Making your own compost is acting for the planet. You can thus enrich the soil of your garden without using industrial products. The realization of a natural fertilizer house is not complicated, but it is necessary all the same to respect some principles. So let’s see how to go about making your compost and at the same time become an eco-gardener who recycles its waste household and those in the garden. Here are the steps to follow and the mistakes not to make to obtain good quality compost.
Why start composting?
Composting consists of obtaining the natural decomposition organic matter which is ensured thanks to the action of micro-organisms: fungi, yeasts and bacteria, and/or by earthworms, i.e. earthworms (we then speak of vermicompost) . The recycling of organic materials makes it possible to have, after transformation, a nutrient which plants absolutely need to develop, flower and bear fruit.
We can therefore start composting at home in order toimprove soil quality without having to buy fertilizer. Thereby fertilizedthe soil from your garden can be used in the vegetable patch, in the pleasure garden in the flowerbeds, on the lawn, at the foot of ornamental trees and shrubs, hedges, but also in the orchard if you grow fruit trees, and even in the pots and planters with which we vegetate the terrace, the balcony and the interior of our home.
What is the use of compost for plants?
If compost is so essential to plants of all kinds, it is because it provides them with macroelements and microelements, essential to their existence.
The macroelements are :
- Sulfur (S),
- Le calcium (Ca),
- Nitrogen (N),
- Le phosphore (P),
- Le potassium (K).
The letters in parentheses indicate the chemical symbol of each element. These last three (N, P, K) are those that plants consume the most. N is essential for stems and leaves, P and K for the vitality of the plant and the growth of roots, flowers and fruits.
As to microelementsit’s about :
- You go (Fairy),
- Du zinc (Zn),
- Manganese (Mn),
- Copper (Cu).
Although used in small quantities by plants, these microelements are no less essential to them.
Compost: the different stages
In the same way that the essential nutrients that we draw from our diet must be supplied to our body in a balanced way, it is essential that all elements essential to plants are provided in sufficient amounts to avoid deficiencies, but not in excess as this can be harmful. The advantage of compost is that it is made up in a balanced way and therefore perfectly supplies the plants.
We can also appreciate that by enriching the soil of the garden with homemade compost (organic matter retains rainwater well) we thus limit runoff. But the benefits of composting don’t stop there. The more the number of individuals who make their compost increases, the more we reduce the number of landfills and the fewer the waste collection trucks there are on the roads and in our towns and villages. In addition to being excellent for the plants and the soil, making compost is ecological and economical.
Select waste that can be used in the compost
To obtain quality compost and not harm micro-organisms, it is important to select the waste to be used. It could be :
- Waste from jardin like wet and green materials (nitrogen-rich green waste) and dry matter (carbon-rich brown waste), namely: moss, manure, green leaves, clippings, residues from clearing such as stems, those resulting from pruning, i.e. branches but which must first be crushed, dead leaves…
- Of the waste that we produce at the cuisine such as eggshells, peelings (fruits and vegetables), coffee filters, coffee grounds, stale bread, dirty paper towels…
However, not all kitchen scraps should be composted. Some, like bones and fruit pits, do not compost easily while others are totally to forbid because they pose a hazard or are unsuitable for compost. This is the case for dairy products, meat, fish, of course glass, metals, polystyrene, plastic packaging, waste such as unused medicines, dressings, bandages and other syringes…
Prepare your composter
Everyone can get a composter from the town hall of their municipality or buy a kit from a garden centre. But you can absolutely use a makeshift model without spending a penny. These may be, for example, old pallets from recovery assembled together to form the structure of the composter. It is highly preferable that the wood has not been treated. A compost bin with a capacity of ½ m3 perfect for a garden of 250 m².
All you have to do is install your composting device in a corner of the garden that you have taken care to dig about fifteen centimeters if you use pallets.
Properly position your waste in the composter
All waste to be composted must be spread out so as to form over time successive layers 20 centimeters high about. The ideal is to alternate green waste (wet) and brown waste (dry).
Take good care of your compost
The chances of success depend on the attention you give to your compost. It is essential to ensure that it always remains moist. It is therefore necessary to think of watering it from time to time but without soaking it. You can also give it a little nettle manure and earth so that it doesn’t dry out.
And to promote fermentation, the frequent mixing of materials imposes itself. You can use a fork to turn them more easily. From time to time, it is very useful to add to your compost nettles or failing that, mowing the lawn because they boost the decomposition of organic matter.
Use your compost when it is ripe
Patience is required since a period from 6 months to 1 year is necessary to allow the compost to reach maturity. We then obtain a good quality soil which can be used in the garden and in planters or in the pots of indoor plants. To do this, simply recover the oldest compost, that is to say the one that is at the bottom of the composter, as needed. It is ready to be incorporated into the cultivation soil in order to make it plus fertile.
By making your own compost with part of your household waste, you get a excellent soil much better than potting soil that you buy in bags. In addition, the volume of waste treated by local authorities is reduced. the individual composting therefore has a positive impact on the community and allows everyone to save money. It is also an excellent way to promote the recycling of organic materials in a short circuit and consequently to reduce greenhouse gases.