Starting composting basics

It is useful to know the composting basics that strongly affect how well you compost. In particular, how these basics impact on different compost systems.

Agents of composting

Composting accelerates a natural nutrient recycling process to benefit us. It involves a variety of compost microbes breaking down wastes in sequence. These microbes are the workhorse agents of composting, and most of them do their best work at warm-hot (20-45C) temperatures.

Compost microbes co-work with selected earthworms (e.g. red wrigglers) to recycle wastes in worm farms/trays and in-ground digesters. The microbes break down wastes to a partial state for worms to ingest, but the cool temperatures (16-26C) required by worms slow the microbes.

Bokashi microbes aren’t agents of composting. In a zero-oxygen setting, they ferment kitchen wastes by consuming some wastes to produce acids to pickle the remaining solids. You need compost microbes in aerated settings to turn pickled solids into compost.

The need for nutrition & water

Compost microbes are integral to waste recycling. They do it all in microbial composting, are required to pre-digest wastes for worms, and convert Bokashi fermented solids into useful compost.

These microbial helpers are at their best feeding on a balanced diet. So feed them waste composites that have nutritional balance and acceptable moisture.

Let us look at a simplified example of using garden and kitchen wastes to balance a composite. On their own, garden wastes tend to compost slowly, while kitchen scraps compost too quickly with odours. To compost better with balance, add either some kitchen scraps to a garden composite, or some garden waste to a kitchen composite.

It helps your composting to heed the customary sorting of compostable wastes into C and N types. Garden composites are abundant in C wastes, so you add N wastes (e.g. coffee grounds and leafy weeds) to obtain balance. The reverse - you add C wastes to balance the abundant N types in kitchen composites.

Refer to Compost Nutrition for more on sorting wastes into C and N types for optimal composting.

The amount of water in wastes varies with type. In general, garden wastes are dry (with little water in them), and kitchen scraps can be full of water. As you vary the mix of wastes in a composite, you add water to a dry mixture, add dry wastes to a soggy composite, or compost the composite as is.

Other basic needs

Compost equipment are ventilated to supply oxygen, a basic requirement. Composting slows down when oxygen runs low, and emits odours when the oxygen runs out. Oxygen-limitation occurs in systems such as tumblers, compost bins and worm farms, if you don’t help aerate by hand mixing, since these systems are ventilated poorly. In contrast, an advanced system like Bioverter self-aerates.

All compost equipment offer shelter from the rain, sun and wind. Most, however, are uninsulated. You’ll get uneven composting without thermal insulation, as the compost temperature sync to the outside air temperature. Insulated composting offers steadier thermal conditions, and is preferred.

Successful composting tips

The leading tip is to combine the right amount of C & N wastes to create a balanced composite. The mix of C & N wastes depend on your compost system. Find out how to pick the right system in Which Compost System Suits My Waste.

Cut or break your wastes into pieces less than 25mm in size. This helps them compost faster and more evenly.

Adjust the moisture if your composite is too dry or too wet. A regular moisture check is strongly recommended when composting garden composites with standard systems. However, you don’t need to worry about moisture when composting kitchen composites with Bioverter. In fact, you can use the water-laden kitchen composites to produce beneficial compost juice.

Follow closely your compost system’s operating instructions. For example, don’t compost protein wastes in open-ended bins and rotate tumblers frequently.