Make Black Gold Compost
If you have a yard, you should be composting! It’s easy, it’s good for the environment and it makes nutrient rich soil. It also makes you feel good because you are reducing the amount of trash you are sending to the landfill. Recycle your yards waste and make Black Gold Compost!
What exactly is compost and how do I make it? Compost is a mixture of decayed or decaying organic matter used to improve garden soil. It’s made by gathering plant material such as leaves, grass clippings, and vegetable peelings , into a pile or bin and letting it decompose. As a result of the action of aerobic bacteria, fungi, and other organisms such as earthworms.
Materials to Use
- Kitchen Scraps like raw fruit, veggies & egg shells. Coffee Grounds & Filters.
- Newspaper, Paper Towels, non-glossy Cardboard
- Leaves (brown for carbon, green for nitrogen)
- Grass clippings
- Yard Waste
Don’t Use:
- Meat & Dairy Products
- Plastic, metals, and man-made substances
Make your compost pile in the shade if possible so it won’t dry out too much. If we have a dry spell, water it occasionally. The key to a healthy compost pile is to have a mixture of green vs. brown materials. Don’t overload on grass clippings or yard waste. Layer your green material with newspaper and dry leaves, sort of like making lasagna. Stir or turn this pile with a pitch fork every two or three weeks to hasten the decomposition process. You may throw a few shovels full of soil into the pile to jump start the microbial activity.
Another way to make a bit of compost is to apply a thin layer of leaves and kitchen scraps over an existing garden bed. This is best down in the Fall. Run over your fallen tree leaves with the lawn mower to finely chop them, rake or bag them up and spread them over the vegetable or perennial garden that you have previous cleared off for winter. Earthworms and microbes will do the work for you. When Spring comes it should be decomposed enough to easily work into the soil as you plant.
Please don’t send your leaves and clippings to a landfill. You know your soil needs help. Solve two problems by composting. Mother Nature composts all of her debris. Be like Mother Nature.