Elements and Micro-Organisms in Composting
Submitted by: Jason Bacot
If you use compost bins or are otherwise interested in
composting, you may have wondered exactly what goes on that
turns potato peelings and grass clippings into that rich, dark
mulch that your garden loves so much. Several ingredients are
required for the magic that goes on in your average compost
tumbler.
Composting requires nitrogen, carbon, water, and oxygen to work
properly. The nitrogen, which comes from green (or otherwise
colored) vegetation matter, helps the microorganisms grow and
reproduce so they can oxidize the carbon. Carbon is used as an
energy source for microorganisms and usually comes from brown,
dry compost ingredients like crushed up dead leaves. Water keeps
things moist, but not so wet as to drown the microbes, and
oxygen oxidizes the carbon, which is the heart of the
decomposition process.
Certain ratios of these materials in your typical plastic
compost bins give the microbes all they need to work fast, which
is what causes the compost to heat up. When this happens, water
is evaporated, and oxygen can get depleted quickly, so more air
and water may have to be added to keep the process going. Adding
oxygen is a matter of stirring the compost, or simply turning
the crank on rotating compost bins, while water may need to be
manually added before stirring or rotating.
The best rate of composting occurs when the carbon and nitrogen
are present in ratios of about 30 to 1. Mixing equal volumes of
green matter like grass clippings with brown matter like dead
leaves gives you something close to the ideal carbon to nitrogen
ratio. But even if you don't get the mixture just right, it will
still compost - just more slow. If this doesn't bother you, then
it isn't a problem.
The composting process also relies on microorganisms to break
down organic matter. Some of the most common microbes that are
found in active compost include bacteria, actinomycetes (which
break down cellulose-heavy things like bark and paper), molds,
fungi, and yeast, all of which break down materials that
bacteria are unable to. Protozoa are found in compost, as are
rotifers, which keep bacteria populations under control. In
other words, it's a whole little ecosystem right inside your
composter.
You can add to this little ecosystem by introducing earthworms
to your compost. They ingest partially composted material,
continually aerate the mixture, and create drainage tunnels as
they work their way through the compost. And earthworm manure is
sort of like super-compost, concentrating organic nutrients even
more.
If your compost slows down, there may be many reasons for it.
The process almost always slows down during winter, unless
measures are taken to speed it up. Under non-winter conditions,
however, a lack of sufficient healthy microorganisms is the main
reason the composting process slows. Other common reasons for a
slowdown in the composting process are a lack of moisture, or
too much moisture.
With the modern compost bins for sale today, as long as you
steadily add a variety of kitchen scraps, toss in some crumbled
dead leaves every week or so, stir or rotate regularly, and keep
it from drying out or becoming too wet, chances are, your
compost will form right on schedule, giving you nature's best
organic fertilizer like magic, right from stuff you would have
thrown out.
About the Author: Jason Bacot - Are you looking to save some
money when it comes to your home gardening? Then I suggest you
check out our Compost Bins and Compost Tumblers for a natural
fertilizer at http://compostbins.nixtie.com.
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