It's
time to start thinking about spring gardening, and what better way to
have a beautiful crop of vegetables or flowers than to feed them with
homegrown compost. We started ours a couple of years ago, and it's been
a great success. You'll also be saving energy in the process. Most
non-organic fertilizers contain nitrogen. That's a byproduct of
ammonia. And that comes from natural gas! The more we compost, the more
gas we save!
It's better to start it in the fall, when the leaves are falling, but it's still a good time to prepare one. First, select a sunny spot along the periphery of your property away from your deck or patio if you have one. We cleared a flat spot about 6 feet square'. Gather any dead leaves you see around your property. (I'm looking out my side window and see the beginnings of a great pile along my neighbor's driveway.) Sprinkle the dry leaves with water to aid decomposition.
Keep a plastic container next to your sink and add any leftover vegetable or fruit scraps as well as eggshells and even coffee grinds. (Don't add meat or fish!) Add the scraps to your leaf pile every couple of days. Don't forget to rake the pile once in a while to mix things up. The best mulch (the most decomposed materials) ends up looking like fine, black soil. You'll find it settled at the bottom of your pile. To read more about composting try the Web site “How to Build A Compost Heap.”
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