Quick Compost

A Quick Way to Make Compost
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Making compost is a slow process. The longer one allows for microbes and worms to "work their magic" the better the compost will be. However, there are some things one can do to hasten the process by usine a little already-made compost, leaves, grass clippings, and a roto-tiller. I use a special compact tiller for this due to the small size of the blades and compact design for dealing with a narrow compost pile.

All it takes to begin, is the same as any compost: a pile of leaves and grass clippings. The grass clippings provide the nitrogen component, and the leaves the carbon component. The aspect of composting that makes this "quick" is adding a little ready-made compost, tilling it in, and then frequently adding a blended slurry of fruit and veggie clippings. I've found the KitchenAid blender powerful enough to blend just about anything I put in it. But, it's important to fill the pitcher at least half full with water!

Worms and microbes "love" such a slurry as your pile will soon show, quickly becoming filled with large worms. In my own pile the slurry that has been added is often completely gone within just a few days when I'm ready to add more. Adding waste that hasn't been blended can take months or even years to completely break down, so the blending is just another aspect of making this method of composting quick.The pile should be wetted often - providing a highway for the microbes to migrate through the pile. I use a nozzle like this one on the end of my hose to shoot the stream of water down into the pile.

My favorite tiller is the FG110 made by Honda. It serves all my tilling needs and due to it's size and light-weight, it can even be managed within my wall-hung lettuce bed.

a pile of leaves and grass clippings