Source(s): Bobbi Sedam, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (Master Composter – Dekalb County)
Easy, But Slow Compost
Pile leaves, grass and cut up branches in an out-of-the-way place in your yard. Wait a year and then dig underneath the pile for the finished humus the worms have made for you.
Quick Compost
- Make a compost pile or bin about 3 feet wide and 3 feet high.
- Chop particles as small as possible.
- Mix “green” (like grass) and “brown” (like leaves) material.
- Keep the pile moist, like a wrung-out sponge.
- Turn the pile with a pitchfork at least once a month.
Compost will be ready to screen and use in your yard in 6 months.
You can compost
- Vegetable and fruit scraps (bury these in your pile)
- Wetted-down paper napkins, paper towels, paper board
- Plant material
- Animal manure (except dog or cat manure)
Avoid Composting
- Dog or cat manure (can carry disease transmittable to humans)
- Meat, milk, bones, cheese, fish, bread or oily kitchen wastes (can attract undesirable varmints)
- Grass or plant material treated with herbicide
- Invasive plants(like ivy) or weeds unless thoroughly sun-dried
Compost is produced with oxygen from the air and has a wonderful earthy smell. It rarely happens that a pile gets a bad odor. If it does, turn it and add some dry material. That will immediately solve the problem.
Resource(s): Composting and Mulching
Reviewer(s):
- James R. Barbe, Program Specialist II – Glynn County. The University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
- Lee Ann Powell, CEA – Chatham County. The University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
- Jenny Robbins, CEA – Clinch County. The University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
Center Publication Number: 24