A good thing to help you get started is composted steer manure which you can buy from a gardening center. The idea is to layer brown materials with green materials. Brown materials are items such as dry leaves, straw, hay, shredded paper, newspaper, stale cereal grains, crackers, even cardboard boxes. Green materials are fresh greens, grass clippings, vegetable scraps and manure.
Ideally the compost pile should be about 4 feet x 4 feet, but to do that you have to have enough materials on hand from the start which I never do. I just start with a brown layer, throw on some manure, some soil for the microorganisms, then add my green layers as I take my vegetable scraps down to the pile every day. When there are enough scraps on top, then I add some more brown materials. Remember to add water as you go and then turn as frequently as is practical for you. The more you turn and the hotter the weather, the faster will be your composting... as long as their is enough moisture.
The following book is the best book I have ever read on how to do all types of composting: The complete compost gardening guide : banner batches, grow heaps, comforter compost, and other amazing techniques for saving time and money, and producing the most flavorful, nutritious vegetables ever. The author is: Barbara Pleasant. I was able to check my book out from the library for free. Since you specifically asked about how to start a compost bed, this may give you exactly the information you are seeking.
Any plant materials can go into your compost (leaves, cut grass, deadheaded plants, tiny limbs; any vegetable scraps, fruit scraps and paper scraps from your kitchen. Just NO fats or meats of any kind. I even rescue worms from the rain (lying on the pavement) and put them into the pile. A lot just naturally show up. Even shredded newspaper is very good. It doesn't take very long for my pile to actually compost. Enjoy!
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Request: Starting a Compost Pile (10/13/2009)
Can anyone tell us what do you use to start a compost bed? We are trying to start a compost but are not sure what to put in it. Thanks in advance for all your help.
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Request: Starting a Compost Pile
Archived on 10/13/2009
Can anyone tell us what do you use to start a compost bed? We are trying to start a compost but are not sure what to put in it. Thanks in advance for all your help.
Use any organic product. That means veggies, leaves, grass, orange peels, banana skins, etc. That also means no fats, oils, grease, meat products. The pile should also be somewhat damp and turned periodically. (04/02/2009)
I started my compost pile with cheap potting soil. I add vegetable scraps, grass clippings, dead leaves, used coffee grounds, used tea bags, fruit peelings, and egg shells. Do not use fish or meat in the compost pile. I also bought a compost accelerator from Lowe's. It is a granule substance. Water the pile and turn it on a regular basis. I have mine in a plastic tub. Make holes in whatever you use so the water can drain out and the compost can get air.
I cold compost, which means that I just keep adding things, I do not worry what they are, and I do not turn my pile. It takes longer for the stuff to break down, but is less work. I move the pile each spring, taking and using the compost from the bottom and starting a new pile with what hasn't finished decomposing. Just google it, and you will find out all the ins and outs of composting. (04/05/2009)
All of the above, plus grass clippings and leaves. A lot of articles tell you to add shredded newspaper, black and white, not colored.
Starbucks gives away coffee grounds, they are GREAT in compost.
I cold compost too, but you'll get results much faster if you cut it all into small pieces. I find this is just too much trouble, but it is a good idea.
I've even read that you can put your food scraps in a blender with water and dump it right on the garden. Anybody try that? I think it would work if it was blended so well that animals wouldn't be interested in it. Again, more trouble so I don't do it. (04/05/2009)
Do a search on Thrifty Fun and you will find lots more information. Anything organic goes, no fats or anything from a carnivore. Egg shells ground up are good too. Coffee grounds are good, but too many can make your compost acidic. Instead of greens and browns think of wets and drys and try to layer them alternately.
I learned a lot by googling a search for how to make compost. It isn't hard and it is a great way to recycle. (04/06/2009)
If you should live near the ocean, seaweed is another excellent additive to the compost pile. I have found through trial and error that keeping the pile or bin moist is really important, it seems to speed up the process. I agree, Starbucks was a great source last fall for the coffee grounds. They will save them and bag them for you. Just ask the day before. (04/10/2009)
I have a compost bin that I got for free off of Freecycle.org and I put all food scraps, stale breads, yard cuttings, dryer lint, hair from my brushes, napkins and paper towels (I don't use many) and coffee grinds in. I do put small amounts of black and white newspaper in (no colored). The only items I have read that you are NOT to put in the compost are proteins (meat) and animal feces. Also, if you wind up with a stinky compost the newspaper does help with that. (04/10/2009)
Thanks to everyone who wrote in and gave us their advice on our compost pile. We really appreciate all the helpful information. We have started it and so far it is doing good. I know it will take awhile before we can use it. (04/10/2009)
