Hey everyone! Welcome back to the homestead. Today, I’m taking you along as I dive into the world of composting. 🌱🔄
Composting is a crucial part of our homesteading life, helping us recycle kitchen scraps and yard waste into valuable soil nutrients for our garden.
We start by adding food scraps, such as vegetable peels, fruit waste, coffee grounds, and eggshells, to our compost. These are considered green materials and provide nitrogen. To balance this, we add brown materials, which include items like dried leaves, straw, cardboard, and paper. Brown materials provide carbon, which is essential for creating a balanced compost mix. We use a 50/50 ratio of green to brown materials in our open compost bin to ensure optimal decomposition.
Next, I demonstrate how we use our standing, spinning compost tumblers to speed up the decomposition process. Compost tumblers are fantastic because they allow you to easily aerate the compost, which is necessary for the microbes that break down the organic matter. After adding the green and brown materials, I water the compost to keep it moist. Moisture is crucial as it helps break down the materials. I then give the tumbler a good spin to mix everything together, ensuring that the compost is well-aerated and decomposes more quickly and efficiently.
I also share some tips on what makes good brown material. Brown materials are typically dry and include items like dead leaves, straw, wood chips, cardboard, and shredded paper. These materials provide the carbon needed to balance the nitrogen from green materials, which helps to reduce odors and speed up the composting process.
Additionally, I discuss how some people manage their compost by moving it through multiple stalls as it decomposes. This method, known as the three-bin system, allows for continuous composting. Fresh materials are added to the first bin, and as they decompose, they are moved to the second and third bins. This process ensures that you always have compost in various stages of decomposition, providing a continuous supply of rich compost for your garden beds.
Whether you're new to composting or looking to improve your techniques, this video offers practical advice and insights to help you get started. Composting is not only great for the garden but also an excellent way to reduce waste and live more sustainably.
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