What is Compost?

Darryl Edwards

What is compost?

It is the Aerobic decomposition by BACTERIA and FUNGI of a mix of organic material.

Composting Methods.

•Thermal compost
•Worm or Vermi-compost (cold composting)
•Static compost

All three of these methods are suitable for the small-scale farmer. There are pros and cons for all:

Thermal composting is the most reliable to guarantee a product that is weed and pathogen free, it also is very fast (7 to 8 weeks).

Worm composting provides excellent product (worm casts, which are higher in plant available nutrients), but requires large numbers of worms and does not eliminate weed seeds.

Static compost is the easiest but most unreliable due to the uncontrolled environment leaving risk of pathogens, seed and it is very slow. (Can take up to a year).

Thus thermal compost is the most suitable method, but it requires diligence and training to achieve the required results.

The minimum size of a thermal compost heap is about 1.5 m cubed. Thus I have developed a 2x2x2m pile, which will ensure the required volume for the required temperatures that must be attained. It is also small enough for a single person to work in a few hours. In a small-scale or garden situation it is also not too difficult to accumulate or gather enough raw material to build a heap of this size. This volume of compost, if made correctly and the right quality attained should easily be able to sustain a hectare of maize.

By Darryl & Hazel Edwards