Compost beds. Warm bed for an early harvest: DIY methods

Instead of traditional ones, you can do compost beds.

Advantages

• No need to dig.
• Organic fertilizers are formed right in the garden.
• The harvest ripens earlier.
• Plants do not need frequent watering.

Types of compost beds

In place of an ordinary garden

They are made in spring or autumn. You can use the beds without a fence, you can use the bed-boxes with sides. The latter are convenient in that they keep their shape. Some of the beds are prepared in spring, some in autumn. Several pieces can be made per season.

Hay, straw, remnants of fresh vegetables and fruits, cut grass, weeds (without seed heads), egg shells, tea and coffee brews, cardboard and other organic waste are placed on a free bed. Add earth. You can put ash, manure or bird droppings. The layer should be 15-20 cm, the width of the beds - 70-90 cm. It is better to make the distance between the ridges large so that the plants do not shade each other. You can process two or three beds in the spring. After three weeks, the compost bed is ready. It is sown, after the emergence of shoots, it is mulched with cut grass. Mulch protects the soil from drying out, so frequent watering is not required. Crops are watered at the root. The harvest in such warm beds ripens earlier. The earth can not be dug up, but only loosened with a flat cutter. It is convenient to use arcs on such a bed.

Compost beds can be formed in the fall and left to mature over the winter. After harvesting, a layer of organic fertilizer is poured and left until spring. In the first year, it is better to use such a bed for planting potatoes. You can plant it under hay or cut grass. Instead of hilling, sprinkle sawdust or grass.

The compost layer will rot and settle, so organic fertilizers are added during the season. This forms a fertile compost layer.

Garden bed in a portable box

A box is made from the boards, put in an empty place, it is possible on an untreated part of the site. A warm compost bed is formed during the season. First, drainage is done (branches, pebbles), then the box is covered with organic waste, earth. Gradually fall asleep to the top. Can be spilled with Baikal M-1, covered with spunbond or black film and secured. When the bed is ready, the box is removed and put in another place. Everybody repeats. So you can master the untreated part of the site without digging.

Healthy vegetables from your garden

Trash bed

The bed can be made on some waste, garbage. During the summer, waste, mowed grass is piled in one place until a large pile is obtained. They make large holes, cover them with earth. On such a heap, in the first year, zucchini and pumpkins grow beautifully. The soil is mulched between the plants. Water with infusion of herbs, vermicompost. Manure or chicken droppings are added. In the fall, they harvest and leave the garden until spring. In the spring it is leveled, given the shape of an ordinary bed.

In the spring, I just want to start sowing faster in order to get a harvest as early as possible. The land is still cold at this time, and the roots of plants need warmth first of all. You can accelerate ripening and increase the yield by arranging a warm bed, it is very easy to do it yourself. Manufacturing technology does not require large financial costs, but the harvest can be obtained three times per season. Consider how to make a warm bed with step by step instructions, decorated with photographs. Watch an example of creating ridges in the video to understand what the final result should be.

Advantages of a warm garden bed

To understand whether it is worth equipping warm beds on your site and spending your own time and energy, you need to understand the advantages of this method.

• A raised, warm bed is especially good for wet, cold regions. The soil warms up earlier, it is possible to get the harvest earlier. In case of waterlogging, the plants do not get wet. Even stone trees are planted to protect root system from groundwater.
• A properly equipped garden bed will last about five years. Then it can be equipped anew, and the resulting fertile land can be used for sowing other plants.

A warm bed allows you to get an early harvest of vegetables

• Reduced water consumption. Organics retain water, so once or twice a week is enough for watering. And if you equip drip irrigation or at least lay a leaky hose for irrigation, then labor costs are reduced to a minimum.
• When organic matter decomposes, heat is released, which stimulates seed germination. The resulting compost as a result of the activity of microorganisms and earthworms is an excellent source of plant nutrition.
• There is no need for a compost heap, all organic matter is dumped directly onto the garden bed.
• You can install a warm bed on the street or in a greenhouse - this will bring the same effect. IN open ground it is enough to install the arches and stretch the agrofibre to protect the plants from frost.
• After rainfall, the crop remains clean, since a layer of mulch covers the soil, and the splashes of rain do not stain the vegetables.
• Weeds germinate with difficulty and in small quantities, and are easily pulled out.
• It does not take up much space, it is convenient to handle, it does not create dirt and mess.

Advice. In autumn, add all the available small organic matter and leaf litter to the garden bed and cover it with cardboard so that heat remains and nutrients are not washed out by rains into the lower layers.

Arrangement rules

With a close approach of groundwater, the bed is raised above the soil. In dry regions, on the contrary, it is deepened, making it flush with the soil or slightly higher. Raised beds are overbearing different materials... Most often they use wood or slate, less often metal. Set in the middle of the lawn, framed by a blind area of ​​tiles, such a bed pleases the eye and decorates the site. Or they are made in the form of a meter-long hill without sides. In fact, a warm bed is a compost heap folded in the form of a puff pie according to certain rules.

Neat beds look very nice

1. Coarse organic matter is laid on the lowest layer, which decomposes for a long time: stumps and tree trunks, thick branches. Spill with urea. The larger the waste, the longer the bed will last. Wood retains moisture well.
2. The next layer is laid with finer organic matter: stalks of corn and sunflower, small shrubs. Paper and kitchen waste, foliage, straw can also be used.
3. To speed up the process of decomposition and heating, half-rotted manure or compost is laid. Top is the sod with the grass down, and then a layer of mature compost.
4. After that, the seeds are sown.

The length of the bed can be any, the optimal width is about a meter. The depth will depend on the composition of the soil and the type of bed chosen. Recessed is done by 40 - 60 cm.The height of the raised bed is up to 1 m.
The air remaining in the cavities between large organic matter will provide breathing and quick heating of the bed. The process can be accelerated by spilling the soil with special bacteria.

Advice. If the soil is initially good, then the need to dig up the beds will disappear by itself. Already in the first year, the soil is well loosened to a depth of 20 cm, for the next season it is enough to add compost and plant the plants.

Garden bed making process

Consider the process of making a recessed bed with a small wooden side from an unnecessary board.

• We knock down the boards to make a rectangle.
• Mark the size of the bed on the ground and dig a trench about 60 cm deep.
• Sod cut and upper layer we fold the fertile land to one side - it will still come in handy.
• We fold the bottom layer to the other side.
• The sides of the trench can be additionally insulated with sheet polystyrene foam, and closed plastic bottles can be placed on the bottom.

Warming the bottom of a warm bed

• We fill the trench with branches, logs. We put finer material higher.
• We pour out several wheelbarrows of semi-finished compost - this will be a ferment from useful microorganisms for processing and heating organic matter.
• We lay the fertile soil and sod with the grass down.
• Fill the top with compost, a mixture of sand, peat and sawdust with the addition of trace elements.

Filling the beds with compost

• Water well and cover with foil. After two weeks, you can plant seeds or seedlings.
• Cover the soil with dark mulch. Light colored mulch, such as straw or sawdust, is best applied in summer - it reflects well sunlight and prevents the roots from overheating.

What plants are planted in a warm garden

A container filled with organic matter heats up quickly in spring. Heat-loving vegetables in such a bed can be sown ahead of time, covered with a film for the first time. By correctly calculating the planting time and the distance between plants, you can first grow radishes and greens. Put a trellis in the center, plant cucumbers and tomatoes. After harvesting radish, plant carrots, onions, beets. In the fall, plant radishes, salads and herbs again.

Experienced gardeners who have been using warm beds for more than one year recommend planning planting in this way:

• in the first year, when the garden is rich in organic matter to the maximum, sow pumpkins, tomatoes and cucumber with zucchini. It is these crops that will give the maximum yield;
• the next year, you can plant the same vegetables again as in the first year;
• in the third season, tomatoes, cabbage, peppers, greens, beets, beans and carrots are planted.

The film can be tied to the bottom row of the trellis with clothespins. Press down the edges loosely with boards. So the garden bed will turn into a greenhouse. Air will be sucked in at the bottom and expelled at the top. If you forget to open the garden bed during the day, the plants will not burn. And if you have free funds, install a roof over the garden bed. It will protect tomatoes from late blight, and cucumbers from peronospores - these fungi germinate in water droplets on the leaves. Vegetables will stand healthy until the very frost.

Advice. A deep hole and a large amount of organic matter holds moisture well and gives off heat. Raised boxes with a small layer of organic matter dry out faster and lose their nutritional value.

Once, having found the time and energy, as well as a sufficient amount of high-quality organic matter, and equipping a warm bed with an irrigation system, you will not only free up time for rest, but also get an early harvest of delicious vegetables. If vegetables ripen a month earlier in the open field, then such a structure in a greenhouse will justify the work invested with interest.

Warm bed: video

How to make a warm bed: photo

For several years now I have been arranging "warm" beds in the garden, this method has become a real salvation for my site. The work invested in the creation of natural "heating pads" is minimal compared to what the gardener benefits from:
The plant waste that makes up the garden warms up the plants from the inside and allows you to get an early harvest. This is very important for the North-West, because May and June, and often all summer, we have very cool, night temperatures drop to + 8-10 degrees, and you can't plant the whole garden under a greenhouse.
The land in the garden must be constantly renewed. However, it is very expensive to import soil by machines. Plus, purchased soil often brings only disappointment - the gardener receives dirt and clay instead of humus. Different variants"Warm" beds allow you to update the entire land on the site with sectors, using a method invented by nature itself.

Different types of beds that warm and make the earth themselves

All gardeners create "warm" beds in one form or another, sometimes they simply do not know about it. It remains only to approach this issue wisely, and the yield on the site will increase.

There are several ways to create warm beds:

1. Compost heap in a stationary box. Summer residents who ignore this method, simply burying or throwing out grass or waste, are acting very unwisely. It is very easy to organize several compost piles in boxes with a removable wall, and the benefits from this business are enormous. The boards can be cemented or made of wood and scrap materials.


One such pile is filled all summer with waste from the kitchen, grass, manure in layers - in late autumn it is covered with compost on top, in the next season you can plant pumpkins or zucchini on it, and in summer the pile is opened to get compost for the beds.


While one compost box is filling, vegetables grow in the other and soil is taken from it in autumn or spring. This way, there is always fresh compost, and it is of good quality. You can also arrange the compost heap on the basis of a barrel or a concrete ring.

2. Grass pit. On virgin soil or on a bed with loamy soil at the beginning of the season, you can dig a hole 40-50 cm deep, throw the grass there all summer after processing the beds, fill the hole with compost at the end of summer, plant green manure or legumes in this place next season and get a piece of fertile developed soil.

3. "Warm" ridge-trench. A deep track that is dug two shovels or even deeper and is gradually filled throughout the season or at the end of summer.

4. "Warm" bed in a box which forms in layers at the end of the season.

How to quickly make a "warm" bed out of an ordinary bed

In my garden, I use all the methods, but I'll tell you more about the latter.
Late summer after harvest vegetable crops the beds are gradually freed, this is the most opportune moment to make "warm" beds. Usually on such ridges, we grow zucchini, pumpkins, squash, beans - the yield of these crops drops significantly if they are not provided with heating from the ground.
All our beds are enclosed in a wooden or metal box with a height of 30-40 cm, on the basis of such a structure it is very easy to make a warm bed, you can act according to the following scheme:
We choose a sector of about 1.5 by 1.5 meters, we focus on our strengths, it will be difficult to dig too large a bed at a time and will have to be filled for a long time.


We dig out the soil from the garden bed, put the upper one in buckets or throw it into a heap on the side, and send the lower loam to long-term compost or use it for household needs. If there is a strong assistant, then you can dig out the whole box, so a complete update of the garden will be done.


However, there is a simpler option - to make a wide deep trench in the middle of the garden bed.


At the very bottom we put branches, large tops, chips, paper, these organic materials will decompose slowly, so they are placed in the base. Plus, between dense stems and pieces of wood there are always gaps, a kind of drainage layer is obtained, which ensures a gradual outflow of water. If I make a warm bed not from scratch, but with a furrow, then I do not put hard branches at the base, but the tops of beans, Jerusalem artichokes, sunflowers, zucchini, sprinkling everything with coarse sand. I am opposed to chips and rotten pieces of wood in the garden, because we already have a lot of garden ants, so I don't use such materials at all, but I mention them, because this material is used by gardeners.


Then we tamp and spill the greens well, the amount of water depends on the weather. We pour everything with a layer of earth, you can use the excavated soil, which we put in the buckets.
In the next layer we put organic waste, which decomposes rather - traditionally, leaves, soft tops, chips, rotten vegetables and fruits are placed in the middle of the garden. I usually process strawberries during this period, so the most strawberry and strawberry foliage from pruning gets into this layer on my garden bed, I am afraid to put rotten apples in the beds, because it is very acidic in the soil.


This layer should be quite voluminous, you can divide it into two, pouring it over with earth and pouring water. on my site there are quite acidic soils.


The next layer of the bed is formed from organic matter, which decomposes very well, this is an elite level that should turn into humus by the beginning of the next season. Here I place a short grass without seeds or roots, plucked or mown with a sickle, and lawn grass after the lawn mower that I collect and dry, getting hay.


The "warm bed" settles very strongly, so at this stage it is necessary to fill the bed so that the grass sticks out of the bed. This green hill must be tamped, spilled and covered with a layer of humus from compost for 10-15 cm. Then you can wait a few days and duplicate this layer again.


Put a layer of humus on top again.


Then on the newly made ridge, you can plant siderates - oats, rye, mustard.


Previously, I sometimes planted oats before winter and then we kind of plowed it, or beans in the spring, when we left the soil fallow. This year I planted rye, after 5 days the sprouts have already begun to creep out. I have read that plucking and burying is not best method, it destroys the green manure root system, which accumulates nitrogen, phosphorus and other minerals. This year I want to try cutting rye - however, this requires a very sharp flat cutter or hoe.

Such a bed does not need to be dug up, only to loosen the ground with a hoe. In the spring, in order to start life in the ridge, it can be poured with warm water or manure solution, then covered with a film for a while. Temporary greenhouses on such a natural "hot water bottle" also give a good result, because the plants are heated both from above and below, it turns out a real bathhouse. A “warm” bed in a box lasts 2-3 years, in the second year I add compost to it, and in the third or fourth year I change it.

A "warm" ridge based on a trench lasts 7-8 years, because it is dug out on two bayonets of a shovel or even more, sand and large branches and pieces of wood are placed on the bottom. In my opinion, the ridge in the box is more convenient and efficient, because it is easier to do, and the land changes more often, which makes it possible not to leave the ridge under the fallow for rest.

Why do plants feel great in some gardens, while in others they barely survive? The reason lies in the insufficiently fertile land. Articles about planting or caring for vegetables often talk about adding compost to the soil. As it grows, the plant takes in various nutrients from the soil. Harvesting in the fall, part of the nutrients are taken from the soil with the tops of plants, they also contain substances that are in the ground, thereby further depleting the soil. According to the laws of nature, everything that is taken out of the soil must be returned there. Otherwise, the land will become poorer and its natural fertility will inevitably decrease. Soil composting solves this problem.

There are hardly any people who do not know the meaning of this word. Compost is an organic fertilizer that results from the decomposition of organic waste, mainly of plant origin. These include plant waste (plant tops, weeds, fallen leaves, cut grass) and food waste (,), etc. For composting, it is not recommended to use animal waste, made of plastic, glass, metal.

Biochemical reactions occurring during the decomposition of waste occur due to intensively multiplying microorganisms and. The compost heap is a living bioreactor. The main condition for all the reactions taking place there is the presence of heat and moisture. The very process of obtaining valuable fertilizer is called composting. After completing the composting process, a highly nutritious mixture is obtained, containing minerals and valuable trace elements, similar to humus. Ripe compost is a dark brown, homogeneous crumbly material.

Basic rules for good compost

The surest way to dispose of food and plant waste from your site is with a composting bin. With its help, you can ensure the competent movement of organic waste, and get free fertilizer with a high content of humus and nutrients.

Compost can be made in the form of a compost heap, in the garden bed, in bags. Whichever way we decide to make compost, there are certain rules for its preparation. The technology is about the same everywhere.

A compost heap, or rather a compost, is a box, a wooden box, where all waste is deposited. By following the rules, you will have a good nutritional formula in 1.5-2 years. So what do you need to know?

1. You can form a compost box not only in summer, but at any time of the year. The exception is cold days with frost. For example, right from the beginning of spring, you can compost all organic matter as it forms. In autumn, during this period, there is especially a lot of different waste (tops of plants, leaf litter, etc.), which can also be composted. Diseased plants must not be used in compost. It is better to burn them, and use only the ash from them.
2. When forming a compost heap or a bed, the soil under them must be loosened to a depth of about 30 cm. This is necessary in order to create close contact of the decaying organic matter with earthworms and other organisms involved in composting.
3. The compost should be placed in partial shade, so that it is not constantly under the sun, otherwise it will dry out.
4. For fast decomposition, it is better to grind all the material. In this way, the entire composting process will be much faster.
5. For rapid decomposition, it is good to add the biological product "Baikal-M" to the waste.

How to make compost correctly

Any material is used for the walls of the compost - boards, bricks, old metal sheets, slate. Remember that the bottom cannot be closed, it must be earthen. There should be slots or openings in the side walls for air circulation. Box dimensions: width - 1.5 m, height no more than 1 m, box length is made depending on the amount of waste. The correct drawer has 3 compartments:

• Fresh waste is stored in the first section;
• In the second - last year's ripening;
• The third compartment contains the compost that is ready for use.

The composting technology itself is simple. The more varied the waste that is stacked in layers, the more complete and better the decomposition will be. It is not suitable to stack only one cut grass, the composting process will not start. Therefore, plant residues that are rich in carbon must be combined with manure or bone meal rich in nitrogen. Therefore, be sure to cover the grass with earth.

The layers in the heap must alternate.

• Bush branches, hay, tree bark are laid at the bottom;
• 1st layer - a layer of food and plant waste approximately 15 cm thick;
• 2nd layer - manure, bone meal with a layer of about 5 cm;
• Sprinkle on top with lime or, and then a layer of earth of 2 cm.

In this sequence, lay out all the waste until it ends. The very last layer is earth, hay, straw, or leaves. They protect against drying out.

An important point is that the water from the box must be drained and the air must be circulated. Otherwise, the contents of the box will not decompose, but rot.

How to prepare a compost bed

It is better to make a compost bed in the fall, using wooden boxes for this. Their size depends on preference and the amount of waste. A bed filled with waste will turn out to be neat. The advantages of this method are that the next year the wooden box can be moved to another place and a new bed can be made there again.

The principle of filling the beds is the same as in the compost bin (compost heap). Branches, tops of plants are laid at the bottom, then various plant waste are laid in layers. Since the decomposition process requires moisture and heat, the top of the bed is covered with a film or oilcloth, preferably black. In the film, you need to make holes in which you plant in spring, for example, zucchini or pumpkin. If the film is transparent, then cover it on top with boards or old slate for the winter. And in summer, the soil will be covered with plant leaves.

By autumn, a loose, homogeneous material of dark brown color and with the smell of forest land is obtained on the garden bed.

Composting in bags

How much fallen leaves disappear in the fall? But it will make an excellent nutrient mixture for the garden. Making compost in bags is easy enough.

Fall leaves are preferable for leaf humus, because raw foliage undergoes the decomposition process faster. So, armed with a rake, we collect the fallen leaves from under the trees. Most of the collected leaves and other winter crops. In the spring, all of this will be collected and sent to the compost heap.

There is so much foliage every year that you can compost in bags. We put the rest of the collected foliage in large bags for household waste. We tie the bags tightly so that moisture does not evaporate from them. Remember that air is needed for better decomposition. Therefore, we pierce the bags filled with foliage with a pitchfork 2-3 times. Plastic bags create a comfortable environment for processing bacteria. If green grass gets into the bags, then this is good, fungal bacteria will speed up the process. Also, to accelerate the decomposition in bags, you can add the drug "Baikal-M".

Bags with leaves are removed for storage and winter freezing. This, too, will only benefit. Some pests and some pathogens die. And in the spring, this mass can be sent to compost heaps or added to the garden bed. Or be patient, when in six months - a year the foliage will turn into humus.

Compost in barrels

Another way to prepare compost is in barrels. All weeds from the garden can be stored here. As a result, overheating, you get a nutritious mixture - humus, with which you can fertilize the beds.

First, about the terms.
In a broad sense, these words are synonyms. In Russian it happens that any word has different meanings, depending on the context in which it was pronounced and written.
If manure and other organic waste is placed in a special compost pit or box, it is turned over several times per season, it is loosened, watered, covered, and the correct ratio of nitrogen and carbon is thought of, that is, compost, then a product similar to black soil is called compost. ...

And in the old days there was a lot of manure, it lay in huge heaps near the sheds with animals, no one composted it, it rotted itself, and therefore the people simply called it humus.
Sometimes compost and humus are called humus. But humus is a borrowed Latin word that means earth, soil. And it is more correct to talk about humus in the context of a conversation about soil, about a constituent part of the soil. Humus is what remains of organic matter that has been in the soil for a long time, has been processed by soil inhabitants, combined with soil particles into a single complex and has lost the fibrous structure of organic matter visible to the eye.

When we take soil in our hands in the spring, feel the pleasant smell of the earth and see its black color, we say that there is a lot of humus in the earth, this is black soil. Therefore, the closest synonym for humus is black soil.
When we take good compost in our hand and also see black color and smell a pleasant smell, we still do not call it humus or soil, but when we introduce such compost into poor soil, we understand that we are enriching the soil with humus, turning the soil into black soil ...

But when we approach a pile of rotted manure, take humus in our hand, we do not always smell the soil, sometimes humus has an unpleasant putrid smell. Intuitively, we understand the difference between black soil, between good compost and between humus (an old pile of pig manure that we didn't want to compost properly).
Here we at an ordinary level understood what compost is, it is organic matter with which we worked, which was composted.

Why gardeners compost differently

I myself went through several stages of understanding what good compost is, and now, reading hundreds of articles on composting and talking on this topic with friends gardeners, I see that how many people, so many different opinions on how to make it.
Many people like to strictly follow the instructions, hang correctly in grams, mix manure, straw, grass, food waste in strict proportions. When a beginner reads these tips, he is confused and afraid to start creating compost piles.

Someone is afraid of worms, read isoteric literature and strictly monitors the temperature of the heap so that all eggs and microbes die. Washes hands and vegetables endlessly with soap and a brush after working on organic beds.
Someone builds tables and calculates on a computer how much nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium is in which compost, and what additives should be added to it for each crop.

For some, compost is just a way to dispose of existing organic matter, reduce its volume, reduce putrefactive odor, so that it is easier to take it out and add it to the beds. For these purposes, I just put it in bags for six months.

There are fanatical naturalists who believe in the myths of soil digestion, who believe that compost is a loss of carbon energy, and all organic matter must be composted in the garden so that there is no loss, and all the energy of the sun goes to the roots of the plants. And humus is a dummy, the poop of bacteria that does not contain nitrogen.

I also made compost differently before

If I was asked another year or five years ago what is the value of compost for a gardener, what is the essence of its correct preparation, I would answer: in the quantity and quality of soil organisms, in the stability of the ecosystem that developed during its preparation.
If you ask me now, why have correct compost for a novice gardener, I will tell you to cure my killed land from bacterial and fungal diseases and quickly start getting crops. And they will ask what is the main benefit of compost, I will answer that in the quantity and quality of antibiotics that the compost has accumulated, thanks to the vital activity of fungi and bacteria, in the ability to extract from the compost to fight putrefactive organisms, in the ability of compost to heal the soil, in the possibility of using infusions and from such compost to restore the fertility of the killed soils.

Soils, especially those depleted by agriculture, do not always contain all the beneficial microorganisms. Therefore, to restore the soil, we must introduce composts with a high content of bacteria, fungi and other microorganisms into it. Such inoculants can be: live compost, vermicompost, vermicelli, compost tea.

All novice gardeners have confusion in their heads

I want everything at once and quickly. And so that there are no diseases, I want to kill all harmful fungi and bacteria, add pesticides and herbicides to the soil. In addition, I want to get the harvest in the first year on the acquired land. It is not pesticides that will help here, but compost extracts.
Living compost for these purposes can be obtained in three weeks, for this you need to make compost in a heap using a special method.

What materials should be used to quickly ripen compost

• Various types of manure and droppings from pets (waste from the toilet and feces should settle within 3-4 months). It is a nitrogenous material. It causes the compost heap to "burn".
• Hay, straw, foliage, rough grass are carbonaceous material. All materials must be crushed, otherwise it is difficult to turn them over and it is more difficult for microorganisms to process them.
• Green grass with turf - contains soil microorganisms, it is with the green material that they enter the compost heap.
• Wood mulch is food for mushrooms, mushrooms love to process wood fiber.
• In the middle of the compost heap, you can add a kind of seed - comfrey, nettle, yarrow, fish, food waste. This will speed up the overall decomposition process. These are compost activators or accelerators that help warm up the pile.

I'll tell you in detail, in order
First, we make a loose base of the heap: at the very bottom we put hay, small branches. It is very important that air is easily drawn into the pile from below. Then we lay a layer of nitrogenous material, alternating with carbon.
After laying the pile, pour water over it to keep it moderately damp.
Then cover the pile with waterproof material and leave it for 4 days.
On the fourth day, we do the first transfer of the heap. Our task in this case is to put the outer material inward, and the inner material outward. This is necessary for even composting, as the inside of the pile is hotter than the outside.
Then, on the sixth day, we do the second heap transfer. We control the temperature of the heap. We throw a pile every other day, the outer material inward, and the inner material outward. On the 18th or 24th day, the compost should be ready, as long as it is not overheated or overdried.

Overheating will occur during the second third flip - on the 6-8th day. Place your hand up to your elbows in the compost heap. If you succeeded and you shout "Hot!" If you pulled your hand back, it means that the temperature is higher than +50 ° С, and everything is fine. At + 70 ° C, you won't be able to stick your hand in a pile, it hurts.
During the composting process, you should observe the optimal humidity, for this we take a little material from the base of the pile and squeeze it very strongly between the palms. If a little drips - that's what you need.

What happens in the compost heap

During the first 4 days of composting, the population of microorganisms increases in the heap. We turn the pile, many organisms will die - and their bodies will become food for the next generation of microorganisms. There will be a population explosion, they will multiply quickly and give off a lot of heat.
In the composting process, carbonaceous organic matter will bind nitrogen and all other elements into humus. Rough organic matter - absorbent; nitrogenous - fuel for the heap. Even toxic substances - if any of them are in the heap - will be bound by long chains of carbon molecules and become inert. This is one of the most remarkable properties of humus.
So, main secret good and fast compost - the optimum temperature of the compost heap is + 55… + 65 ° С. And optimal humidity with good aeration.

How live compost can be used

I use the finished compost in four different options, depending on the goals.
1. To quickly improve the humus-poor soil of the garden, I prepare compost, which contains a lot of woody material and, accordingly, mushrooms.
Trees need mushrooms, they grow in soil in which mushrooms are predominant. Fungi form mycorrhiza, a symbiotic relationship with woody plants. Fungi receive carbon from plants, giving in return nutrients from the soil. Mushroom filaments - hyphae - stretch for many kilometers, they can extract nutrients over long distances. In addition, hyphae provide information exchange between trees. This is a kind of Internet in the soil. Fungal spores and hyphae are easily damaged by improper soil cultivation. By inoculating the soil with fungal compost, the fungal diversity in the soil can be quickly restored.

2. For vegetable beds, I prepare compost rich in nitrogen, in which bacteria dominate. It contains more grass, manure, food waste. This compost is better for fertilizing herbaceous plants and vegetables.

3. For the production of AFC, I leave the compost for 6-13 months for good ripening, it is better if it is overgrown with weeds. In this case, the ecosystem of compost organisms will be the most developed and diverse.
4. For the production of compost infusion, fresh compost should be spilled with 1% molasses solution with the addition of 0.05% fish emulsion 10-14 days before use. (I make a "stink in a barrel", where I add nettles or comfrey, they have a good balance, a lot of nitrogen, phosphorus, and carbohydrates). Then it is necessary to loosen well, this causes rapid reproduction of all soil living creatures, followed by the lysis of most bacteria and fungi, while the compost is maximally saturated with antibiotics, amino acids and vitamins, and the infusion from it is the best medicine for treating rot-infected soils.

So, we need compost to quickly restore the fertility of the lands killed by previous exploitation.

Why can't the earth be cured with old drugs?

The use of EM preparations, trichoderma and hay bacillus on contaminated soils has no visible effect, they work well on healthy soils with a high humus content. The same is with ASC, poor in humus, soils contaminated with bacterioses, microorganisms introduced into the soil together with ASC and organic matter are treated, but slowly, in the first year of soil development, the crop cannot be obtained.

Modern mixed bacterial-fungal diseases reduce the immunity of plants, their resistance to frost, drought, pests, weeds, and no agronomic measures can save them from these diseases. We treat mushrooms - we get an outbreak of bacteriosis, we treat bacteria with antibiotics - we get an outbreak of fungal diseases.

I have forty years of experience in treating children from mixed microbial-fungal diseases, I use drugs - four in one, kill fungi, microbes, remove inflammation and restore the disturbed microflora of the skin or intestines.

What I saw in vermicofe and what I learned now

So it is with the soil. For the first time, I saw that soils heal excellently with fresh extracts from vermicompost. In the intestines of worms there are no pathogenic bacteria and fungi, but there are thousands of microorganisms with hundreds of antibiotics that protect worms from diseases, because worms have been crawling for millions of years in the dirtiest rotting manure. Last year I described my experience that the beds watered with vermicofe (extract from vermicompost), and then sprayed with ACC, give an unprecedented increase in yield.

Not everyone can make worm compost, but everyone can make quality compost as described above. In compost, where temperatures do not exceed 55 degrees, micro worms and millions of other micro soil living creatures have time to multiply in three to four weeks, and they all emit coprolites no worse than manure worms, and the composition of bacteria in it is no worse than in compost and the content of antibiotics, suppressing all known soil pathogens, is not worse, and the composition of useful soil anaerobes and protozoa is excellent. We get a four-in-one effect.

How to make hoods and how to use them

If you take 2-3 liters of high-quality fresh compost on a bucket of water, stir well and insist for about an hour until the color of dark coffee, pour it over your sick beds, at the rate of half to two liters per square meter, then this infusion will suppress both pathogenic fungi and bacteria, relieve inflammation of the roots and create a protective layer of beneficial microorganisms in the rhizosphere. The vitamins from the compost infusion will increase the immunity of plants, and they will successfully resist diseases, pests, drought and frost.

Then you can add organic matter to such a cured soil, without fear of intensifying bacterioses, adding ACC, and beneficial microbes will take root.
If you add a dozen beneficial bacteria to millions of pathogens, they do not take root, and if you add millions of beneficial bacteria to the ten pathogens remaining in the soil, they will take root, create their own ecosystem and will not let pathogens into their paradise.
Thus, the gardener can get a harvest on the killed soil already in the first year and not reduce, but increase fertility.

This is the essence of my understanding of why a gardener needs the right compost.