First of all, well done for even being interested in learning how to build a compost pile, because no matter how you look at it, it’s the responsible thing to do, and something which more people should in fact do.

Irrespective of what you may be thinking, building a compost pile certainly doesn’t require any prior gardening experience at all. To the contrary, it involves nothing more than simply throwing away all your unwanted organic waste, such as fruit and vegetable feels, bits of paper, and even garden waste, but of course you need to throw it all away in the same area.

• Ideally, you should try to designate one corner of the yard for your compost pile so that the smell won’t be a problem for you when you’re out relaxing in the yard.
• Once you’ve set aside an area of the yard, you can begin your pile with any kitchen waste you have, providing of course it’s biodegradable.

Pests

Unfortunately, it is a well known fact that a compost pile often encourages certain pests to pay you a visit, such as rats and mice, not to mention various other forms of wildlife such as squirrels and even raccoons. If any of these tend to be prevalent in your area, then you may need to consider starting your compost pile in a covered bin.

• Interestingly enough, rodents often only become a problem if you’re combining regular yard waste with your compost, but for the most part, rodents shouldn’t really pose much of a problem.
• You should also avoid adding any type of meat products to your compost pile, including old bones, because while it maybe good for the compost, it also tends to attract rodents.

Starting Your Compost Pile

If you’re satisfied that your designated area is suitable and won’t interfere with other yard activities, you can go ahead and begin your pile. Ideally you should start off by dumping all your biodegradable kitchen waste or garden waste, and then you can continue adding more organic waste as it becomes available.

In other words, whenever you’re preparing food you should be setting the peels to one side so that you can add them to your pile when you’re finished.

• If you use a lawnmower to cut your grass, don’t forget to add all those clippings as well.
• However, you should avoid adding sticks, twigs, and even long bits of class, simply because they’ll make it more difficult for you to manage the pile.
• You should ideally continue adding to your pile for at least three to four weeks before you turn it.
• This is crucial, because heat will be generated within the pile, and of course the heat is essential in terms of composting.

Maintaining Your Compost Pile

Once the composting process is underway, you can continue adding waste to it as and when it becomes available, because of course, you should be turning the pile every few weeks. When it’s time to turn it, you should also determine whether or not the pile is moist enough. You should also bear in mind that while a compost pile should be moist, it shouldn’t be to wet. Likewise, it also shouldn’t be allowed to dry out to much. Of course, if your compost pile is off the ground, then having a few drainage holes will prevent it from becoming too wet, but if it’s on the ground then you’ll need to add in some dry material, such as some smallish pieces of cardboard or even scrap paper.

Alternatively, you could consider starting your pile on a slight slope so that any excess water can drain away.

• If you tend to get plenty of rain in your area then it’s even more important to take certain precautionary measures.
• If on the other hand you notice that the compost is too dry, then you’ll need to spray it with some water.
• If you do need to add water, it’s a good idea to turn the composite shortly afterwards in case excess water has accumulated at the bottom of the pile.

Optimizing Your Compost Pile

There may be occasions when you notice the composting process is not going as fast as what you’d like it to. In that case, you can simply had a few layers of soil, or even some readymade compost, both of which will help to speed up the process. Essentially, this is because by adding this to your pile, you’ll be adding more bacteria, and in so doing, you’ll be making it possible for the organic waste to decompose quicker. Two other very important factors with regards to a compost pile is the presence of nitrogen and carbon. In fact, nitrogen and carbon should be present in a 1: 1 ratio. Essentially, both of these elements come from brown and green compost. The composting process can also be sped up by adding worms to the pile. In fact, many insects and worms will automatically end up in your pile after a while.

Considering just how easy it is to build a compost pile, one cannot help but wonder why more people don’t do it.

After all, it’s a great way for getting rid of a huge amount of household waste, rather than relying on the landfill sites. Apart from the environmental aspect, building your own compost pile will help to ensure you’re your garden flourishes. In fact, you’d be surprised at just how quickly a garden responds once you begin turning in some good quality homemade compost. You can be rest assured that once you’ve witnessed the results firsthand, you’ll probably never be without a compost pile again. Now that you’ve discovered how to build a compost pile, all that’s left is for you to go out and designate a piece of your yard, and then begin adding your biodegradable waste.