Oct 25 2009

Making Compost: Getting Your Hands Dirty

Category: CompostingAnders Eriksson @ 6:22 am

If you’re a gardener then you should not mind getting y our hands dirty. In this line of work, you need to handle plants, soil, rocks, fertilizer, soil conditioners, etc. and not all times a pair of gardening gloves is handy. At times using glove can prevent you handling some delicate stuff. In this case, you have to get down on your knees and get your hands dirty. And nothing is dirtier that making compost.

Composting is a the process were biodegradable materials, usually manure and household wastes, are turned into soil-like output by combining them with a little air, water and nitrogen. Is that too technical for you? Well compost is a dark, crumbly, soil-like substance which functions as soil conditioner, mulch, and fertilizers. It feed your garden soil the microorganism that most plants need to grow healthy and strong.

When making your own compost pile, it would be ideal to find a place near your garden and yet it has enough concealment to not affect the overall look of your garden. Does that make sense? Just like one of the famous movies say ?hiding in plain sight?. If such is the case, a cleverly painted compost bin would help make the area neater. A corral or a fenced area would do fine.

After setting up your composting area, you start composting by arranging a 3:1 ratio of brown and green organic materials. Green ingredients contain lots of nitrogen while the brown elements contain lots of carbon. Together, they form the basic foundations of a compost file. The green organic components of gardening include grass clipping while the brown components are the dry leaves and other wood products.

If you’re worried about the possible bad smell that would come out of your compost pile, then don’t. When the ratio of greens and browns is correct, you don’t have to worry of any bad smell from your compost pile. Compost should have this earthy smell and not smelling like rot. If you smell the later then there could have been some things that might have been included in the pile or the ratio of the greens and browns components is not correct.

You can see that there’s practical value in learning more about Composting. Can you think of ways to apply what’s been covered so far?

One way to make certain that your compost pile has jus the right combination of greens and browns components, is to get a pile of green material and put it in you compost bin. Follow it up with two piles of brown materials. Keep this gong until you have a nice pile of leaves and grass that measures about three feet. At this high, you probably have a base measuring 3 feet also. One good thing of having this large a compost pile is that the greens and browns can easily and quickly break down.

If you want, you could add in a bucket of already finished compost to the newly formed pile. This will help start the process and begin the microbial activities in your compost pile.

Make sure that you add enough moisture to the pile as well. Keeping the compost pile damp will help quicken the breakdown of the organic materials. Add water to the pile and feel a sample. It should be damp, somewhat like a sponge. See, I told you your hands will have to get dirty.

There is a need to turn over your compost pile at least once a week to keep it loose allowing air into the pile and quickens the process of decomposition. After two months, you should have decent quality compost by now. The original materials you used should no longer be recognizable.

As you can see, making compost is quite easy and requires not too much of your time.

Those who only know one or two facts about Composting can be confused by misleading information. The best way to help those who are misled is to gently correct them with the truths you’re learning here.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit my latest venture: GVO to claim your $1 trial membership!


Oct 12 2009

How to Succeed with Your Composting Venture

Category: CompostingAnders Eriksson @ 7:38 pm

If you have even a passing interest in the topic of Composting, then you should take a look at the following information. This enlightening article presents some of the latest news on the subject of Composting.

Is this going to be your first time to try your hand and luck in composting? This should not be that hard. But it isn’t that easy either. The sure thing about this is that it is going to take a lot of your time. But the end result will all be wroth it, especially if the next thing that you want to try your hand on is organic gardening.

The two actually go together. You will be able to utilize to its full potential your compost on your organic garden. If you think that you have a knack and you have the talent for it, you should really try gardening. It is not all work but no play. This can actually be just a hobby that you can use to relax while flexing those muscles out for a much needed exercise.

The main reason for gardening may be for beautification. But when you go the organic route, the reason behind this will be much bigger and much in tuned with nature. By making compost, you are also being one with nature. You are doing your part in preserving its beauty by gathering the waste elements that can be recycled to act as fertilizers to your garden.

For starters, it is only natural to worry if your project will be a success or not. But why worry if you can take the necessary actions for it to actually succeed. Here are some tips that you can follow.

1. Manage the stink. You don’t want to get into trouble with your neighbors for the sake of nature. To achieve this, you must keep the pile oxygenated. You can turn the materials periodically to gain such effect. This way, the materials on your pile will decompose regularly.

Now that we’ve covered those aspects of Composting, let’s turn to some of the other factors that need to be considered.

2. Decide if you are going to do it hot or cold. If you’ve decided on cold, you just have to pile all the organic materials and let nature takes its course over them. But this will take months to even years for all the materials to be good enough for compost.

If you will choose hot, this is a more detailed process and more effort is required on your part. You have to place your materials on a compost bag. Place the leaves first then put soil into it. Add other kitchen wastes like scraps from vegetables and fruits. You must remember to moist this pile periodically for the bacteria to grow so they can aid in decomposing the materials faster.

3. Watch out for the unnecessary visitors. You must be vigilant in a sense that if you are seeing flies and other pests inhabiting on your pile, take the proper actions to get rid of them. You want the pile to rot but not in a way that it won’t be useful in the end.

4. Place the compost, whether it is being done through hot or cold way, a good distance from the household and nearby neighbors. This way, you can proceed with the steps without the probable intrusion and questioning by the people nearby who don’t get what is that all about.

Composting can really eat up a lot of your time. So do it methodically. Make sure that you’ll devote ample amount of time into the process if you really are serious about gaining positive results from this.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit my latest venture: GVO to claim your $1 trial membership!


Sep 30 2009

Helping Nature by Composting

Category: CompostingAnders Eriksson @ 6:57 pm

If you are still find it hard to understand the nature of composting, it can actually be simplified. It can actually be compared to recycling. Instead of throwing out all your waste and garbage, or at least what you consider as garbage, you can sort that out. In recycling, you need to pick the things that can still be transformed into other materials so that you can use them for different purposes.

The more popular things that are being utilized in recycling are the pins on soda cans. These are said to help out in making aluminum. Other containers can be used as pots or vases. Used clothes can be turned into mats or rugs. The idea here is that while there are things that can still be useful in your everyday lives, most of the recycled materials are being implemented as decorative elements.

With the products of compost, you will not pick things out of the garbage pile to be able to come up with other things that will be useful to you on your everyday life. No, the process will not come up with an exotic looking vase or a picture frame made out of shells or bottle caps. You can leave those thoughts to recycling.

Composting entails the recycling of the materials that can be found on nature. The popular samples of this would be dried leaves, grass clippings, vegetable or fruit peelings, animal manure, sawdust, among others. How would all these be useful? Unlike the practical applications of the product of recycling, this in turn will mostly be for gardening purposes.

Think about what you’ve read so far. Does it reinforce what you already know about Composting? Or was there something completely new? What about the remaining paragraphs?

This will be especially helpful if you are into organic gardening. This method requires the use of organic materials. That means that you cannot turn to synthetic products, especially for the purpose of fertilizers and pesticides. And it is possible. Your compost can make the soil for this type of gardening healthy and happy. As a result, it will produce healthy crops and chemical-free plants.

Organic gardening may sound complicated to the novice ears. But if you put your heart into it, you will find out that all the hard work that you will spend doing this will all be worth it. But this doesn’t really mean that you have to do it especially if you can’t afford to because of the time consideration and other factors.

But even if you don’t have time to do organic gardening, you can still try your hand in making compost. This can also apply with people living on the urban zones. Even with such situation, you can still do a little gardening trick by having your plants in pots. No, you don’t need to go organic all the way. Nobody’s telling you to do so. But using the products of your compost as a fertilizer can actually engage you with the project and may start your curiosity towards the real organic gardening thing.

Besides, everything nowadays seems to be marketed as organic. Look at the grocery aisles. There are organic food, organic soap, organic tissue, cloth and everything. This seems to be trend. And nature is definitely not complaining.

By going out of your way to do composting, consider nature sending out her appreciation your way. And may this inspire you to do other things to help with the causes of Mother Earth.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit my latest venture: GVO to claim your $1 trial membership!


Sep 16 2009

To Compost or Not to Compost

Category: CompostingAnders Eriksson @ 11:06 pm

Well, there’s no doubt about it, composting is a good practice that any self-respected gardener should learn to do. But the question really is what materials we could make into a compost and which ones we cannot. We have been told that composting can be done with any organic material. Well, in theory that may be true, however, in real life it may not be always so.

There are a several organic materials that should not be included in the compost pile unless you know how to do it properly while there are other materials that should not even be attempted even by the experts. To compost or not to compost, that is indeed the question. And let’s see if we can provide the answers.

For home composters like you and me, we have a number of materials available inside our own home and even our own backyard. The big, industrial composters have a little advantage over us. They can compost more materials than us because they have the facilities to divert, mask, or absorb the odor that may come out from composting a lot of organic stuff. We don’t have the same luxury. We don’t want our neighbors organizing a protest rally against our composting in our own backyard, now do we?

Don’t let this worry you though, there are still a lot of materials that we could include in our compost pile. Let’s begin with something our front lawn is always dying to dispose off: excess grass. Yep, grass clippings from our lawn can be put to better use like for the compost file in our backyard. In situations where you have hay instead of grass clippings, that could work as well.

Using hay for composting is often practiced by farmers. You will find that farmers are more than willing to dispose of that hay. And when it comes to using hay for composting, be sure to pick the greener ones. Green hay means it still has a lot of nitrogen in it.

I trust that what you’ve read so far has been informative. The following section should go a long way toward clearing up any uncertainty that may remain.

Others include kitchen wastes such as vegetable peels, fruit rinds, tea bags, eggshells and coffee grounds. These substances contain high levels of nitrogen. Make sure, however, to keep pests away from your kitchen wastes. Some would prefer to prepare a compost bin intended for their kitchen wastes. Others would prefer burying these wastes in eight inches of soil. And because they precisely attract pests, it would be best to stay avoid including scraps of meat, milk products and left over bones.

Wood chips, wood shaving, saw dusts, paper, and other wood products are generally good to included in your compost pile. However, be sure to stay away from chemically-treated wood products. Arsenic is one of the highly toxic chemicals that is sometimes used to treat wood. Using sawdust from such treated wood products is a no-no since the chemical will leak into the soil causing more harm than good.

Speaking of no-nos, there are other things that you should not include in your compost. Plants that died due to a disease should not be included. There is still a possibility that the disease the caused the death of the plants might infect your future plants.

And similarly, human, dog and cat wastes are not uses as composting materials as well precisely because they contain organisms that could cause disease. Such disease might cause people to be sick or might affect your plants.

Even though grasses can be used for composting, it would be best to avoid weeds like morning glory, ivy, sheep, and kinds of grasses that could grow in your compost pile. The weeds seeds also can survive the composting pile which can be carried to your new garden.

So going back to our earlier question: to compost or not to compost? Composting is something that is ideal for your garden. However, choosing the right materials will determine how successful your compost pile will be.

I hope that reading the above information was both enjoyable and educational for you. Your learning process should be ongoing–the more you understand about any subject, the more you will be able to share with others.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit my latest venture: GVO to claim your $1 trial membership!


Sep 09 2009

Getting to Know Your Composting Equipment

Category: CompostingAnders Eriksson @ 2:39 pm

The only way to keep up with the latest about Composting is to constantly stay on the lookout for new information. If you read everything you find about Composting, it won’t take long for you to become an influential authority.

The equipment you use in your composting will help make or break your pursuits of building your compost. If you are really bent on making the most of your composting goals, a good familiarization of the tools that will help you achieve your goals is very much appropriate. The tools will not necessarily be in the form of objects, because there are also elements of place and space that are in play when it comes to obtaining the optimum performance of your compost.

A Good Composting Site
The site of your composting activity is the primary consideration and one of the best tools you need to master before you do any composting activity. The place must be free from obstruction and well capable of obtaining the right temperature needed for your composting. Aside from this, you also need to be thoroughly familiar with the site which you chose for composting. In addition, you also need to be able to access the site frequently as composting requires a lot of monitoring on a frequent basis.

Compost Bin

Your compost bin must serve the functions of the particular type of composting you intend to have. If you are up for the industrial level of composting, you may need more than one compost bin to satisfy your objectives. This compost bin needs to be cleaned every once in a while, and must be of the right size depending on the amount of materials you are to put.

Be sure that you are able to manage the compost bin you choose, and for beginners, it is often recommended to start small and then branch out once you get the hang of it or at least get comfortable with what you are working on.

Thermometer

Truthfully, the only difference between you and Composting experts is time. If you’ll invest a little more time in reading, you’ll be that much nearer to expert status when it comes to Composting.

Composting requires you to maintain a specific temperature. So a thermometer may come in handy for you as you do your daily rounds of inspection on your compost pit. You need to make sure that the thermometer is properly calibrated. Some shops also sell thermometer that is tailored to suit the needs of compost owners, so you can also check these out. The specifically tailored thermometers may prove to give a better advantage for you.

Garden Fork

The garden fork has a great variety of uses. In the aspect of composting, it will really help you mix your materials especially if you are dealing with a large composting pit or bin. The garden fork will help you rake in the materials, mix them and test the texture and softness of your compost mix. For a garden rake, you must choose one that is optimum for the size of your composting operations and with a complete manual and warranty so as to maximize its usage.

Other Containers

You will not only need a compost bin, but if you are a sucker for combining and categorizing your materials, you may also need additional containers that can help you manage your compost materials. In cases where you need to monitor your Carbon and Nitrogen ratio components in the mix, you have make sure that you are adding the right type of materials to maintain the right temperature, mix and ratio needed.

Room for Growth

The spatial aspect of composting involves having more room for growth should you decide to pursue higher levels of composting. Your area must be spacious enough to accommodate your present composting needs, but at the same time, it must be able to hold in expansions, should you decide to increase the capacity of your compost pit.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit my latest venture: GVO to claim your $1 trial membership!


Sep 08 2009

Evaluating Commercially Available Composting Heaps

Category: CompostingAnders Eriksson @ 8:25 pm

So what is Composting really all about? The following report includes some fascinating information about Composting–info you can use, not just the old stuff they used to tell you.

In some cases, composting may be aided by commercially available alternatives. Like many other worthwhile endeavors, composting takes a huge chunk of time to develop and you really need to be able to balance all the elements. In this case, acquiring commercially available compost for urgent needs not met by your capacity may be entertained as an option. When this happens, you need to at least have a good working knowledge on how to evaluate commercially available composting heaps.

The data on commercial composting heaps consist of quality i the chemical, biological and physical aspect. Th characteristics of the compost will help you fare good judgment amidst the numerous brands of commercial compost heaps being promoted to the consumers.

Primarily, a good composting heap must have complete information in them when you need it. Obscurely written package descriptions may do the customers a lot of disservice. So narrow your search of the best commercial compost heap b choosing those with ample details in them prior to usage.

There are certain characteristics to check out for in any package of commercially available composting heap:

Trace Elements

The number of trace elements helps show you which elements to watch out for as you apply the compost heap on your soil.

Nutrient Content

The nutrient content will show you how well-nourished your soil will be after putting the heap in. Also, it will show you if the commercial heap is giving you your money’s worth. A thorough knowledge on the composting process will help you evaluate this aspect more properly.

Soluble Salts

Stability

Amount of Organic Matter

See how much you can learn about Composting when you take a little time to read a well-researched article? Don’t miss out on the rest of this great information.

Ultimately, we get the compost heap for the organic matter it contains. The higher the organic matter, the better it is for your soil.

Moisture Level

Moisture works hand in hand with air in helping keep the compost active. The moisture of the compost helps facilitate the transfer of nutrients from compost heap to soil to plants.

Size of Particles

The size of particles will tell you how well-mixed the heap is. You don’t need a scientist to tell you, but you can actually see via visual inspection how well-mixed the heap is. This will also give you an idea as to how long or how mature the heap is.

Maturity

You acquire commercial compost heaps for this factor. The more mature a compost heap is, the more stable and rich in nutrients it is. The more mature heaps are also easier to manage and it is much better to add to them to keep them dynamic once you have placed them in your soil.

If you are presented with relatively ?young? compost, it is better to administer the composting yourself and save the money you are to use for purchasing something that you can do well on your own.

Ability to destroy weeds and other destroyers of soil.

The resisting factor in commercial compost heaps will also contribute to the overall growth and fertilization of your soil. The presence of unpleasant elements in the compost heap need to be checked before buying so that you will be ensured that the addition of the heap on your soil will reap you all benefits and no problems whatsoever.

Aside from these basic characteristics, you also need to check the pH level and other compost parameters related to it.

Of course, it’s impossible to put everything about Composting into just one article. But you can’t deny that you’ve just added to your understanding about Composting, and that’s time well spent.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit my latest venture: GVO to claim your $1 trial membership!


Sep 06 2009

Dynamic Composting Tips and Tricks

Category: CompostingAnders Eriksson @ 4:05 pm

Would you like to find out what those-in-the-know have to say about Composting? The information in the article below comes straight from well-informed experts with special knowledge about Composting.

Unlike the aging body, you do not need the elixir of youth to be able to ensure that your compost heap is at its glorious best, thriving and able to function well on your soil. Few people are attracted with passivity of all forms, especially in compost, which is supposed to be a hot pot of activity for yielding greatest returns in the environment and farm land business people.

The good thing about composting is that you can easily keep it dynamic with consistency and a host of other techniques that are tried and tested by many a composting enthusiast or advocate.

Balance the ingredients

Primarily, the basic thing to keep or maintain for a compost heap to be active is balance of ingredients. If you have too much of a single component, your compost may eventually die down. Remember that a compost is inherently comprised of numerous organic matter, and to keep it in top condition means that you must also maintain the variety of materials you put in your compost heap.

Over time, some ingredients in the compost heap may dominate over the others, so make it a point to replenish your compost bin and have it checked frequently.

Select the right bin or container

The right bin will also lead you to the right lively nature of dynamic composting. If you put in your materials well but placed it in an unsuitable container, the compost will become passive over time. Find the right fit for your compost heap and then ensure that the container itself is well-maintained, free of holes or other infestations that may affect your compost heap’s growth.

Those of you not familiar with the latest on Composting now have at least a basic understanding. But there’s more to come.

Dampen and don’t soak

Soaking is primary evil to your compost. Have the right amount of moisture, but do not drown the compost heap to the point that it won’t be of any vital impact to your soil. Make sure that you are able to draw out more humus than water from your compost heap so that you will be paid back well for your hard labor in building your compost heap.

Bacteria needs air

Aeration is the other partner of ample moisture in your compost heap. If you provide your compost heap with enough air, the bacteria that produces humus will thrive and will help exceed your expectations of compost heap performance. If you are really hell-bent on keeping your compost heap dynamic, make sure that you have enough air, but not too much that it will over-expose the pile and defeat the purpose of creating a good compost heap.

Check the temperature

There is an ideal temperature for composting. Ensure that the compost heap maintains this temperature otherwise the whole reaction for composting will not be sustained or completed. Have a thermometer handy everyday when you inspect your composting heap. If possible, find thermometers that are created for composting purposes.

Have a fixed area for composting

It is not that recommended to have a mobile composting heap. Make sure you can fix it in a single place and increase its chances of growing and thriving. When you move around your composting heap too much, less reaction takes place. It requires a certain degree of permanence to produce optimum results, so make sure that you are ready and well-adjusted to this fact as well.

The day will come when you can use something you read about here to have a beneficial impact. Then you’ll be glad you took the time to learn more about Composting.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit my latest site: Power Copy Club to claim your FREE membership!


Aug 08 2009

The Dirt Paybacks: Advantages of Composting

Category: CompostingAnders Eriksson @ 11:48 pm

Composting may literally be viewed as a dirty job. Depending on the type of composting process that you undergo, you may find yourself immersed with dirt and other external elements that other people normally wouldn’t want to get involved with.

However, the dirt has its own paybacks, and here are just some of the advantages of composting that you may want to tell your friends if you are to convince them that composting is worth their time as well as yours.

It agrees with nature.

The very first advantage of composting is that it agrees with nature. It is all-natural and you will not be able to clash with the forces of nature to be able to do it. In fact, you are actually contributing to the natural scheme of things if you are constantly taking care of your composting pit.

It helps the people involved to be more meticulous and mindful.

People who are involved with composting tend to be more meticulous and mindful because composting requires rigorous monitoring. The ratio of Carbon to Nitrogen, the temperature of the compost materials, and also the activity in the compost as it develops need to be closely monitored to ensure that it will not go passive and yield less than its maximum potential. Being able to take good care of your compost not only helps nature but it also helps you become more mindful and meticulous.

It allows you to make best use of organic materials which would have otherwise been placed as trash.

Composting lessens the garbage in your home. since what you would otherwise put in your garbage bag may now be placed in the compost pit, it will also help you in your garbage management. On a larger scale, there will be less need for dumping site spaces and less probability for landslides on mounds of garbage being added to on a frequent basis.

Once you begin to move beyond basic background information, you begin to realize that there’s more to Composting than you may have first thought.

It’s flexible: you can add or subtract materials as you go along

The flexibility of composting materials lie in the fact that most of the materials are readily available anywhere. You can add or subtract materials at any time you please and in any conceivable quantity just as long as it doesn’t interfere with the ratios you are maintaining for your compost.

There are numerous resources and support groups online and offline for this purpose.
Support groups are readily available for composting enthusiasts on a global scale. especially with the emergence of global warming issues, the need for environmental solutions are on the forefront and are highly promoted these days. The good way to expand one’s network and establish ties that last with other like-minded individuals lie in getting support groups and engaging in activities that are universal. Composting is one such activity.

For farmers, it brings in higher revenue.

Revenue can be obtained by farmers if they yield better crops from better soil. Better soil can be obtained by having a healthy compost to fertilize their land. This can actually increase their profits and keep the sources of the profits healthy and thriving for all seasons.

It costs virtually nothing.

Aside from the manual labor and the gathering of materials readily available virtually anywhere, composting costs nothing. The actual costs are inconsequential compared to the returns that composting can bring the people and Mother Nature.

The good thing is that it accelerates the positive processes beneficial for plants, animals and humans.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, still having the Free Adsense Templates available for instant download


Aug 05 2009

The Low-Down On Home Based Composting Processes

Category: CompostingAnders Eriksson @ 6:38 pm

Generally, there are two types of composting processes: residential or home-based and industrial composting processes. Each type of process has different techniques associated with it. Home-based composting is growing in popularity because it is easily implemented in homes; all it would take would be a willing mind and some manual labor on the part of the composting enthusiast.

A clear advantage of home-based composting is the minimal need for machineries and other equipment that industrial composting requires. However, it will not be able to be at par with the capacity of industrial composting systems. Here are some of the types of home-based composting processes that a potential composting expert can use in his quest.

Composting Toilet

The use of a composting toilet or pit is one of the most popular methods of small scale composting in both urban and rural residences. The composting toilet is convenient, easy to set up and quite simple to monitor and mix. The composting toilet is a bit tricky, however, since it will require you to orient your family members about it especially if your composting activities burgeon to larger proportions.

It may also be very difficult to distinguish the materials in cases where you need to monitor carbon to nitrogen ratio due to its simplicity. But it is is still widely used and accepted in most homes as a good method for small scale composting.

Open or Closed Bin Composting

The use of composting bins has been very useful for many people, especially those who are particularly drawn to compartmentalizing and organizing the composting activity. In some cases, a composting toilet or pit may not be easily cleaned; this is where the advantage of the compost bin comes in. the compost bin will ensure that the composting process will remain under your control.

Those of you not familiar with the latest on Composting now have at least a basic understanding. But there’s more to come.

Especially with closed bin composting techniques, you can more directly observe the variables affecting your compost pile, as it is not exactly exposed to external elements that can actually affect the compost greatly when accumulated over time.

German Mound

Also known as a Magic mound, the German method consists of forest elements such as wastes from wood-rich gardens, clippings from hedges, prunings, bashwood and brassica stems. These objects will then be placed in a circular trench, which is about 5 inches in width and an inch deep.

Another hole is dug at a center, an additional inch deeper than the outer circle, and this is where most of the rough materials are placed. From this, layers and layers of manure, wasted leaves and compost are added. Apparently, the results of the German mound is good for the soil in the next 4 or 5 years that it is installed in the land.

Ecuador Style of Composting

When you are involved in some composting that are comprised of tree trunk or banana stalks, then you are up for some Ecuadorian treat in composting. Embedding the whole pit with tree trunk or banana stalks, then placing the organic matter in an interspersed manner for each layer, helps segregate the compost materials more efficiently.

This will take up a lot of space, because it only gets watered after the pile gets to a height of a meter and a bit beyond that. But the good thing is that the high pile need not last forever. The people of Ecuador often wait for it to settle down, remove the top layer and aerate it and repeat the process for more humus production.

I hope that reading the above information was both enjoyable and educational for you. Your learning process should be ongoing–the more you understand about any subject, the more you will be able to share with others.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, still having the Free Adsense Templates available for instant download


Jul 29 2009

Avoiding Composting Dangers

Category: CompostingAnders Eriksson @ 5:13 am

If you are engaged in any composting activity of sorts, you might find yourself encountering certain dangers. Composting is an activity that leads one closer to nature. But then, disasters can happen even on the road paved with good intentions. There are imminent dangers However, these dangers can be avoided by a few techniques from the pros.

Read up
The best way to prepare for composting dangers is to read up. That’s right. You need to read up on concepts and techniques and all the other factors pertaining to composting. Like in learning a new language, immersing yourself with available information on composting prior to the composting activity will ensure that you are to get the best deal of the composting activity. Also, it will show you how to do things the right way and keep you from doing things that can be detrimental to your safety.

Wash your hands frequently
After composting, you need to wash your hands. This may seem like a no-brainer, but mos enthusiasts who get too absorbed with their activities forget the dangers of poisoning. This may not concern you directly, but children and siblings who are not oriented to the dangers of composting chemicals may not really be privy to washing their hands after contact. This is also a good motivation for you to secure a close lid for your composting heap.

Inspect your active compost frequently
Frequent inspection will ensure that there are no weeds or unwelcome creatures inhabiting in your compost pile. Make sure that your compost pile remains a compost pile and not a breeding ground for harmful animals that can endanger you in your backyard. The active compost is quite dynamic in nature, so you can be ensured that you will not be bored to death or forced to watch a dull pile of manure.

Those of you not familiar with the latest on Composting now have at least a basic understanding. But there’s more to come.

Orient your friends and family about your composting activities.
Getting your family and friends involved or at least amply oriented will help you be able to relay your activities to them effectively. It will also help them become aware of certain things or objects you are using in the backyard (in cases where you do your compost heaps in the backyard), and will not be inclined to hit themselves with it while taking a leisure stroll.

Keep the compost aerated
The danger to compost is when it loses air and becomes more poisonous to the soil than helpful. Make sure that even when your compost heap is in a closed bin, there is still more than enough air for it to continue circulating. The aeration process helps enhance the composting process, and then it also prevents the organic materials from turning into an amorphous poisonous blob that you would not want to get your hands at.

Familiarize yourself with the machinery (for industrial scale compost heaps)

If you are dealing with composting on a larger scale and it may require some machineries, you must really exercise caution in using the machinery. Also, make sure that you are familiar with all commands, well-versed with worst-case scenarios and troubleshooting techniques for the equipment you are using.

This is more dangerous, since you are talking of a composting heap on a larger scale. So make sure that you are familiarized, as well as the people around you who will be assigned to work with you on the industrial composting process.

The day will come when you can use something you read about here to have a beneficial impact. Then you’ll be glad you took the time to learn more about Composting.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, still having the Free Adsense Templates available for instant download



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