COUNTRY GARDEN

COMPOST MAGIC

Compost is that almost magical stuff that organic gardeners swear by.It can change a struggling plant into a thing of beauty within a few days.As most of you know,soil isnt just something to hold up the plant.Good soil teems with earthworms and microscopic life.If you feed this tiny livestock you will be rewarded with healthy plants that are better able to cope with insects and disease. There are almost as many ways to make compost as there are gardeners.I will discuss two of those ways.First will be the "right" way.This is both labor and material intensive.Then there is the way we do it at Country Garden.Less labor but more time is involved in our method.

A properly constructed compost pile is made up of layers of organic material.There is usually a layer of high carbon material such as dried leaves,straw etc.This is followed by a layer of high nitrogen material such as grass clippings or animal manure.The next layer is a thin coating of regular garden soil for the bacteria it contains.These layers are then repeated until you have a pile at least four feet square and three feet tall.Water the pile to bring it to a"damp sponge"consistency. This is the minimum size to allow the pile to heat properly.Turn this pile every couple of weeks to mix the ingredients and incorporate air into the pile.Add water as necessary to keep the pile slightly moist.This method will give you finished compost in a couple of months.The heat generated by the pile will kill any harmful diseases and weed seed.

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Now for our "lazy"way.We make a box with open top and bottom.The sides are eight feet by three feet pieces of metal roofing.These are nailed to post set at each corner.Into this box goes all plant and animal waste generated at our home and nursery.The exceptions are treated wood scraps,dog and cat manure and fats from kitchen waste. Fat slows the microscopic action and attracts ants,rodents and other varmints.Dog and cat manure can transmit,to humans,such nasties as tapeworms.Don't use it.Put vine and tree prunings in the pile.They help to keep the pile loose which allows air to reach the center.Large wood scraps and tree prunings are burned and the ashes added to the pile.Water as necessary to make sure the pile has at least one half inch of water per week.We accumulate this material throughout the year and in late fall we simply cap the top with a thick layer of hay.This helps to hold heat and moisture in the pile and keeps weeds from sprouting.Sometime in February we uncap the pile and apply the compost to our fruit trees and vegetable garden.Notice in the picture,there are a few large pieces that did not completely compost.Add them to the next pile.Great stuff with minimum labor input.Feed the microbes and let them feed the plants.Below is a comparison of two plants,the same age,grown from cuttings from the same tree.The Brugmansia on the right is planted in pure compost while the one on the left has been fed commercial 10-10-10.Both are nice,healthy plants but the plant,in compost,has a much larger trunk and larger,darker leaves.It presents a much nicer overall appearance.

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