls are being assembled;
the walls are covered with boards, two walls are made with gaps and two of tightly standing boards;

boards are attached for the back side;

the bottom is made;
the cover is mounted;

lower doors are installed.

Helpful information! The wood from which the pit is made must be impregnated with a special solution. This will prevent destruction from high humidity, harmful insects and decay processes.

Do-it-yourself compost pit: manufacturing options, photos and nuances

There are many ways to make compost pits at your dacha. It is worth choosing a type of structure that meets the requirements of a particular area.

The most famous methods are used:

erecting a pit in a specific place. The pit should resemble a well, but be shallower. In this case, the walls of the pit are additionally strengthened and lined, but only at a height of 20-25 cm from the bottom, so that microorganisms can easily penetrate inside;

the container is mounted on garden plot. This allows you to take out the compost mixture at any time. The pit is based on formwork. In this case, a plastic tank or a box made of boards is used; It is important to install ventilation holes;

the most in a simple way is considered to be the creation of a compost heap. This creates a base of sand, dried grass and gravel. Waste is placed on top to rot.

There are many options for creating such a structure. They differ not only in materials, but also in the properties of the tank and dimensions.

Helpful information! Before placing plant materials in the structure, you need to carefully loosen the bottom and install vent. After rains, the pit can be covered with polyethylene to speed up the work of microorganisms.

How to make a slate compost pit at your dacha?

Advice from the experts will help you decide how to make a slate compost pit at your dacha in order to get a reliable and durable structure.

Slate sheets will be an excellent base for the walls of the box. The design is carried out in several stages:

suitable dimensions are determined;

after choosing a site for the location of the structure, you need to make a small recess;
supports made of pipes or boards are mounted in all corners;

a pit is installed using slate sheets;
A partition is installed in the box, which divides the space into two parts.