Composting 101

The best way to build healthy soil is with compost and cover crops. There are many ways to make compost. At www.Tierrasonsrisagarden.com we make production compost for our market garden or small farm. The method we use is based on Sir Albert Howard's method. All composting requires the correct carbon/ nitrogen ratios. Green materials and manure = nitrogen., dry materials (hay, dry leaves, sawdust) = carbon. So about 2/3 dry to 1/3 green. I put layers of rough stalks and dray material on the bottom of approx. 6" followed by 3" of my green/manure source. Next I add a thin layer or sprinkling of either granite sand, wood ash or soil. Then the process is repeated until I run out of materials. On top is a layer of hay and cap it off with a layer of soil to hold it down. Each layer is watered down, as the bacteria and fungus require large amounts of air and water. I build the pile around a pipe inserted a few inches in the soil. It is removed a day or two later. This allows air to get into the center of the pile.