LADY BUT SAYS ... COMPOSTING CAN PROVIDE MANY BENEFITS

As more and more cities ban or restrict yard waste disposal, bagging your clippings for garbage collection is no longer an option. That is where composting comes in.

An abundance of material is being published about composting, in newspapers, magazines, special bulletins, and there is a new book "Let It Rot!" the gardener's guide to composting by Stu Campbell, a publication of Storey Communications.

The Rodale Press says to choose a level area no smaller than three feet long by three feet wide for a compost pile. It should be sunny so that the heat will dry out the pile and speed the composting process.

Most composters are concerned about building their pile in a spot where it will not be a nuisance to the neighbors. When properly made a compost pile does not smell.

If you remember your junior high school science, you know that anything that was once living will eventually decompose. That means if you have the right conditions and enough time, almost any plant matter will become compost. But some things are better than others to put on your pile.

As a general rule, any waste from plants such as leaves, twigs, dead flowers, weeds, grass clippings, etc. can be included on the compost pile.

Making the best compost (we think) is the addition of peelings, trimming, stalks, and outer leaves from fruits and vegetables. Coffee grounds and egg shells are excellent. A friend, who cooked a lot at that time, kept our compost well supplied with these two ingredients for many years.

Avoid meat and fish scraps because they break down very slowly, smell badly and attract unwanted animals, such as dogs, cats, raccoons, and those things that crawl.

Do not put diseased plants on unless they are burned first and the ashes added.

The greatest addition is leaves. When we first moved here 43 years ago, with no trees on a bare lot, I begged leaves from friends to put on the compost and carried in many plastic bags. Now, we would happily share some of the fallen leaves.

Organic matter is a vital material of which most gardeners rarely have enough. Leaf compost can be a major source of organic matter for the gardener who has trees. It can be used as a source of nutrients and as mulch to improve the structure of the soil.

Various techniques are used to encourage the micro-organisms to attack the organics. These little organisms need moisture and air in order to flourish, so a compost heap should be arranged to adequately drain. It should be dished out on top, however, to trap rain rather than shed it.

For quick composting, layers of soil are often interspersed between the organic material, and often fertilizer added. Loosening or turning the compost pile aerates it and speeds the decomposition.

There are bins, barrels and tumblers for compost. Bins made of prefabricated snow fencing are popular because they are simple to make. Plastic snow fence or coated wire fence are preferred. Concrete blocks are good because they can leave one side free for digging and removing the finished product.

One suggested bin was a wire with about four inches of wood chips on top of the soil to allow air circulation around the base of the heap. The next layer consists of mixed leaves, grass clippings, uncooked fruit scraps and other plant material. The third layer is of soil over the top of the pile. This adds organisms that cause decay and helps nutrients and moisture in the bin.

On the top put a thin layer of nitrogen fertilizer or compost accelerator to provide the nitrogen needed by micro-organisms to break down the yard waste. Repeat these layers until the bin is almost full. Top off the heap with four to six inches of grass clippings.

Compost, made in this manner, should reach temperatures of 140-160 degrees within four to five days. At this time, you should notice it "settling", a good sign the compost is working properly.

One can also buy kits and pre-assembled containers designed to look good and speed the process. Catalogs and garden magazines are filled with these new devices, but the old fashioned methods work as well.

Composting is based on the principle of return, a principle by which all good organic gardeners try to live. But one does not have to a purely organic gardener to be a composter. Giving back to the land is every bit as vital as taking from it.