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Half Hour Urban Eden Workshop Compost Creation

Half Hour Urban Eden Workshop Compost Creation. Introduction.

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Half Hour Urban Eden Workshop Compost Creation

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  1. Half Hour Urban Eden Workshop Compost Creation www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  2. Introduction This method follows the Indore method as documented by Sir Albert Howard and his contemporaries such as Lady Eve Balfour and Rudolf Steiner. In the broadest sense the carbon to nitrogen ratio should be about 24:1 or when making compost three parts carbon to one part nitrogen. www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  3. The Base Setting out the Compost Area. A compost three metres long by two metres wide by one and a half metres high will yield enough compost to cover one hundred square metres of garden. www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  4. Air and Water Air and water are important ingredients in your compost. Ensure you have airflow through the bottom of the compost. Rolled up old wire, bundles of sticks, flax and cabbage tree leaves serve this purpose well. Water base generously before your first layer. www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  5. First Layer Spread hay to define the area of the compost. Place loose hay about 15cm deep then sprinkle with water. Keep edges tidy and square while building the compost heap. www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  6. Soil and Manures Cover hay with fresh mulch or green waste such as fresh crop and garden residues. Finally coat with 2 cm of soil mixed with fish fertilizer or animal manure if available. It’s important to mix the soil with the manure. At this stage you could also add any untanalised wood ash. www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  7. Layering Cover with another layer of hay and water. www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  8. Kelp Try and retrieve kelp from rocky shores rather than sand, as sand carries a lot of salt. Alternatively soak the kelp in fresh water. While some salt in the soil is beneficial, too much can lock nutrients out and kill micro-organisms. www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  9. Kelp 2 Layer with kelp and water again. Note how the sides are kept square and even. It is important to keep building out to the sides, otherwise the heap will “steeple” and not heat properly. www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  10. Making the Most of Waste Add a covering of accumulated garden waste, including rank weeds and grasses and then water in. www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  11. Lime Include a good dusting of lime. Here dolomite is used to help boost magnesium. It’s good to add lime in conjunction with other nutrients, “lime without manure makes the farm and the farmer poor”. www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  12. Layer After Layer Keep building the heap with successive layers of carbon and nitrogen based materials. Water each layer to the consistency of a damp sponge (do not saturate). www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  13. Rock Phosphate If rock phosphate is added to compost it will be effective in the soil within 6 months of application, as opposed to 4 years if applied to soil directly. For organic growers, try to ensure the phosphate comes from a low cadmium residue source. Suppliers of rock phosphate will tell you residue levels. www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  14. Creating Airflow Create air holes in the side of the heap using an iron bar or stout stick, five per side to take biodynamic compost preparations. Make sure the holes are open right down to the air tunnel at the base. www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  15. Biodynamic preparations Fold portions of preparation into a broad leaf such as dock or comfrey. Insert into the holes and push right down with a stick. www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  16. Job done Cover the heap and leave to heat and mulch down for up to one year before breaking open. www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

  17. End product Good compost will be dark, friable and sweet smelling. You should not be able to discern specific plants. The outer skin of weeds growth and any undecomposed material can be taken off and used to start another compost. www.dirtdoctor.co.nz Bring Life to Your Soil

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