Composting & Plant nutrition Flashcards
Describe what compost is?
Garden compost is made up from a mixture of garden by-products such as grass, prunings, herbaceous materials, leaves and kitchen peelings.
Garden composting is the breakdown of organic matter due to the action of micro organisms, bacteria and worms.
Give 6 examples of composting methods?
- Garden compost.
- Leaf mould.
- Wormery
- Hot beds
- Comfrey tea
- Nettle tea
What equipment can you use for garden composting?
A plastic container with a lid and hatch at the bottom. (Dalek style!)
Bay style - 4 timber sides with a lid, slatted front or recycled pallet.
Garden fork for turning compost.
A sieve to grade compost.
What is the ideal site for garden compost bin?
Sheltered spot, where temperatures are higher. Less wind.
Bare soil (so micro organisms - worms can access)
Ideal size is 1 cubic metre so that hot composting is an option.
Good access for a wheelbarrow and to allow turning monthly to allow aeration and mixing and speed up process.
Describe why the 3 bay composting system works?
You can have organic matter in various stages.
Fill one, leave one, use one.
What is the ideal ratio of carbon to nitrogen for composting?
Carbon to nitrogen 30:1
What are the ‘workers’ in the compost bin?
Bacteria Filamentous bacteria Macrofauna - eg centipedes/woodlice Worms Fungi
What are the main workers in the compost bin?
Bacteria - single celled organisms either aerobic or anaerobic use nitrogen to digest carbon and then release Nitrogen from their bodies when they themselves die and break down. MAIN WORKERS.
How does hot composting work?
The container or heap is large - 1 cubic square metre.
A large amount of greens & browns added at once.
Heat heaps in the centre
Good insulation so it heats up even more up to 80 degrees C
Ideal temperature is 60-80 degrees.
Kills weed seeds.
Faster than cold composting - takes 3-6 months
Needs frequent turning.
Limitations
Need a lot of material at once.
Manual labour to turn.
Requires space to store green/brown material.
How does cold composting work?
Smaller containers seen in domestic gardens.
Small amount of materials gradually added.
May heat up temporarily but quickly cools down.
Takes longer 1 year.
Doesn’t kill weed seed.
Often too dry with a lid.
What kind of material do you need for composting?
A good mix of browns and greens.
Browns are high in carbon.
Greens are high in nitrogen.
Should be a carbon nitrogen ratio 30:1
6 ways to produce compost quickly?
- Good mix of browns and greens
- Oxygen/aeration
- Moisture
- Size of ingredients
- Warmth
- Volume
Why does the compost heap need oxygen/air?
Because it’s full of bacteria, fungi, worms and insects breaking it down, and they need oxygen.
Turning the heap regularly will aerate the heap as well as mixing the ingredients.
Why do you need moisture for good composting?
All living organisms need water. Need a balance. Add water or freshly cut grass clippings if too dry (greens). Add cardboard or straw if too wet. (browns)
Why does the size of the material matter in composting?
Microbes will be able to break down ingredients quicker if they are smaller. Shredding woody prunings will speed up the process.
How does temperature affect composting?
As is the case in all biological processes, the higher the temperature the quicker the process within a given range.
Ideal temperature is 60-80 degrees C
What should you NOT put on the compost?
Diseased plant material Meat Dairy Perennial weeds Annual weed seed heads Grass which has had herbicide applied. Woody material which has not been shredded. Large amounts of soil as it will compress the heap - so less aeration.
What are activators in composting?
Activators are compounds which speed up the composting process and are high in nitrogen.
If there is a lot of browns in the heap adding fresh farmyard manure will activate the compost heap.
Should be added in layers.
Commercial activators can be bought. eg ‘garota’
When to use garden compost?
Dig into sandy/clay soils to improve structure, water holding capacity in sandy soils, drainage in clay soils.
Use as a mulch to suppress weeds and retain moisture. Prevent surface capping.
Add to soil to fertilise plants.
Add to soil to increase microbial activity and worm population which is generally good for soil health.
How do you make leaf mould?
Collect leaves in Autumn
Fagus sylvatica ideal as rots easily.
Horse chestnut leaves should be shredded first, as woody petiole.
Container is designed to stop leaves blowing around.
A cage made from chicken wire and wooden posts.
Larger the better, as it will rot down to small amount.
Keep moist.
Takes 2-3 years to decompose to seed compost.
Or use earlier when not fully decomposed as a mulch where it will continue to rot down.
How does a wormery work?
Wormery composting uses worms in a sealed, multi layered container to turn your kitchen scraps into compost.
Takes 3 months to make.
Also produces liquid feed (worm tea) to give your plants a boost.
Add food scraps to the top. Cover with damp newspaper as worms like it dark.
Worms and newspaper layer below.
Worms will work their way up leaving castings (compost) on lower levels.
What are the benefits of a wormery?
Can be used indoors or outdoors.
Small in size so good for small space.
No weed seeds as mainly kitchen scraps.
Produces high nutrient rich compost which is a fine texture.
Produces liquid feed which can be diluted.
Limitations of a wormery?
Care needed to keep conditions right for worms. Not too wet, not too acidic.
Only small scale.
Frequent monitoring.
What is a hot bed?
A Hot Bed is where heat is generated from decomposting organic matter within a protected environment. Eg a timber cold frame.
Used to grow crops such as lettuce earlier than is possible outdoors.
It is a type of hot composting.
Uses fresh manure to produce heat.
What equipment do you need to hot bed?
4 wooden sides
Manure & damp straw
Transparent lid or light facing south
Growing medium.
How does the hot bed work?
Usually filled with mix of fresh manure and straw in early Feb.
Top layer of growing medium.
Can sow within about 4 days of filling when temperatures rise.
Principle is that the heap takes 3-4 months to cool, the vegetables can use the free heat, which together with the lengthening days give you early crops.
What is comfrey tea?
A liquid fertiliser made from decomposed or composted leaves from a comfrey plant.
What equipment do you need to make it?
Container with a lid. Gloves Shears Brick Water Comfrey leaves Bottles with lids Funnel Gas mask!!!
