Perfect Compost
Compost is a very high-quality fertiliser that anyone can create at home in their garden. Through composting, bio-waste becomes a material containing humus, which includes organic and mineral substances and water. These substances are then available to plants.
What can be composted?
- fruit and vegetable scraps
- coffee and tea grounds
- bread leftovers
- egg and nut shells
- pet bedding
- grass clippings, leaves and twigs
- sawdust, wood shavings, bark
- wood ash
- pet and livestock manure
- feathers, fur, hair
What not to compost?
- weeds
- bones
- cooking oils and fats
- twigs and plants affected by diseases
- chemically treated materials and plants
What to mix with what?
Follow these basic rules and your compost will always be top-notch.
Mix: wet with dry / porous materials with dense ones / brown with green.
How to do it?
A composter will come in handy for composting, or you can simply layer it in a heap somewhere, just like our grandmothers did. Coarse and airy material should go at the bottom to ensure aeration. Broken branches or woody stems are ideal for this. To get the compost started right from the beginning, you can also add a bit of farmyard manure. Don't forget to add a little soil as well. A properly established compost will start to heat up within a week. That's correct! It means the microorganisms are working. After 1-2 months, the compost needs to be turned over – mixed.
What to check?
Moisture – take a bit of compost in your hand and squeeze it as hard as you can. If no water appears between your fingers – that's correct. When you open your fist, the mass should stick together and hold its shape. If the compost is wet and doesn't hold, turn it over and add dry material. Conversely, if it's dry, moisten it with grey water.
Air – for sufficient air supply, turn the compost over 4-8 weeks after establishing it.
Temperature – higher temperature in the initial weeks after establishing the compost is proof of good composting progress. If the compost doesn't heat up, it's probably too dry or doesn't have the right composition. Another possibility is that there isn't enough of it.
Bonus
You can plant your compost with plants such as pumpkins, courgettes, and cucumbers. The leaves will provide protection from the summer sun, and if it's planted, you definitely won't forget to check whether it needs watering.