Composting and Grasscycling Made Easy

Composting and Grasscycling Made Easy

Welcome

The Purpose of Composting and Grasscycling

At least 20-50% of the solid waste sent to landfills is made of tree leaves, grass clippings, other landscape debris and kitchen wastes. Bagging these materials for garbage collection is a costly practice. It requires you and your community to spend taxes and service fees needlessly. It takes up limited landfill space, and it robs the environment of a natural source of nutrients for plant growth.

Composting is a mixture of partially decomposed plant material and other organic wastes that is used in the garden to amend soil and fertilize plants.

Compost Recipe Ingredients

Air
Water
Brown stuff
Green stuff

Brown stuff is dead, dried plant parts like leaves and pine needles. Brown stuff is high in the element carbon. Green stuff is fresh, living parts like grass clippings, kitchen vegetable scraps, weeds and other plants. Green stuff is high in the element nitrogen. The higher the ratio, the less material is needed in the mix.

Carbon Sources (Brown)

Dried leaves 60:1

Pine needles 90:1

Newspaper 125:1

Sawdust 625:1

Nitrogen Sources (Green)

Food Scraps 15:1

Grass clippings 18:1

Coffee grounds 20:1

Horse manure 25:1

Food Scraps include kitchen wastes such as any vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, and even eggshells.

Some materials attract insects and rodents, others introduce contamination to the compost which could disease other plants when spreading the finished product. Be careful not to introduce these materials into the compost.

Don't Use

Plants with severe disease or insect infestations
Dog and cat manure
Meat or fish leftovers
Bones
Butter
Cheese
Fats or lard

Mayonnaise
Milk
Peanut butter
Oils
Salad dressing
Grease
Sour cream
Whole eggs

There are many different kinds of composting bins that may be used depending on personal preference. Below are just a few you may consider.

Symptoms	Problem	Solution
The compost has a bad odor.	Not enough air.	Turn it. Add dry material if the pile is too wet.
The center of the pile is dry.	Not enough water.	Moisten and turn the pile.
The compost is damp and warm only in the middle.	Too small.	Collect more material and mix the old ingredients into a new pile. Turn the pile.
The heap is damp and sweet-smelling, but still will not heat up.	Lack of nitrogen.	Mix in a nitrogen source like fresh grass clippings, manure, composted poultry manure, bloodmeal, or urea fertilizer.

Symptoms

Problem

Solution

The compost has a bad odor.

Not enough air.

Turn it. Add dry material if the pile is too wet.

The center of the pile is dry.

Not enough water.

Moisten and turn the pile.

The compost is damp and warm only in the middle.

Too small.

Collect more material and mix the old ingredients into a new pile. Turn the pile.

The heap is damp and sweet-smelling, but still will not heat up.

Lack of nitrogen.

Mix in a nitrogen source like fresh grass clippings, manure, composted poultry manure, bloodmeal, or urea fertilizer.

	Woven Wire Bin One easy to make, economical container requires only a length of woven wire fencing. Multiply the diameter you want for the compost heap by 3.2 for the length of fencing to purchase. Fasten the ends with wire or three or four small chain snaps (available at any hardware store) to make a circle.

	Block Bin Compost bins can be made with cement blocks or rocks. Just lay the blocks without mortar; leave spaces between each block to permit aeration. Pile them up to form three sides of a square container or a three-bin unit. This bin is sturdy, durable, and easily accessible. Keep the bin at least 3 inches away from the walls of your house to prevent deterioration of siding.

	Wooden Pallet Bin Covered bins allow convenient protection from pests and heavy rains. Construct bins with removable fronts or sides so that materials can be easily turned. Old wooden pallets can be used for construction. Wire mesh can be substituted for wooden sides to increase air flow.

	Turning Bins This is a series of three or more bins that allows you to make compost in a short time by turning the materials on a regular schedule. Turning bins are most appropriate for gardeners with a large volume of yard trimmings and the desire to make a high-quality compost. You can also turn your compost with only one bin by removing the bin from around the heap, setting up the empty bin nearby, and forking the material into the now empty bin.
	Rotating drum bins, which turn using a hand crank, are also commercially available. If your own kitchen, yard, and garden do not generate enough material to fill your bin, ask your neighbors for their clippings and leaves, or start a neighborhood composting project.

	Simple heaps Yard trimmings can easily be composted in open heaps. Bins are not required. When food wastes are added, however, the compost may have to be confined in bins that keep out animals such as raccoons, skunks, etc. Food wastes and manures can easily cause fly problems unless great care is taken to cover all such materials with a foot-thick layer of cured compost, wood, or other yard trimmings. Always bury food scraps deep in the compost pile.

	Other options Prefabricated plastic compost bins can also be purchased at hardware stores and gardening stores, and from catalogs.

Compost Bins That Can Be Used at Home

Woven Wire Bin

Block Bin

Wooden Pallet Bin

Turning Bins

Simple heaps

Other options