What is Compost?
Compost is organic material that can be used as a soil amendment or as a medium to grow plants. It has a content called humus that is dark brown or black and has a soil-like, earthy smell. It is created by combining organic wastes (e.g., yard trimmings, food wastes, manures) in proper ratios into piles, rows, or vessels; adding bulking agents (e.g., wood chips) as necessary to accelerate the breakdown of organic materials; and allowing the finished material to fully stabilize and mature through a curing process. Natural composting, or biological decomposition, began with the first plants on earth and has been going on ever since. As vegetation falls to the ground, it slowly decays, providing minerals and nutrients needed for plants, animals, and microorganisms.
Why Compost?
- Compost improves soil structure. Because of its loose, fluffy, cake-flourlike texture, compost improves the structure of garden soils, both increasing the drainage of clay soils and binding together sandy soils, enhancing their moisture retention.
- Compost stimulates beneficial organisms. Not only does compost contain all of the major plant nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium), it also contains a wealth of minor and trace elements as well as billions of bacteria, yeast, fungi, and other soil creatures that will continue to break down organic and inorganic matter in the compost and in your soil, providing a long-term, steady feeding of nutrients to plants. The microorganisms in the compost will also help your plants absorb nutrients from fertilizers more efficiently.
- Compost provides a balanced source of plant nutrients. No commercial fertilizer, even one that is totally organic, provides the full spectrum of nutrients that you get with compost. Even if you are lucky enough to have great soil, you can’t expect that soil to remain rich and productive without replenishing the nutrients that are consumed each growing season.
- Compost stimulates beneficial organisms. Compost is teeming with all kinds of microorganisms and soil fauna that help convert soil nutrients into a form that can be readily absorbed by your plants. The microorganisms, enzymes, vitamins and natural antibiotics that are present in compost actually help prevent many soil pathogens from harming your plants. Earthworms, millipedes, and other macro-organisms tunnel through your soil, opening up passageways for air and water to reach your plants’ roots.
- Compost is a garden insurance. Not only is compost teeming with all kinds of microorganisms and soil fauna that help convert soil nutrients into a form that can be readily absorbed by your plants, the microorganisms, enzymes, vitamins and natural antibiotics that are present in compost actually help prevent many soil pathogens from harming your plants. Earthworms, millipedes, and other macro-organisms tunnel through your soil, opening up passageways for air and water to reach your plants’ roots.
Soil conditions are of critical importance to plants. To achieve a perfect union between plants and soil, it is therefore important to both understand soil characteristics, and the specific preferences of individual plants.
Soils can be defined by texture, pH and fertility:
A. Soil texture is the composition of the soil. Soils are a blend of mineral particles and organic matter, which is essentially decomposed plant material. A great deal of soil structure is related to the size of the mineral particles. Large particles are basically sand, medium sized particles are called silt, and extremely small (microscopic) particles are the major constituents of clay.
- Sandy soils are typically very well drained, but because of this, they do not retain water well and are therefore subject to frequent periods of drought in dry climates.
- Clays, on the other hand, hold water very well, almost too well, such that they often drain poorly, and can drown the roots of plants, which require some degree of oxygen for aeration.
- The best soils are a mix of the various soil types along with a good amount of organic matter. In general, organic matter such as peat moss is the best way to amend poor soils, both those that are too sandy and those that are too heavy (clay).
B. Soil pH is the relative acidity or alkalinity of the soil. Soils with different pH levels are able to hold or provide various nutrients to plants in different ways. This is of particular importance in that specific plants have adapted to specific soil types, and may not perform in other types. In general, a neutral soil is best for most plants, meaning a pH of 6 to 7.5. It is possible to amend the pH of a soil, but this requires effort and much planning; specially prepared beds with custom-mixed soils are the best way to create growing environments for plants with specific pH preferences.
C. Soil fertility is a measure of the key nutrients available to plants from the soil. The major nutrients are nitrogen, which aids in the development of lush, green foliage; potassium, which is important in the development of fruits and increases resistance to disease; and, phosphorus, which aids in flower and root development, along with trace elements such as calcium, magnesium, copper and zinc. Plants will generally decline in soils which have nutrient deficiencies.
- Nutrients can be added to soils through applications of fertilizers. Fertilizers are rated by a universal system according to the composition of the three major nutrients. The first is the volume percentage concentration of nitrogen, the second is the concentration of phosphorus, and the third is the concentration of potassium. A 10-30-10 fertilizer has 10% nitrogen, 30% phosphorus and 10% potassium by volume, meaning that it would be effective in promoting the development of roots and flowers. In addition, fertilizers can include soil pH amendments which can help maintain the acidity of soils for certain acid-loving plants.
- Cultivation, earthworms, frost action and rodents mix the soil. This activity decreases the size of the peds to form a granular (or crumb) structure. This structure allows for good porosity and easy movement of air and water. The combination of ease in tillage, good moisture and air-handling capabilities, good structure for planting and germination are definitive of good tilth.
Source: www.northscaping.com