Compost

Compost: a pile of decomposing organic matter made up of plants, kitchen scraps, weeds, and even manure. It might sound gross, but if you have the right ingredients, it won't smell and will naturally turn itself into a rich fertilizer for your garden

In the natural world, plant and animal remains breakdown and become a part of the soil—a.k.a. the circle of life. Composting takes advantage of this process, by combining large quantities of organic waste and allowing them to biodegrade together. This creates a nutrient-rich soil-like product that can be used as a fertilizer in your garden. Because of the lake, Red Lake has sandy soil. This means that the soil in your garden will dry out very quickly. Adding compost will allow your garden to hold more moisture while adding nutrients back into the soil. Not only does compost improve the quality of your garden soil, but you can also keep food waste out of the landfill. Reduce waste, improve your soil, and save money...start composting!

Necessary Components of compost

• Browns/carbon material (dead leaves, twigs, wood chips, paper products, etc.)

• Greens/nitrogen material (grass clippings, eggshells, vegetable waste, coffee grounds, etc.)

• Water: moisture is essential for microorganisms to live

• Oxygen: essential for microbial life (a compost pile must be stirred or aeriated regularly

• Temperature: (110-160°F) the mixture warms up when the microbes are breaking down the material

Do Not Compost: Meat, cooked veggies, oil, dyed paper, or cat/dog poop

How to make Compost at Home

• Use a sealable tub or a trash can with a bungee cord to hold the lid on

• Drill 1/4 inch holes on the bottom and sides of the bin to allow air flow

• Start your compost strong with a mixture of soil, wood chips, leaves, grass clippings, and a gallon of vegetable waste/kitchen scraps

• Each time you add kitchen scraps to the bin, add at least 10 times that amount in brown material, add water, then stir the compost mixture.

Using Compost in Your Garden

• It can take anywhere from one to six months to create complete compost.

• When the composting process is complete, the product will smell like earth/dirt, it will have cooled to the same temperature as the air, and the product will look similar to soil, with some larger residual chunks or wood chips.

• Apply 2-4 inches of compost to the top of your garden about two months before planting.

• There is no need to till compost into the soil.

• If compost is on top of the garden, seeds can be planted directly into the compost--they will love it!

• Additional compost can be added as needed, or at the beginning and end of the growing season.

Composting Tips:

• Using a black bin and placing it in a sunny location will keep the mixture warm, producing compost in a shorter amount of time.

• Purchase a camping bin that is "racoon proof" to prevent black bears from getting into the compost. One example is the Action Packer. Just drill holes in the bin and add a lock to keep pests out. Click the link to purchase one.

• Always add more brown material than green material (the ideal ratio is 20:1)

• Do not compost oil, dairy, or meat products. These will rot and attract the wrong type of microorganisms and other pests.

• Purchasing a microorganism inoculation product can be helpful in getting microbial activity started and thus speeding up the composting process. One option is the Bokashi mix which can be purchased by clicking the this link.

Please contact us at 4-Directions Development if you have any questions.