Cameron County Master GardenerGardening practices in the Lower Rio Grande Valley

Composting

How To Compost

Downloadable and Printable  Compost Brochure

Why Compost?

IT’S GREAT FOR YOUR PLANTS!

Compost amends the soil and provides plants with nutrients.

IT’S GREAT FOR THE ENVIRONMENT!

It’s recycling like nature does. Composting decreases the amount of solid waste going into the landfills.

IT’S GREAT FOR YOUR POCKETBOOK!

You’ll save money on fertilizer & soil amendments.

BASIC COMPOST RECIPE

Ingredients:

•Brown Stuff (Carbon)

•Green Stuff Nitrogen)

•Air

•Water

Directions:

Put mixed yard trimmings in a bin or pile. Add water to lightly moisten. Mix in food scraps and other materials as generated.

Cook:

9-12 months (for faster compost, you can turn your pile every couple of weeks) Serve: After the allotted time, most of the material at the bottom of the pile will be dark, rich sweet smelling soil. Serve this rich soil to your yard and garden.

WHAT CAN I COMPOST?

Most yard and household waste can be composted. Some will add nitrogen to the pile (that’s the green stuff) and some that will add carbon to your pile (that’s the brown stuff)

GREEN STUFF

  • Fruit & vegetable peelings or scraps
  • Grass clippings
  • Coffee grounds (the filters, too)
  • Tea bags
  • Plant trimmings
  • Flower bouquets
  • Feathers
  • Spoiled juice
  • Cornstarch
  • Organic packing material
  • Pumpkin shells
  • Fresh leaves
  • Sod

BROWN STUFF

  • Fall leaves
  • Small twigs
  • Shredded paper
  • Shredded cardboard
  • Straw or hay
  • Sawdust and wood shavings
  • Corncobs and shucks
  • Dried flowers
  • Nutshells
  • Pine needles
  • Shredded junk mail
  • Shredded newspapers
  • Stale Flour
  • Napkins and paper towels
  • Dryer lint
  • Cardboard rolls
  • Dirt from your dustpan

ARE THERE THINGS I SHOULD LEAVE OUT OF MY COMPOST PILE?

  • Meat
  • Bones
  • Fish
  • Dairy products
  • Grease & oil
  • Pet droppings
  • Weeds with seeds
  • Grass Runners
  • Diseased or insect infected plants
  • Sawdust from treated wood
  • Ashes
  • Rose trimmings

TO BIN OR NOT TO BIN

Do I need a bin in order to compost?

You can make great compost in an open pile. In order to heat up enough to be efficient, make sure your pile is at least 3 feet wide by 3 feet tall.

One of the benefits of a container is that it helps keep pests out of the pile. When you add food waste to your compost pile, bury it. This will keep animals from being attracted to the food odor.

COMPOSTING – Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

from our newspaper Article archives

COMPOST

6/23/2009 7:40p (24kb <1 min at 28.8kbps)

Composting – It’s Not Rocket Science

Composting

Composting