The art of composting is something that takes time and practice to prefect and so I’m here to point you in the right direction and offer tips and advice on how this can best be done. Making your own garden compost is a solution to many problems. Not only will this process provide you with highly fertile, fine textured compost but it also allows us to reuse and recycle our garden and household waste while saving our landfills and environment.

What to Compost
Composting material is divided into 2 types

• Green waste
• Brown waste

Green waste is generally considered high in Nitrogen and includes the following items

• Grass clippings
• Hay
• Kitchen waste, excluding meat and dairy products
• Green leaves
• Manure
• Annual weeds
• Veg and fruit waste
• Tea and coffee waste

Brown waste includes the bulkier waste and is generally considered high in carbon and includes the following

• Shredded newspaper / cereal boxes / egg cartons
• Pine needles
• Wood chip
• Drier fluff
• Brown leaves
• Saw dust
• Egg shells
• Straw
• Small twigs

What Not to Compost

• Perennial weeds
• Meat and bones
• Plastics, cans & glass
• Medicines
• Contaminated material (with pesticides / weed killer / etc)
• Diseased plant material
• Pet waste
• Glossy magazines
• Dairy products

Where to Compost
There is range of composting products available on the market and all have their own shape and design, but in general their all doing the same thing. That is; to hold and contain a sufficient volume of waste that allows for optimum decomposition rates.  A compost bin should hold at least 200 litres of waste to allow for optimum conditions. These conditions include: Heat, Moisture, Oxygen and Food (or waste material).

It is useful to know that the process of composting or decomposition is undertaken by tiny micro-organisms that slowly breakdown (eat) the waste material and convert it into fine compost and plant nutrients
To create the ideal conditions for composting, you must create the ideal conditions for these hard working micro-organisms (bacteria). The conditions that these bacteria like are: moist conditions, damp but not waterlogged. Bacteria also need a supply of oxygen and not a dense, compacted pile.

Heat is also an important factor with temperatures of 10 degrees Celsius or more being required, this means that most compost bins shut down for the winter months, unless they are large in size.  To improve the temperature of your compost pile you can cover the pile in straw or an old carpet and try to ensure that your compost area is 1m³ in size.

To achieve suitable moisture levels remove any cover and allow rainwater to wet the pile if ever it dries out. Locate your compost in a shady area, away from direct sun light and if possible, arrange your waste so that it creates a ‘bowl’ shape, allowing water to gather in its centre.

To provide the best oxygen levels turn your pile once or twice a year. When preparing your pile it is very important that you layer your waste, alternating between layers of green waste and brown waste.

How to Compost
How that you know what you can compost and the conditions required for optimum composting, the next step is to prepare your own compost. As stated it is important that you layer your compost material.

Start with a layer of brown waste, place a layer approx.  1 foot in depth and then add a layer of green waste, again 1 foot deep. Continue this process until you have filled your compost bin. Adding in layers allows for better air circulation throughout the pile which speeds up decomposition. Remember to break up brown waste into small pieces, if your adding twigs it is recommended that they are no more than 2 inches long and a half an inch in diameter.

Compost generally takes 12 months to fully brake down; at this point the compost will be dark with fine crumbly texture. Compost is ready when it no longer has its strong odour and you cannot distinguish its original ingredients.