Home Composting 101
Dana Ecelberger
Jefferson County Conservation District Manager
February 28, 2015
Conservation District
 Shold Business Park (360) 385-4105
 Special purpose, non-regulatory government
agency
 Established in Dust Bowl era to assist farmers in
protecting valuable soil. Has evolved to include
water quality, agricultural Farm Planning, many
best management practices, cost share and habitat
restoration and protection
 Supported through grants: federal, state, county and
competitive grant process
Services
 Soil testing
 Forestry technical assistance
 Native plant assistance and Tree Sale
 Farm Planning
 Water quality monitoring and fish expertise
 Resource Library
 Cost share
 Stormwater and Low Impact Design
Dana Ecelberger
 23 years an organic farmer in Northern California
 10 acre, bio-intensive, market garden and orchard
 Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science
 Master’s in Sustainable Development/Project
Management
 Native plant fanatic and landscape designer
 Community gardener & organics consultant
The Magic of Composting
What is compost?
 Manure from herbivores, food scraps, fallen leaves, garden waste, soil,
newspaper, branches and just about any organic material
 Combined with time, water, oxygen and organisms
 To create a substance that:

Conditions the soil

Adds nutrients

Kicks off chemical reactions that make available even more nutrients

Increases water holding capacity

Helps strengthen plants so that they can survive less than ideal conditions and fight
off disease and pests…
How Nature does it…
Why compost?
 Compost is a free soil amendment and a good way to dispose
of food and yard wastes.
 Compost is cheaper and easier to apply than chemical
fertilizers.
 You don’t need to worry about burning your plants with good
compost.
 Compost does more than add nutrients.
 It conditions the soil, making it capable of holding more water
or of draining more efficiently,
 it increases biological activity which contributes to the longterm health of the soil and plants and
 it helps preserve our bank of healthy topsoil which we are
losing at a rate of 1% annually.
All roads lead to compost
The Recipe
 3:1: 3 Carbon to 1 Nitrogen.
This is where the energy comes from. High carbon materials tend to
be brown and dry like leaves, straw, shredded newspaper and
branches.
 1:3: 1 Nitrogen to 3 Carbon.
This is where the organisms come from that “cook” the carbon. High
nitrogen materials tend to be green or colorful, like food waste, grass
clippings and plant trimmings.
 Oxygen: This aids the decomposition process. Turning the pile
helps to keep it aerated.
 Water: The pile should have as much water as a wrung out
sponge. The water keeps the biological activity alive and well.
How to build a compost
pile
1. Clear a piece of ground the size you want your pile to be, or the size of your
compost bin . 3 feet wide by 3 feet across by 3 feet wide is a good start. Over 8
feet tends to be too big.
2. Start your pile with some pliable branches or shredded clean cardboard to get air
circulation from bottom.
3. Alternate layers of “brown” and “green”. Remember 3 browns to 1 green so if
you have 3 inches of leaves, use only 1 inch of grass clippings.
4. Add some llama, goat, rabbit, sheep, gerbil or chicken manure to help heat the
pile. Some native dirt is a good way to get mycorrhizae into the pile.
5. Lightly water each layer, if needed.
6. Keep building until your reach your desired height. Cover with a layer of
browns.
7. For fastest decomposition, turn pile every 3-4 weeks.
Mycorrhizae
Mycorrhizae are fungal “roots” that exist with vascular plants in a symbiotic,
generally mutualistic relationship where the mycorrhizae make plant roots
essentially longer and therefore able to access more water and nutrients than they
would otherwise be able to do and the plant provides sugars to the fungus.
Cross section of a home
compost pile
What can go into my pile?
Do’s
Browns to Compost:
 Fallen leaves (B)
 Finely chopped, woody
prunings (B)
 Pine needles (B)
 Untreated wood sawdust (B)
 Shredded newspaper &
non glossy cardboard with
tape removed (B)
Greens to Compost:
 Breads and grains (G)
 Tea bags & coffee grounds(G)
 Egg shells (in moderation)(G)
 Lawn clippings (G)
 Young weeds WITHOUT
flowers or seed heads (G)
 Vegetable & fruit scraps (G)
 Manure from non-meat
eating animals (G)
Don’ts
Don’t compost
 Meat, fish & bones
 Rhizominous plant material
 Dairy products
 BBQ or coal ashes
 Greasy foods
 Plastics or other non-organic
 Plywood or treated
sawdust
materials and compounds,
including tape and glue
 Diseased plants
 Weeds with flowers or seedheads
 Dog, Cat, or bird feces
 Avocado & egg shells take a long
 Poison oak or ivy
time to decompose so use
sparingly
Maintaining and nurturing your
pile
 Keeping the ratios of carbon to nitrogen , air and water at an
optimal level is the key to making good compost. Remember 3
Carbon to 1 Nitrogen, damp as a wrung out sponge and
enough air flow to keep life respiring.
 Turning your pile every 2-6 weeks will speed up the
composting process. Having 2-3 piles in process is a good way
to keep them turned regularly. Just turn the 1st one into the 2nd
one and so on. Do this twice and you are probably ready to
roll with beautiful compost.
 Heat is an indication of biological activity. Having adequate
air circulation will assist in creating adequate heat to properly
“cook” your compost, as will adding some herbivore manure.
Goat, sheep and llama manures are some of the least weedy.
Horse and cow manure can be full of weeds. Be aware of
animals which have been wormed and given antibiotics.
3 Pile system
Compost Pile Vitals
 Take the temperature of your pile to test if it is ready or not. You
can do this with a compost thermometer or you can just plunge
your hand in up to your elbow. When cooking, it should get hot
enough to steam. When done it is cool to the touch.

A cold pile may take up to 6 months to turn into usable compost. A
hot pile can be done in as little as 6 weeks, if turned regularly.
 If it smells bad it is not getting enough oxygen and/or is too wet.
Add more browns. Keep it covered in the rainy season.
 If you are getting ANY kind of animal activity (rodents, raccoons,
etc) in your pile then freeze food wastes for a week before adding
to the pile.
 Break woody debris into smaller pieces to speed decomposition.
 Layer grass clippings sparingly. Big clumps of grass will break
down slowly and will begin to smell rotten.
How do I know it is
“done”?
 Finished compost should look and smell like rich, dark
soil.
 The baggie test: Place some of your compost in a ziploc
bag in a cool, dark place for a few days. It should smell
good when you open the bag. If it smells rotten or strong
then your compost needs to keep working for a while
yet.
 Large bits of decomposed food (especially avocado
shells), or woody debris can be sifted out as long as the
majority of the compost is completely decomposed.
These bits can be added to a newer pile.
Vermiculture/Worm Bins
What to expect…
Vermiculture is a great way
to do urban, or small scale composting.
Although worm bins
are “easy”, there are a
few things to keep in
mind to have a
successful experience.
 The worms used in worm bins are
“Red Wrigglers”. These are not the
same species that we commonly find
in garden soils.
 Worm bins should not be allowed to
freeze, dry out, overheat or become
water logged.
 Raccoons are mad for worms so
keep your worm bin coon free with
a secure lid.
 Keep the bin filled to the top to
discourage fly larvae.
How to build a worm bin

Shred newspaper into 2 inch
strips. (Use black and white, not
color or glossy)

Make a deep “nest” of newspaper
that comes up to the top of your
container.

Add a little garden soil.

Lightly water with a sprinkler
type attachment until the paper is
evenly moistened. It should be
damp but not water logged.

Add your worms.

Worms like to eat:






Coffee and tea grounds
Bananas and other “sweet” fruits
Vegetable scraps.
Avocado (they will scrape the
insides of the shells but not eat the
shells themselves…or at least not
quickly.
The inside of egg shells but the
shells break down very slowly so
add sparingly.
They don’t eat/like





Grease or fats
Dairy
Meats
Citrus or spicy foods
Plastic
Compost tea
A great way to use your compost or worm compost is to make compost tea.
This can be applied to houseplants, garden plants and even your kids if they
aren’t growing fast enough! Well, not really but you get the idea…
Compost tea Recipe:
1.
1.5 pounds compost
2.
1 ounce liquid kelp
3.
1 ounce soluble unsulphered black strap molasses
4.
2 ounces cane sugar
5.
1 tablespoon mycorrhizae
Put the compost in a cheesecloth bag or burlap bag and then with other ingredients
all together in a 32 gallon trash can and fill with water. Cover with a lid and place in
a warm, not hot, location. Stir several times a day until it starts to bubble slightly.
Scoop out with a watering can or pump out with a sump pump, if applying to a
large area.
Questions?
Thank you!
 See our website www.jeffersoncd.org for :
 More resources on composting
 Resources on pruning, native plants, organic farming, and much
more
 To sign up for our digital newsletter and notification of classes,
workshops, volunteer opportunities and special events
 Call or email us for information on:
 Soil testing ($25 a sample with recommendations)
 Farm planning
 Cost share programs
 Our annual Tree Sale
 (360) 385-4105 or info@jeffersoncd.org