Compost and Mulch

Two, through aerobic or anaerobic (without air) decomposition, is the number that generally is given for the different types of compost. The breakdown of carbon- and nitrogen-rich recyclables supplies cultivators, farmers, gardeners, growers and orchardists with dark-colored, fresh-smelling, nutrient-rich compost. Compost additionaly will be grouped by one of two temperature drives -- cold or hot -- and by one of three inputs -- animal manure, vegetable debris and scraps, and vermicompost -- or by one of four uses -- lawns, perennial beds, shrubs and trees, and vegetable gardens.

The source of nutrients, structure, and texture for soil is a reason why compost is important for plants. Plants generally grow best in soil which contains minerals and trace elements, does not leach or waterlog, drains well, and has air and moisture pore spaces. As dark-colored, fresh-smelling, nutrient-rich organic matter, compost meets all of the above-mentioned requirements by serving as a soil food web-friendly amendment, fertilizer, and mulch.

Among the most helpful macroorganisms in a compost pile are ground beetles and worms. For they help break down the compostable materials, such as grass clippings and other yard wastes, and kitchen scraps. They also feed on other ground-dwelling organisms that may wander into the pile, die and decay. The consequence is the decomposition of compostable materials into dark brown, organic matter-rich compost that encourages healthy plant growth and healthy soil structure. For the breakdown adds to the amount and range of the 16-17 nutrients that are necessary to plant and soil health. Among those nutrients is nitrogen, which may be found within the soil, or within organisms, but needs the release of digestion and elimination in order to be available to plant roots.

Autumnal, spring, and summer fertilization schedules is the time to use ericaceous compost. The compost in question references the needs of plants that prefer soils more in the acidic soil pH ranges and that respond disastrously to lime treatments. It responds therefore to the requirements of such Ericaceae plant family members as azaleas, heathers, heaths, magnolias, and rhododendrons.

That is dependant on a few things. The size of your garden, how much the soil has retained nutrients vital to growing a new garden, and what compost you are going to use. Obtain a soil test kit from an agriculture garden center or retailer with a garden section. Test your soil according to directions, after the first tilling. A compost of grass trimmings/food stuff is a bit different than rotted manure. the nutrients vary. With rotted manure you can never add too much and with the other you may never have enough. This is where the size of your garden comes into play. Personally, I add roughly 500 lbs. of rotted manure and hay to a garden which measures 20 ft x 50 ft. The next season may be 200 lbs. What you would want to do is add your compost, no matter how much you have, till it in and then plant your seedlings. One thing to keep in mind is giving the plant a chance to root. Adding compost may not be necessary. Give the garden a 12" base for root growth. Recommendations vary from 9"-12" from seed packaging companies like Burpee. Keep a record of what you do, and how the plants thrive, as each year goes by. In time you will know what your needs are for your garden.

Compost produces compost, a light top soil super rich in nutrients and in humus.

The compost comes from decomposed vegetal and usually animal material.

Basically, the vegetal material provides the carbon that the decomposing bacteria need, and the animal material provides the nitrogen it also needs to build cells, although in a much smaller ratio.

Once all the organic material is fully decomposed and transformed into humus, the bacteria die and add their own dead bodies to the amount of nutrients available to the plants when the compost is finally spread on the soil.

Most plastics cannot be composted. There are newly developed plastics that do breakdown over time, but these are not common and would still not be suitable for compost.

Compost should be maintained in three separate consecutive bins. These bins should not be tight, but should be aerated properly for the process to occur. Fresh leaves and full materials should be placed into the first bin, sufficiently chipped to facilitate the breaking down process.

After this material begins to resemble soil, but still with small chips of original material, it should be moved to the second bin. The compost in the first bin will be high in temperature, when that material is no longer steaming and hot, it should be moved to the second bin.

When this material resembles pure soil, is cold to the touch, and smells like fresh Earth, it should be moved into a third bin. This third bin will be the bin which the gardener takes from to spread as a mulch around the plants which need the nutrients, covering the weeded topsoil.

well it depends on the flower like if it is a hibiscus bush it does very well......but if its like a cranberry hibiscus it does o..k but does not thrive

so as I said it depends:)

• warm
• moist
• aerated

Anything that breaks down over time can be added to the pile. Plastics, glass, rocks, metals and large bones, won't break down very well, so they should be avoided. Anything that rots can be added.

Communal gardens, community centers, and neighborhood centers are ways in which a community can use a compost heap. A compost heap may be constructed as part of a neighborhood association pooling resources. It also may serve as a role model and teaching resource in centers and schools.

Turn the compost out into a pile next to the bin to "cure". Usually the inside of the bin contents is more broken down than the outside, so as you're turning it, mix the inner and outer parts of the bin contents as you build the curing pile.

Break up any wet, slimy parts, and mix them with drier materials. If the contents are too dry, add some water at this stage. The pile should have a 50% moisture content--about as damp as a wrung-out sponge. If you squeeze a handful hard, only a drop or two of moisture should drip out.

Make sure the pile is in contact with the ground, so red compost worms and microarthropod "shredders" can enter the pile and go to work on it, breaking it down into smaller and smaller pieces. When you're done, cover the pile with a tarp or sheet of plastic, to keep rain out. Excess water creates slimy, smelly, anaerobic pockets, and leaches water-soluble nutrients out of the pile. Start adding new materials to the bin.

Allow the pile to cure for a few weeks to a few months. Longer curing produces compost with more beneficial fungi, which is particularly good for fruiting plants like tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, chiles, squash, melons, and cucumbers.

The breaking down of compostable materials into their constituent elements is what creates compost. Generally, compostable materials may be described as brown in color and carbon rich or green in color and nitrogen rich. The breakdown takes place as natural decay that's encouraged by appropriate levels of air, heat, light, and moisture. It also is encouraged by regular turning of the materials. In fact, the more often the turning, the faster the breakdown. By following proper procedures, compost thus may be created in anywhere from about a month to about a year.

Yes

Put it someplace in full sun. Not under trees (they'll leach the nutrients out of the compost). And someplace convenient, so that you'll be inclined to use it. If you put it on top of grass, it will kill the grass.

Fertilizer and compost are different items. Neither is better.
Compost is a soil amendment like peat moss, except it has much more. It normally contains many micro-nutrients that common fertilizers do not have. It also has live microbes fungi and bacteria that are needed by many plants to thrive.
Composts may have small amounts of N,P,K (Nitrogen, Potassium & Potash) fertilizers within it, but it depends on the source material of the compost.
Soil amendments change the structure of the soil so roots can grow better and clay soils may drain and sandy soils may hold moisture.
Fertilizers may be from chemical or organic source. They do not change the soil structure or the moisture holding capacity. Fertilizers simply supply the most needed nutrients for optimum plant growth.
For maximum plant growth and strength plants need both compost and fertilizer.
Returning the unused part of plants to the soil via compost maximizes the availability of the nutrients that your plants need and better simulates natural growth conditions.
"The Compost Guru"

Yes it would be good for them if you did

cellophane is a type of plastic and can not be composted

Inoculation for launching beneficial micro-organic activities and support for soil food webs describe what happens when soil is added to compost. Compost is dark-colored, fresh-smelling, nutrient-rich humus that results from the breakdown of dry and wet carbon- and nitrogen-rich materials. It will interact with air-, moisture-, nutrient-rich soil to encourage plant growth and soil food web well-being through the continued presence of beneficial amoeba, bacteria, fungi and nematodes.

Compost is good for dahlias. The flowering plant in question responds well to compost as soil amendment, fertilizer or mulch. It responds to well-drained soils, which compost promotes through its encouragement of air and water pore spaces and improvements in soil structure and texture.

Wood chips

No, compost bins do not smell if proper materials are recycled and proper procedure is followed, but yes, they will if improper or proper materials are not aerated, layered, moisturized, and turned adequately. Compost bins yield a dark-colored, fresh-smelling, nutrient-rich product with correctly aerated, heated, moisturized carbon- and nitrogen-rich materials.