Compost heap. Tips for gardeners on how to make a compost heap. Compost composition: what can be composted What weeds should not be composted

To get strong tomato bushes and a rich harvest, it is advised to use compost. This is a natural fertilizer that even an inexperienced summer resident can prepare.

Beneficial features

Organic fertilizers nourish the root system of plants, stimulate growth and yield. Among their benefits:

soil improvement due to useful minerals;
increase in productivity;
strengthening plant immunity;
increasing the resistance and endurance of tomatoes;
simple principle of fertilizer production.

When heated in a natural way, pathogens and pest larvae are neutralized in the compost substrate.

Compost is rich useful substances. Among them: phosphorus, nitrogen and potassium. They are important for the proper growth of tomatoes, abundant fruiting.

Important!

The soil, which was fertilized with organic matter, retains nutrients in the next season. Tomatoes on it grow strong and tolerate adverse weather conditions well.

Compound

Organic fertilizers can be divided into two groups, depending on the constituent components.

Nitrogen or green. They stimulate the decomposition processes due to the release of heat.
Carbon or brown. The decomposition process is slower, while the release of heat is minimal. Their task is to ensure soil looseness and moisture retention.

Nitrogen well nourishes the soil, saturates it with useful substances. Carbonaceous soils make the soil looser, eliminating stagnant water.

The components of green compost can be:

green grass;
fruit and vegetable waste;
food production waste;
rotted manure;
weeds without seeds;
seaweed;
chicken manure;
stems and flower buds.

Meat waste cannot be added to the pit. As they decompose, they give off a strong odor. This attracts flies and rodents.

The components of the carbon compote are:

dry foliage;
hay;
egg shell;
sawdust;
wood ash;
waste paper, except for cardboard and gloss.

Needles are added to brown compost in small quantities. Its excess can adversely affect the quality of the fertilizer, so you need to follow the measure.

How to make a compost pit for tomatoes

The place for the compost pit is chosen shaded. For example, the far corner of the garden, the crown of a tall tree.

As a construct, wooden box without bottom. It allows you to easily mix the contents, does not allow moisture to stagnate and provides good air circulation.

For its manufacture you will need boards. Best of all - pine, they are durable. Small gaps are left between the boards for free access of oxygen. Optimal size structures - 1.5x1.5 meters. The height must be at least a meter.

In order to prevent the leaching of nutrients from the pit during the rainy season, a cover must be provided. Instead, you can use slate or a thick film. And the pull-out section at the bottom of the box will allow you to easily get ready-made humus.

Important!

It takes at least three months for compost fertilizer to mature. In some cases, the period is extended to two years. Ready humus can be distinguished by characteristics: dark brown color, earthy smell, homogeneous crumbly structure.

Formation of a compost heap

The process includes several steps:

Drainage formation. The first layer consists of thin twigs, peat and dry grass. Its height should not be less than 15 cm.
brown layer. Fertilizers are compacted, watered abundantly. The second layer is 20 cm.
Green layer. Its height is 20 cm. Repeat abundant watering.
The earth layer is 5-10 cm high. It consists of fertile soil.
Further, the stacking of the components is repeated until the box is full.
When the compost settles, new layers of fertilizer and soil are added.
The contents of the pit are shoveled twice a month. Thus, an additional air flow is created.
In autumn, the pit is covered with a thick layer sawdust or foliage. The top of the compost is covered with plastic wrap.

To speed up the process of compost maturation, exclude the earthen layer. The hole is covered with plastic wrap. The compost mixture is often and abundantly watered with a catalyst, mixed. This method allows you to get fertilizer in 2-3 months.

What components should not be put in tomato compost

When forming a compost heap, the following components are excluded:

weed plants;
peel of bananas and oranges;
meat waste;
potato and tomato tops;
nut shells, fruit pits;
coal ash;
fresh manure;
dairy production waste;
diseased plants;
animal hair and feces;
bones.

Plants treated with pesticides should not be added to the pit. Organic fertilizer is natural, chemicals will reduce the quality and nutritional value of the compost.

Conclusion

Compost helps grow strong and healthy tomatoes. It prevents the growth of weed plants, eliminates the drying of the topsoil. With the help of affordable organic fertilizer, a rich harvest is obtained regardless of weather conditions.

The compost heap offers well-known benefits: organic waste from household and gardens are quickly disposed of, birds find there many small insects for nutrition, and finally, in the form of the resulting compost, you get a valuable and free bio-fertilizer. Due to the high content of humus and nutrients, as well as the ability to retain moisture, compost soil the best way suitable for soil improvement.

Advice: Sprinkle a preparation between the compost layers to accelerate the maturation of the compost and the soil for your garden will be ready faster!

Compost heaps must be protected from direct sun rays and wind, and best of all, if they are located in partial shade. The decomposition process is especially positively influenced by: earthworms, wood lice and microorganisms. With them, the compost heap will dry out much less. It's good to have a good approach to it.

Compost soil is formed as a result of the decomposition and degeneration of organic matter. Microorganisms, wood lice, actinomycetes and worms participate in that process. It is ideal as a fertilizer for upper layers soil, but not suitable for growing seedlings because it contains too many nutrients. If you mix it with earth and sand, it will make a good flower soil.

Fertilizing the garden, as well as agricultural land with compost, is always carried out purposefully in order to quickly and under control transform the organic matter in the soil. Here we show you how to lay compost heap and what to look out for over time.

laying
A compost heap can be laid at any time (exception: frost). The ideal time for this is autumn, because it accounts for the majority of all garden waste.

Underlayer
In the place where you are going to lay the compost heap, dig a layer of earth 15 cm deep and an area equal to the desired compost heap (for example, 1.50 m x 1.50 m), and put drainage there: in case of clay soil, a layer of sand, in sandy soil - layer clay soil.

Structure
A compost heap requires heat, air and moisture. It is laid in layers in such a way as to ensure deep penetration of moisture and air circulation. Wherein bottom layer is formed from coarse waste (cuttings of hedges, shredded cuttings of bushes and trees), and then alternate layers of green mass and brushwood in a ratio of 2: 1, which are laid out freely, not tightly, for better air circulation.

Interlayers
Between these layers of mixed waste approximately 20 - 25 cm high, a thin intermediate layer of nitrogen-containing fertilizer of animal origin and lime (attention: only slaked!) should also be laid - you can also use preparations to accelerate maturation - and then a thin layer of earth or last year's compost.

Completion
The compost heap should be narrower from the base to the top and be no more than 1.50 m high. Leaves, straw or chopped grass clippings can be used as the top protective layer.

Too humid? Too dry?
If the compost heap is too wet, then it means that it is poorly ventilated. And she is in danger of rotting. The compost heap must be well ventilated and re-deployed. If it's too dry, it means the compost is generating too much heat. Therefore, when the compost heap is dry, water it, and cover it in rainy weather.

shifting
With small compost heaps, this is not necessary; Large compost heaps are best moved in early summer. Since they are an incubator for many beneficial organisms. When shifting, the material should also be laid in layers from the edge to the middle and from the middle to the edge.

Usage
After nine months, if the compost has been properly composed, it can be distributed throughout the garden. best time for this is autumn. Even earlier, you can use the so-called coarse compost, which has decomposed into larger pieces and is especially suitable for mulching (compost mulch is distributed only on the soil surface).

Sieve
With the help of a sieve, you can additionally sift the compost soil. The remaining large pieces can be put back into the compost heap. Spread the compost soil around the garden and level it slightly with a rake (but do not bury).

4. Compost composition - what can be put in compost?

Waste from the garden
Chopped cut grass
Foliage
Trimmings of bushes and trees (chopped, chopped)
Eggshell
Fruit and vegetable waste
coffee grounds, tea leaves
Straw, hay, sawdust

It is constantly gaining momentum, while this method of working with the land implies the mandatory use, which serves as a replacement for the entire set of purchased fertilizers. As I have already noted, many neophyte gardeners do not get really high-quality gardening right away, but over the years, experience and practice do their job and most gardeners become true experts in composting. We can say that it is 50% science and 50% art.

The final nutritional value of this fertilizer is decisively influenced by its component composition, that is, those substances and materials that you add to it during the preparation process.

All materials put into compost can be conditionally divided into nitrogen-containing and carbon-containing. The expediency of such a separation is due to the fact that composting works best when elements such as nitrogen and carbon are present in the compost heap in a certain proportion (their optimal ratio will be discussed in one of the following posts).

So, from nitrogen-containing materials to compost will go:

Rootless green grass, fresh green leaves, freshly weeds, green corn stalks and leaves, apple carrion (if not rotten), etc.
Lake and river silt.
Trimmings of fish, meat and medium-sized bones. Such additives are quite to the taste of soil microorganisms, but keep in mind that they also attract various pests, in particular rats and mice. Therefore, if you want to put them in compost, then they need to be sprinkled on top with a dense layer of earth.
Dung slurry.
Bird, horse, cow and other types of manure.
The soil.
Fermented grass without dilution, as well as thick from, left after feeding the plants.

Exist different opinions regarding whether or not to add human waste to the compost heap. Some avoid adding these things for fear of spreading worms, but many don't take the threat too seriously and consume vegetables grown in their own faeces for years. Although I believe that if a cow refuses to eat grass that grows on cow cakes, then we should not do this either.

A list of carbonaceous materials that will work great in compost includes:

Dry grass with roots, dry weeds, dried last year's leaves, dry stalks and leaves of corn, cuttings of branches, etc.
Straw, dry hay,.
Woody. This component does not add nutritional value compost and does not decompose well, but it can still and should be put in a compost heap. The benefit of sawdust lies in the fact that they give the compost greater friability and absorb a large amount of moisture, contributing to its better preservation.
Paper, cardboard, old plywood. These materials must be properly moistened with water before laying in the compost heap.

Some food and household waste will be a great addition when preparing compost: eggshells, fruit and vegetable waste, wilted flowers, spoiled animal feed, etc. However, I do not advise you to throw citrus peels into the compost, as it contains natural preservatives in the form essential oils that will inhibit this fertilizer. The nutritional composition of the compost will also improve significantly if you add some lime and mineral fertilizers to it.

It is very convenient to prepare compost in such a mesh box.

There are, however, a number of substances that are not recommended to be added during the production of compost:

Leftover cooked food
Weeds with a strong root system (especially wheatgrass).
Sick plants.
Horticultural chemicals.
Remains of building materials.
Plastic bags.

Diseased leaves and stems of plants can only be composted if you are absolutely sure that the combustion process has been initiated in the compost heap, that is, the temperature inside it has risen to 60 degrees and above (otherwise it is better to burn the affected tops for ashes). However, there is an exception here: some pathogens are highly viable and able to survive even under heating conditions. In addition, the layers of the compost heap can warm up unevenly, and in some places the temperature will not be high enough to destroy all foci of infection.

It is strongly not recommended to compost plants, diseased, rotten root crops, celery and legumes, on the surface of which a dense white fungal coating or black balls are visible. Such tops are also burned, and the ashes can then be used to make compost.

Before laying in the compost, all its components (especially coarse elements) must be crushed, as this will greatly accelerate its maturation. At the same time, it should be borne in mind that large sections (for example, tree bark or branches) will contribute to better air circulation inside the compost heap, without continuous access to which full combustion cannot be initiated. In a word, it is important to observe the correct ratio of large and small components, which is determined more empirically, and not on the basis of any strict recommendations.

Many people think that making compost is a simple matter: put branches, leaves and other organic waste in a box or pile, cover it and wait for it to ripen. Simple, but not really.

Properly prepared compost will help the soil restore vitality and increase fertility, improve its structure. In practice, every farmer knows exactly how to make compost, and prepares it according to his own - the only correct - recipe. In fact, there are a great many of them, they include various ingredients, additives, are prepared aerobic and anaerobic way. It is impossible to describe each in detail in one article, so we will focus on the main, time-tested and thousands of farmers methods. I foresee the question: why make compost at home, because now you can buy it? Of course you can. If only you are confident in the decency of the manufacturer. Otherwise, you can not help the earth, but harm it. Only by preparing the right compost with your own hands, you can be 100% sure that it is "garden gold".

What can and cannot be composted

Can:

cut grass
Fallen leaves
Animal dung and bird droppings
Drinking tea and coffee
Egg shells that have not undergone heat treatment
Cuttings of raw vegetables and fruits
thin branches
Paper, feathers, natural fabrics (shredded)
Straw, sawdust, shavings, seed husks

It is forbidden:

Vegetables and fruits after heat treatment
sick plants
Perennial and seeded weeds
Synthetic fabrics and materials
peel from citrus fruits

Organic waste can be divided into groups:

nitrogenous

These include manure, bird droppings, grass, raw vegetable and fruit waste.

carbonaceous

These are straw, leaves, sawdust, grass, paper, cardboard.

Compost - how to cook

At the bottom of the container, lay the cuttings of branches, chips - they will serve as drainage.

Do I need to mix the compost

Yes need. The whole mass is enriched with oxygen, the layers are mixed, decomposition is faster. In addition, it is easier to control the moisture content of the compost mass. The more often you do this, the sooner you will get mature compost.

How to know when the compost is ripe

The compost mass should be crumbly, moist, dark in color. And most importantly - such compost should smell like forest land.

When is the best time to compost?

There are no strict limits here: you can lay layers of organic matter from the very spring, as they become available. Harvested leaves and fallen leaves are added to the compost in autumn.

Didn’t have time to lay the compost heap, but it’s already winter in the yard? No problem! Advances in science allow us to make compost in winter. There is no personal experience, but, according to the assurances of the manufacturers of EM preparations, ready-made compost can be obtained in 2 months.

To prepare a quick compost, you will need food waste, land (10% of the volume of waste) and a solution of an EM preparation - Tamir, Urgas, Baikal M1. In a hermetically sealed container, we put a handful of waste, a part of the earth corresponding in volume, moisten it with an EM solution and close it. And so on until the container is full. The number of containers is not limited and directly depends on the amount of food waste you have) The smaller the embedded organic particles, the faster the decomposition process. The container must be placed in a room with a temperature not lower than 15°C. Under all conditions, EM compost is ready after 2 months. Naturally, the use of EM preparations makes it possible not only to obtain compost quickly at any time of the year (except winter), but also to significantly improve its nutritional properties. Friends, the conclusion suggests itself: make compost - you will have a rich harvest!

Everyone has heard about the value of compost, even novice gardeners. However, the rules for its formation and application are not known to everyone. Many people think that in order for the compost to succeed, it is enough to dump waste and plant residues in one place during the summer, and everything is ready by spring. However, this is far from the case, and in order for your compost heap to really become a valuable material, you need to work on it.

What is compost?

If you look in the encyclopedia, you can find an exact description of what is compost: compost is a type of organic fertilizer obtained as a result of the decomposition of organic residues under the influence of the activity of various microorganisms. Therefore, several components are necessary for its formation: directly organic matter, microorganisms and conditions for their vital activity. Based on this, let's look at how to make compost with your own hands.

What is a compost heap made of?

The first thing to understand when forming a compost heap is that not everything can be thrown into it.

What can be put in compost?

Can: any plant residues (cut grass, chopped tree branches, weeds, leaves, tops), organic waste with kitchen table(peeling vegetables, egg shells, tea leaves, coffee grounds), straw, hay, manure (preferably horse or cow), paper used for bedding for livestock.

What should not be composted?

It is forbidden: diseased plants, rhizomes of malicious weeds, fats, inorganic debris, synthetic fabrics. It is not recommended to get cabbage into the compost, as its decay causes an unpleasant odor, as well as meat waste, since in addition to the stench, they also attract rats.

But that's not all. When forming a compost heap, you need to remember two rules. First, the smaller the waste, the faster it rots. Secondly, the ratio of green (rich in nitrogen) and brown (poor fiber) masses should correspond to 1:5. This ratio will allow bacteria to fully develop and significantly speed up the process of compost maturation.

Since it is difficult to form a compost heap at a time and in most cases it fits gradually, it is quite difficult to understand the amount of green and brown components laid into it by eye. But there are principles that you can follow to understand what needs to be added: if the compost heap has an unpleasant odor, then it lacks a brown component, if it is cool and has no visible fumes, you need to add green mass. If the balance is maintained, the compost heap should smell like earth, give off warmth, be damp, and float a little.

Ideally, a compost heap is laid out in layers, alternating not only green and brown fillings, but also finer and coarser fractions of the components. After the final formation, it is covered with a layer of earth (5 cm), and then with old straw or a specially perforated (for ventilation) film.

Formation of a compost heap

Collecting organic remains in one place is far from everything. For convenience and neat appearance, the place allotted for the formation of compost must be protected. However, it is better to do this not with slate or metal, but by forming wooden frame. This is necessary so that the heap can "breathe". The dimensions for the box should be approximately 1.5 x 1 m (the first indicator is the width, the second is the height), the length can be any.

The place chosen for the formation of the compost heap also matters. First, it must be protected from the winds and the scorching midday sun. Secondly, it is hidden from prying eyes. And if necessary, it is decorated with green plantings or climbing plants.

The best period for the formation of a conceived business is autumn, rich in plant residues, as well as spring and summer. winter period not suitable for composting due to unfavorable temperature conditions.

Before you start laying organic matter, it is good to lay out a film or a layer of peat 10 cm thick on the bottom of the future heap deep into the ground (by 20 cm). This will save nutrients and moisture. AND!!! You should not resort to the method of collecting residues in a pit, as excess moisture often accumulates in compost pits, which worsens and lengthens the composting process.

Compost heap care

Now that we know the basic principles of the formation of a compost heap, it is necessary to recall the rules for caring for it, since it depends on their implementation whether the compost will have time to form in a year or not, whether it will be complete and of high quality. And the rules are pretty simple.

The compost heap needs to be turned once a month. In this case, it is good to achieve the most complete mixing of the residues. This will make the organic loose, enrich it with oxygen, allow it to burn out, and not rot. If shoveling a pile is difficult for you, at least pierce it from all sides with a pitchfork.
It is very important to monitor the moisture content of the compost heap. If it dries out, moisten it regularly. However, you can’t overdo it here, but remember that it’s wet, it doesn’t mean it’s wet! Excess moisture displaces air, which means it worsens the work of bacteria necessary for composting. Therefore, carefully water your pile with a watering can, and not with a hose, preferring not to top up than to overflow. In the time of prolonged rains and after watering - cover it with a film.
If you want to speed up the maturation process of the compost, make sure that enough nitrogen gets into the pile - it is found in the green parts of plants and slurry. How to determine their disadvantage, we said above.

Compost readiness indicators

How long the compost heap will take to mature depends on the conditions provided for this. Usually, complete overheating of organic residues occurs in 1–1.5 years. The readiness of the fertilizer is determined visually and by smell - the organic matter becomes a crumbly dark brown mass with the smell of forest land.