The Green Garden with Composting

A truly Green Garden will use Compost and make the most of those leftover lawn clippings and leaves. With a couple of Compost Tools, you can turn what would ordinarily be termed as waste, into a rich Fertilizer for your plants.

The concept of Compost is fairly simple. You let organic matter rot down into rich soil which can then be used in the garden as Fertilizer to enrich the existing soil. However, the methods of getting that Compost can vary, depending on your situation. Larger gardens will require a larger bin, while small yards can do well with just a simple barrel composter.

Compost Tools

The most basic form of a Compost pile is simply that, a pile of leaves and grass clippings layered with dirt or cardboard. That can take a long time to wear down, however, so you will probably want to speed the process up by investing in some Compost Tools.

First up is the Compost bin. These may be as simple as a plastic barrel with a side door to put the material in or as complicated as a double or even triple bin made of wood, metal or another material. While the barrel type Compost bin can be turned for aeration, the larger bins require turning over. This can be done with a Compost fork or the pile may be aerated with a Compost screw.

Other tools include gauges that will measure pH, as well as moisture and temperature. These are not vital, but will help you monitor the status of the pile.

What to Compost

Nearly anything that is raw and organic can be composted to create that Green Garden. This includes vegetable scraps from the kitchen, coffee grounds, leaves and newspaper that has been shredded. If you use weeds, be sure to remove any seed heads or your Compost dirt will merely be a sowing medium for more weeds.

Human and animal waste should not go in the Compost pile and you will also want to avoid meats and oils or fats, which can attract animals.

Good Compost requires air and moisture. Keeping a good balance of brown (newspaper or dry leaves) and green (grass clippings and vegetable scraps) materials in the pile will help it break down faster, as well. A nice hot Compost will become Fertilizer within a few months, providing plenty of great nutrients for your Green Garden. Composting is not that complicated, but it can make a big difference in how well the plants in the garden do over time.