There are certain organic materials that work great as a garden mulch material. Some work better that others though, but sometimes you just have to use what is available.

As the mulch breaks down over time it will help to nourish the plants but it’s main goal is to shield the soil and to eliminate evaporation into the atmosphere.

A store bought mulch may also keep the weeds from starting. A homemade organic mulch is probable where most of the weed seeds will come from. But if they are caught early they should not be difficult to deal with.

Straw is usually used and it is a very good mulch because it is porous and it allows moisture to pass through easily. It often comes in a compressed bale and it can be broken up to cover a large area.

It is pretty cheap and it can be used as an undercoating to a more attractive and costly mulch, not to mention that worms go crazy over the stuff.

There different types of straw. Rice straw is one type and is available in the fall months. Often it is weed free and can be used at once, but it deteriorates very fast.

Another choice is wheat straw. It will last a long time and it has a good consistency. Place the wheat straw when it is dry because when it gets wet from rain water it is very hard to move.

Alfalfa is more expensive but it does offer a few extra advantages. It has more nutritional value for the soil plus it also makes an excellent feed for livestock. It is also seedless so it will not produce any unwanted plants in your garden.

The good news is you really do not have to spend any money. Most of what you need is just yard waste.

Fallen leaves can be put to excellent use in your garden bed and make a good garden mulch. They will soften the effects of heavy rain on your soil as well as protect your plants from freezing temperatures in the winter.

Before using leaves cut them up with a lawn mower, this helps to prevent clumping. If the leaves are dry enough just crush them with your hand and spread them around. Leaves are porous and they will break down very fast enriching the soil in the process. Click here for Free info on garden mulch.. Also published at Inside Secrets Of Garden Mulch.

One of the true thrills of gardening is making your own compost pile. In addition to this you will need to handle plants, soil, rocks, fertilizer and soil conditioner. A pair of gloves will not only come in extra handy it will be a necessity.

Composting is the process where materials that are destined for the landfill are used to create nutritional products for the garden and lawn. Compost is a soil-like substance that will function as a soil conditioner, a mulch and fertilizer. It will feed your garden the microorganisms that most plants need to grow healthy and strong.

It is usually best if the compost pile is located near your garden and at the same time has enough concealment to not affect the overall look of your garden. You want it to be close to the garden for convenience but you do not want visitors to see the compost pile. A corral or a fenced area would do fine.

After you set up your composting area you begin the compost pile by arranging a 3:1 ratio of brown and green items. Green ingredients contain nitrogen the brown ingredients contain carbon. Together these components make up the foundation of a compost pile. The green organic items of gardening include grass clippings while the brown items are the dry leaves and other wood products.

If you are concerned about the possibility of a bad smell that would come out of your compost pile, don’t worry about it. If you have the right combination of green and brown material you do not have to be concerned about a bad smell. Compost will have an earthy smell and it will not smell like rot.

One way to insure that your compost pile has the right combination of green and brown material is to collect a nice gathering of material before you make your pile. When you are ready to make your pile begin with a one part of green material and follow it up with three parts brown material. The next layer should be some very course material such as twigs or straw, aeration between the layers is very important. Think of a composting lasagna.

To get the process started add some already composted material. This will help to start the process and introduce microbial activities in your compost pile.

Make sure that you add enough moisture to the pile. Dampness in the compost pile will help quicken the breakdown of the organic materials . Think of a damp sponge.

If you are concerned about the environment then you will be for a compost pile. This concept is all about giving back to the land what it has given you, and starting a compost pile is the best way to do that.. This article, A Simple Way To Compost has free reprint rights.

Building a compost is not very difficult. The main thing that you will need is a lot of patience. It does not happen over night but it is worth the wait.

There are tumblers the can be used to speed up the process. Even the best tumbler takes about 3 – 4 weeks.

Just pick an unused part of the yard, maybe out of sight even. A compost pile does not produce any odor, if it is done right. It can be a bit unsightly though.

After your spot is picked out then it is time to start composting. Start with a nice layer of sticks or some kind of course material. This will supply good aeration from the bottom of the pile.

The next layer start with green matter. There is really no good reason to start with green matter you can just as easily start with brown matter but you are going to alternate to make layers.

Green matter items from your kitchen, fruit peels, vegetables, nut shells , coffee grounds and there filters. Just about any kitchen waste will qualify.

Brown matter is the items that will come from outside. Leaves, sawdust, wood chips, paper items (simple black and white print only), and sticks laying around in the yard.

After these two layers add another aeration layer. hay, sticks, straw or anything else course you can think of.

After the materials have been added put a little moisture on the pile. Not to much, think of a damp sponge.

You might add a handful of dirt every once in a while as dirt contains microbes that will help kick the compost process into gear.

Then after you build a compost pile you will just need to be patient. You will have rich compost to spread over your plants in no time.

When the items begin to begin to break down compost will be formed. But it does take a while so you will need to be patient. Your garden plants will love compost fertilizer, it’s well worth the wait. Click here for Free information on how to build a compost.. Also published at Build A Compost – Facts.

Composting is really just a way of giving back to the soil or mother nature as it were what it has given you. There is a cycle that things go through in order to grow. Making sure that the soil is healthy is the beginning of a good garden.

A compost program is good for the planet because it cuts down on the amount of waste that is sent off to the landfill. It is interesting to watch things that were once considered refuse to be recycled and put to good use.

Compost has many other functions besides just being good fertilizer for the earth. It also acts as a soil conditioner, a mulching agent Soil that has the proper amount of compost retains moisture better and that is beneficial for the plants.

Composting is a very old technique and is practiced all over the world. It is used on a large scale for large farms but ordinary gardeners can benefit from the effects also.

The every day materials that you gather together from your home and various parts of your yard will be converted into a black substance, somewhat fragrant, and crumbly. This will become the compost as time passes by.

The materials in the soil bacteria and fungi can survive and multiply as they break down. The bacteria is the key to a great compost. The bacteria will act as a converter for all the other materials so they need to be in a proper environment.

To begin a compost pile gather as much of the green and dry elements as you can from around your garden. Collect grass clippings and green weeds, they are high in sugar elements and protein and will decompose very quickly.

Leaves should be added to the greens when they are decomposing. This type of material takes a long time to break down as they have little nitrogen.

You do not need to be a pro to start a compost program. All you really need is a love of nature and a desire to learn.

This article is to help with a compost program for beginners and hopefully it will give you the knowledge you require to start composting. For more information on how to have a compost program visit Kitchen Composter Blog to learn about starting a compost program. This article, For A Nice Garden Begin A Composter Program is available for free reprint.

Gardening can be lots of fun and very rewarding. You get to plant little seeds in the ground, and if you’re lucky, watch them grow into big plants with lots of flowers, fruits, or vegetables. Your green thumb can help your plants to grow and that is a nice reward. But along with your planting comes a need to prune, thin out, and cull as well as get rid of the spent plants.

Should this all go in the garbage can to be hauled to the landfill. Well, the diseased plants and the weeds should, but everything else can go in your very own compost pile or bin. Composting is a wonderful way to take care of your garden pruning, grass clippings, tree trimmings and even kitchen scraps.

There are two very good reasons why you should be composting your scrapscomposting your scraps .

It keeps the kitchen and yard waste out of the landfills where it has a hard time breaking down with all the plastic and other non-compostable stuff around it.

Composted scraps break-down and turn into a gardener’s secret weapon for next year’s crop… “black gold”. This nutrient-rich compost is just what your tired topsoil needs and is the perfect way to keep the cycle of life going.

To start composting, you use a bin or two, rather than open piles. Bins help the piles to heat up longer and quicker, which helps the waste to decompose quicker. Closed bins also will discourage little critters from coming along and feasting on all the goodies that make up your compost.

You can find a compost bin at your local garden store or online, and while they tend to be on the expensive side, they may make you some good compost faster. You can also make your own compost bins with instructions you can fine online or using your own imagination. You can even drill some holes in a plastic garbage can for aeration and use that. When it’s time for the pile to be turned, fasten the lid down with a bungee cord, lay it on it’s side and roll it around some.

When you have your compost bin, you need to start a pile of brown, green, and soil with manure. Brown is Dead leaves, prunings, spent plants, smallish twigs. Green is Veggie scraps, coffee grounds, crushed egg shells, used tea bags from the kitchen.

Bones and other meat leftovers don’t belong in your compost pile because they attract wildlife.

If your compost pile smells, then you need to adjust the amounts of what you have in it. The rule of thumb is to add equal amounts of the green, brown and dirt. When you throw something on the pile, like peelings from your carrots and potatoes, plus the broccoli your son refused to eat, then add some dirt and brown leaves as well.

It might take some time for your compost to break down, so you might want to have 2 bins going. One will be the bin that is older and is busy turning into compost, the other is a bin for the newer stuff.

When composting your scraps is ready, you will know it. It will be a dark color, smell good, and look like the best top soil you have ever seen. Go ahead and spread it around your plants and garden and just watch it grow. Compost is a natural fertilizer that your plants will love.. This article, Composting Your Scraps Can Help The Planet is released under a creative commons attribution license.

There is a lot of technical information floating around concerning a compost program. The concept behind this article is to put in layman’s terms. Although the technical explanation can come in useful at the right time, the main concept of this article is to put it in terms that anyone can understand.

A compost pile is really just an attempt to give back to mother nature. compost is more that just a fertilizer. It is a mulch, a soil conditioner and it will provide the nutrients your plants need to grow. Compost rich soil retains water much better, this is beneficial for your plants.

There are many different composting methods, the simplest is the no turn method. As the title indicates you simply do not turn the pile. This method does take a bit longer but it is by far the easiest. Retrieve the ready compost from the bottom and add new material to the top.

Adding hay or some other course material to the compost pile creates air pockets and allows the pile to be aerated. When air is allowed in the compost pile you can expect your compost to be developed at the same rate as when the turn over method is used.

A compost pile will need materials that are rich in carbon and nitrogen such as fruits and vegetables and other tables scraps. Some of the other useful items are eggshells, grass clippings, pine needles, coffee grounds, wood ash, tea leaves, cardboard and shredded paper.

Stay away from bones as they attract a number of rodents and other pests. Oily substances do not break down well so they should be avoided also.

Discourage fruit flies from grouping together on your pile. Do this by covering the pile or add lime to the top as you add new materials to your compost pile. The lime also helps to neutralize odors although if your pile is properly built the odors should not be a problem.

This article simplifies a composting program. It is not a very complicated process, the biggest element is just time.

This quick article is for people who are starting a compost program. It’s meant to give you the facts you require to begin composting. Want to know more about having a successful compost program. Visit the Kitchen Composter Blog.. Unique version for reprint here: Composter Program Is Great For Eliminating Kitchen Scraps.

Having a compost pile in your backyard is good for you but it is also good for the environment. It is not troublesome or time consuming if done right. There is also a misconception that compost is smelly and messy , but if the pile is put together correctly this is not the case.

There are those that would buy their fertilizer and soil amendments from their local garden store. I believe it is best to stay as natural as possible, stay away from chemical fertilizers. Really there is no hassle in making a compost in your backyard from items that were destined for the trash can.

When you begin a kitchen composter program the materials that you will need and the items that you will use do not have a cost. The cost of chemical fertilizers and other items from the local gardening store are constantly on the rise. With a little bit of time and the right ingredients you can produce the best fertilizer known to man in the convenience of your own backyard.

Compost will provide more of the nutrients and minerals that your plants need. The effects of natural compost will last longer than store bought fertilizers.

Compost is also better for the soil structure. It will make the soil more resistant to erosion, improve its retention of water and in many cases it will prevent the soil from becoming compact. This factor can be important to large gardens as it will cut down on the tilling time and reduce fuel that is used to run machines.

The right composting technique can kill weeds, pests and other disease causing organisms. High temperature composting is the technique that I am referring to now. This technique involves some type of an enclosed structure, it will possibly spin to allow a small amount of aeration into the compost.

There are some studies that show that using compost can suppress the growth of diseases in crops. Crops grown over compost rich soils are resistant to pest or insect attacks. There are also observations that crops grown in a field with compost fertilizer can be stored longer.

Compost has a benefit for the environmentalist as well. Using compost along with the soil can build soil carbon which can eventually reduce carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. It will take a lot of compost to have a positive effect on the greenhouse gases.

Starting a kitchen composter program is great for your wallet but It’s also great for the environment. It’s also recognized that compost works as a antidote for soils that have a high toxic level from chemical fertilizer.. Check here for free reprint license: Kitchen Composter Program.

Composting is a way of getting in touch with nature. Stay away from the chemically enhanced fertilizers that the stores sell. You can make your own fertilizer through the process known as composting. In the process you will probable have the opportunity to get down on your knees and get your hands a dirty, and nothing is dirtier than compost.

Compost is the process where biodegradable materials are turned into a soil like substance. The material is mixed with water, air, nitrogen in the proper proportions. The result is a compost material that will serve as a soil conditioner, mulch, and fertilizers. It will feed your garden soil the microorganism that plants need to grow strong and healthy.

When starting a compost program it is best to find a spot close to your garden, but some where concealed from plain site. When you show people your beautiful garden you do not want the first thing they see to be your compost pile. They are practical but not very pretty.

After you decide on a suitable area you will start the pile with green and brown organic materials. Green materials are high in nitrogen while the brown material contain lots of carbon. These two elements form the basic foundation of a compost pile.

A properly formed compost pile will not give off any odors. When the ratio of green and brown materials are correct the pile will not emit any odors. Compost should have an earthy smell and not that of rotting material. If the latter is present then something may be in the pile that should not be there or the ratio of green and brown material is off.

Adding some finished compost to the mix helps to kick start the composting pile. This will help start the microbial activities in a compost program.

Make sure that the pile is moist. Keeping the compost pile damp will help to quicken the breakdown of the organic materials. Add moisture to the pile it should be damp like a sponge

Producing a compost pile is really a pretty simple matter. It just takes a little know how and a fair amount of time.

Recycling begins in the home, and there is no better way to begin than with your own compost pile. If you were to look in your garbage right now there are items that would be better suited in a compost pile. The planet will thank you for it.. This article, The Secrets To A Successful Compost Pile has free reprint rights.

So you have decided to start composting at home. That is an excellent choice as it will cut down on the amount of refuse you are sending to the landfill.

Also it is a fine way to save a few bucks on chemical fertilizer. The fact is that you want to stay away from chemicals as it is really not good for the soil long term.

Actually it’s really very simple, just pick a spot in your yard. Someplace out of site is usually best, Compost won’t produce a smell but it can be tough on the eyes. After you choose your spot add a layer of sticks or some other course material. That way you will get good aeration from the bottom.

You can go to the store and purchase a tumbler. There are many styles to choose from and this will speed up the process a little bit. Even the fastest tumbler there is takes about four to five weeks to produce compost. A bin on the ground will work just fine even though it does take a bit longer.

Add some of your kitchen waste this is called green matter. Old egg shells, fruit peels, coffee grounds and the filter, nut shells. Just about anything that is organic can go in the compost bin.

Next you will want to add some brown matter. This is lawn leaves, grass clippings, herbivore droppings. Such as horse, cow, chicken. Stay away from cat and dog droppings, to many chemicals.

You may start a second compost pile for yard plants. cat and dog feces will be great for this, just don’t use on plants that grow food you intend to eat. Composting at home is a fine idea that will save you a few bucks on fertilizer and growing your own produce will save you money at the grocery store.

In place of sending trash off to the landfill put it to excellent use through composting. A small bit of extra effort on your part and everybody wins. Your garden plants will adore the food source. Click here for Free information on composting at home This article, Composting At Home – Insider Secrets is released under a creative commons attribution licence.

Instead of sending refuse off to the landfill it can be used when making a compost pile or place it in a compost tumbler.

Tumblers will produce compost in about 6-8 weeks but if your not in a hurry you can just pick a spot on the ground.

Choose an out of the way spot for the compost site. Compost does not produce and odor, if it is done right. It is a bit unsightly though.

You may want to work with this ratio a bit to get what works best for you. You should try for roughly 3 parts carbon to 1 part nitrogen. Like I said this is not engraved in stone so find what works best for you.

Carbon ingredients or brown matter as it is called is dried leaves, sawdust and newspapers.

Nitrogen ingredients or green matter as it is called is kitchen scraps, herbivore manure such as chickens, horses and cows. No dog or cat droppings, to many chemicals in there droppings.

Some people collect all the materials then add them together all at once, this will produce a lot of heat in the pile and produce compost very quickly.

I as a lot of people do add material about once a week. Stack it in a layer first green then a brown layer. Next should be some kind of course material like thick cardboard, hay or straw. This will allow aeration to get in.

Do not forget to add a little moisture and you will be making a compost pile before you know it.

Plus reducing the strain on landfills it will also help the environment. Not to mention that your plants will absolutely love the new food source. It does not hurt to start adapting green ways as this is the wave of the future.

Composting and gardening is a fine way to spend time with family members. Especially the youngsters they need to understand that food comes from the ground and not the market. Click here for Free info on making a compost. Unique version for reprint here: Making A Compost – Secrets Revealed.

Gardening is a cherished past time and a productive activity, of that there is no doubt. Unfortunately, most gardeners are not working under the best of soil conditions.

Specifically, our soil is usually not in the most optimal condition. The prohibitive truth is that most soils have some underlying negative condition including nutritional deficiencies, excessive clay or sand, poor drainage quality, pH imbalance issues, and inadequate soil structure and aeration.

Fortunately, there is a fairly simple solution, only requiring a reasonable commitment on your part. It’s known as composting and it involves the gathering of organic material that you’ve “created” and then periodically working these into your soil.

Controlled Rotting And Regular Rotation

Composting is the process of controlled rotting where organic matter is gathered over time and left to decompose into an extremely beneficial soil conditioner that adds fertility and enhances soil structure.

The key to effective composting is to foster soil dwelling micro-organisms like fungi, bacteria, and also worms and insects that accumulate and then treat the debris you’ve stock piled. This activity will become readily apparent in time as your pile will begin to give off an odor and even steam as you toss it around.

By consistently turning the decomposing material, it will break down into the some of best soil additive you can have. The composting process will take anywhere from several weeks to a couple years depending on the amount provided and the attention given.

Some Tips To Help Your Compost Decompose

There are some essentials to help it along. First off, composting requires heat so the sunnier, or less cool, the spot the better. It must be accessible to water as pile moisture is another requirement of effective composting.

Another aspect is the size of the area or bin. While there is flexibility in this regard, don’t pile it much taller than five feet as the sheer weight of the material will make it difficult to toss and turn adequately. Additionally, decomposition can slow while odors can increase under these circumstances. The ideal size is about a four-by-four square foot area, two to three feet in depth.

The compost matter needs oxygen to decompose so the pile should be rotated using a shovel and rake every few days to a week. Also, maintain moisture, but not sogginess, with a regular spritzing of water. Put gravel on the bottom to facilitate drainage, if necessary. Your compost should have the consistency of a squeezed wet sponge.

Another good idea is to shred materials like leaves and small branches before adding them to your compost. The decaying organisms work better on smaller materials comprising a lot of surface area.

When To Add Your Compost To Your Garden

The general rule of thumb for applying your compost is to add four to six inches four months prior planting, two to three inches if you plant in the next two months and just one inch if you plant any sooner.

The decayed matter takes time to fully integrate into the planting bed but the more decayed the matter, the quicker the beneficial effects. Also, when doing so, make sure to avoid large chunks that can cause air pockets to form in the soil.

Use A Variety Of Materials For Your Compost

To provide the largest range of nutrients make your compost from a variety of materials but absolutely exclude diseased or pest infested plant matter, meat scraps, weed roots, and oils and fats.

Recommended items are coffee grounds, egg shells, fruit and vegetable scraps, grass clippings, shredded paper, shredded leaves and plant clippings, sawdust, and fireplace ashes.

Types Of Composting Containers

Composting bins can be store-bought or home-made. When going with the factory made offerings consider the barrel-shaped types that can be rotated by turning a crank. This turning action can vastly increase the rate of decay. If going the home made route, simple fencing materials or cinder blocks can be used to form a composting area.

Regardless of how you accomplish it, composting is likely the best continuing practice that a gardener can undertake. It boosts the soil like nothing else will, giving you a bountiful vegetable harvest and blooming flowers and herbs. Click here for FREE info on composting. This article, Composting – Foolproof Techniques is available for free reprint.

There is an alternative — composting. It’s a good idea whose time has come again. Now more than ever it makes sense to compost all of your family’s food waste, plus paper and any other organic carbon-based waste you can. By composting your household trash, you are not only reducing strain on already overtaxed landfills, but you are also providing yourself with a source of fertilizer for your garden. With your own compost on-site, you no longer have to go to the store to get fertilizer.

If you’re not a gardener, you should still make your own compost — you can give it away to acquaintances who are gardeners you can sell it or you can practice random acts of kindness by spreading it on select neighborhood parkways or secluded park corners.

Making quality compost is not complicated. You just need a place to put your compostable materials be it a separate corner of your yard that you designate as your compost heap, or one of the many commercially available compost bins. Compost heaps must be turned and aerated every couple of weeks, and you should follow manufacturer directions for working with a compost bin.

Be forewarned, different compost bins can handle different materials, and most composting systems cannot handle meat, bone or excrement. There are two big problems with composting meat 1) It takes longer to break down than most vegetable matter and 2) Meat attracts scavengers like raccoons an opossum that can spread your compost all over the neighborhood. Compost tumblers address both these issues by making it easy to frequently aerate your compost and by being more secure against roaming critters.

Another alternative appropriate for meat and other food waste, the “Green Cone” system, is secure and includes packet of composting enzyme that accelerates the composting process. The Green Cone does not, however, produce compost to be redistributed elsewhere. Instead, it breaks down the contents and lets the nutrients seep into the surrounding earth for a radius of about fifteen feet. suitable placement for a Green Cone would probably be the middle of a vegetable garden. The Green Cone is also capable of handling small amounts of animal excrement.

If you are interested in recycling larger amounts of manure, I would suggest you look up the “Humanure Handbook”. It is about composting human excrement to reduce stress on sewage treatment plants and the special challenges associated with the process. Pet waste usually goes to landfills, so following the principles in the handbook to handle pet waste would relieve even more stress on landfills.

Composting excrement is not for everyone, but it is worth considering.

How does composting help save the world? Remember that the less rubbish needs to be taken away in garbage trucks, the less gasoline they use and the less material is sent to the landfill. This is all good.

What can you compost? Vegetable and fruit peels, apple cores, small rodent and rabbit bedding, tea bags, coffee grounds, shredded paper newspaper and cardboard, and egg shells all work. To make good compost, you generally need a mix of 3:1 paper/cardboard to vegetable waste.

A lot of localities now sell compost bins and some will even subsidize the cost for homeowners — people need only ask at their local township or village offices.

If your municipality does not offer compost bins, there are many how-to sites on the Internet with details on how to build your own compost bin. All you typically need is some wood, chicken wire, and a four by four foot carpet remnant to cover your compost pile and retain heat.

And if building your own compost bin is too much work, you can buy one, whether standalone or tumbler, from your local garden shop or on the Internet.

Place your trash in, flip as necessary to aerate, and in 6 to 18 months waste that was destined for the landfill will have been changed into one of the most valuable resources for rejuvenating the earth: rich black compost. Composting is the answer to a lot of problems Also published at Composting – Secrets Revealed.