by Hai Shunxi

Created on: April 02, 2010

Just about anyone who plants a flower or vegetable garden has learned that compost is a miracle substance. Adding compost returns nutrients to your soil in a form that plants and soil microorganisms can use right away. It also lightens and loosens dense soil so that air, water, and roots can penetrate more easily as the plants grow. Compost may well be a gardener’s best friend.

One of the best things about compost is that you can make your own from what you'd ordinarily throw away. So not only will you improve your soil, you’ll keep waste out of your local landfill! All it takes is some space, some time, and that organic matter you were going to toss in the trash. You can make compost in any kind of enclosure that’s in contact with the soil, or even in a tumbling barrel. It’s what goes into your compost bin that’s important – not how you make the bin.

Let’s start by listing what should NOT go into your compost – it’s a shorter list. Start by not putting anything inorganic – metal, plastic, glass – in your bin. Never put any sort of meat or fish scraps in your compost bin, nor dairy products: these cause foul odors and attract animal pests.

The waste of carnivorous or omnivorous animals such as dogs and cats should not be added, either – the waste of herbivores like rabbits or cattle are acceptable, though in limited amounts. If you intend to grow organically, do not add clippings or trimmings of plants that have been treated with pesticides or herbicides. Lastly, do not add the remains of perennial or woody weeds to compost, for they may survive the “cooking” process and invade your garden. Ask a knowledgeable local gardener which weeds to avoid.

What SHOULD go in your compost pile? Almost anything else. Kitchen scraps and leftover cooked vegetables and fruits are a good start, but not if cooked in meat stock or dairy sauces. Yard clippings (untreated) and garden wastes and trimmings, leaves, and small twigs add bulk, but not plants or parts of plants killed by disease. Other organic products from the kitchen (tea leaves and coffee grounds), the office (paper and cardboard), and even the workshop (sawdust) can all go in your compost pile. Natural cloth such as cotton, wool, and linen can be composted, even hair from pets and home haircuts can be added.

Decomposition works faster if everything added to the pile is cut up small beforehand. Shred paper and cardboard, for instance,

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