Building a Compost: Guest Post

This is a guest post from Victoria. About the Author: Vicoria holds an interest in green-friendly living and organic foods. Victoria is also a writer for Ratelines.com, where you can find great cd rates.

Composting is the best way to convert kitchen, yard and garden waste into rich soil that will can be used to grow more tasty vegetables in the garden or revive the yard. The best compost pile measures three feet in length, width and height for the best decomposing process of the leafy material within it. The benefits of good compost is a soil that results in better tasting garden produce and saves money as well as reduces the carbon footprint that is produced.

The materials used to make compost piles begin with some type of base and sides to contain the decaying plant materials. These can be made from simple scraps of wood, chicken wire, old wooden pallets or cement building blocks for the base. The most important part of constructing the compost pile is to choose a spot that will be far enough away from the house that any odor will not drive out the inhabitants, however if a compost pile is built properly, there should be little odor at all.

After the site is selected, the construction begins. The dimensions for a single compost pile is three feet wide by three feet long and ideally three feet high with one end open to add more plant material. The result should look like an open ended box without a top and the sides should have gaps for air to flow through. After the sides and back are in place, then dig down at least a shovel depth and save the dirt to cover the first two layers of plant material. It is best to add a layer of brown plant material such as dead leaves or stalks. This layer should be several inches thick before the next layer of green plant material such as grass clippings or left over vegetables, eggshells, coffee grounds or even thinly shredded newspaper. Wet the pile with water, then add a few inches of dirt and begin the layers again. As the compost pile rises and is heated by the sun, the inside temperature rises, causing the plant material to decompose faster, creating more soil that will enrich the yard, garden or flowerbeds.

About the Author: Vicoria holds an interest in green-friendly living and organic foods. Victoria is also a writer for Ratelines.com, where you can find great cd rates.

Author: Vicotoria
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