- Author: Birgitte Elbeck, UCCE Master Gardener
Starting a compost pile in winter may not be at the top of your to-do list, but it may be just the thing you need to beat the winter doldrums. Your reward will be soil that is more fertile, supporting bigger and heather plants in next summer's garden.
Types of composting: There are two primary ways to compost in the garden. There is the slow ‘cold' method, where you keep piling material in a heap and leave it largely unattended, probably for longer than a year. Then there is the fast ‘hot' method, which is what Master Gardeners recommend. This fast method not only gives you finished compost in 4-6 weeks but also ensures more consistent results and is more likely to kill weed seeds & pathogens. You do not need to run out and buy anything - however, it does require a bit of elbow grease.
Building your ‘hot' pile: Composting relies on the work of many bacteria, fungi, and invertebrates that consume and break down plant matter. They need oxygen to stay alive. This means that your pile must stay fluffy and have air pockets throughout. In addition to air, the micro organisms also need a certain amount of heat to thrive. Together, these two factors mean that a pile should not be so big that the bottom layers are crushed by the weight above, and a pile should not be so small that too much heat from the organisms escapes. Experience shows that a starting pile 3' x 3' x 3' in size will have about the proper proportions. Your pile should be placed directly on the soil and kept in place with a simple ring of fencing material or a similar enclosure. Plastic enclosures are discouraged because the airflow is restricted.
Because you will want the finished compost to provide a well-balanced set of nutrients for your plants, the nutrients in the source material must also be in reasonable balance. The focus specifically is on balancing nitrogen and carbon. For the most part, nitrogen-rich components are green (spinach, for example), and carbon-rich components are brown (wood chips, for example). Click here for additional information about “greens and browns”. Be sure to chop larger pieces to 6” or shorter, as they will compost much faster. Layer several inches of ‘greens' alternating with several inches of ‘browns.' Note that no meat, dairy, or oil should be added to the pile, nor should diseased plant materials or noxious plants with seeds be included.
Pay attention to the water content of your pile. The micro organisms require moist, but not soggy, conditions, and you can achieve this by spraying water on the pile while turning or by placing a cover over it when significant rain is in the forecast.
Turning your pile: Once you have built your pile, wait a number of days for the micro organisms and invertebrates to settle in. Some critters will already be in the raw materials, others will travel up from the soil below, and their activity will start warming the pile. Your active pile will start shrinking, and you can stick your hand toward the pile's center to get a rough feel for the heat level. The desired temperature range is 130 - 160 degrees F; you should turn the pile in that temperature range after about three days. If the pile isn't heating up, it could be that you have not reached a critical mass of materials, or there isn't enough green to go with the brown, or the pile is too green and soggy and needs more browns. Turning your pile with a garden fork onto an adjacent area gives you an opportunity to move the less digested plant materials at the edges toward the middle of the new pile, add water, and introduce new air pockets. A well-managed pile will need to be turned at least once a week, will stay hot for 2 or 3 weeks, and then cool and be recolonized by worms and other soil organisms. In 4-6 weeks, you will have finished compost that can be used to enrich your soil.
Using your compost: Your compost is ready to be spread on your garden beds when it has a crumbly texture with no recognizable bits of vegetation remaining. It will have a fresh, earthy smell. Compost does not need to be worked into the soil; the worms will take care of that for you… But if you are turning your soil, this is a good time to add it.
Links: We encourage you to look at the links to the online material below. The YouTube videos are all very short and practical, while the material on the Master Gardeners' composting page has more technical information.
UC Master Gardeners of Humboldt & Del Norte Counties composting page: https://ucanr.edu/sites/hdnmastergardeners/Resources_for_Home_Gardeners/Composting/
Demonstration videos from the Orange County Master Gardener Program:
What is Composting – https://youtu.be/8Hzz56vV9Mw
How to start a compost pile – https://youtu.be/Z2fIY7eN8fI
How to turn a compost pile – https://youtu.be/lkGRsPm-gt4
What is Hot Method? What is Cold Method? – https://youtu.be/PRpc7o_AaUc
Why are these bugs in my compost pile? - https://youtu.be/VAyM9BjEv9I
Cornell Waste Management Institute, Composting: Balancing Your Greens and Browns https://cwmi.css.cornell.edu/balancing.pdf
By Penny Pawl, UC Master Gardener of Napa County
As the new year gets underway, we start dreaming of what our gardens will be like in the spring and summer. he urge to garden should be rising within you. Even if it is cold and wet there are things you can start planning and doing.
The first task is to read all those seed catalogs you have received. I wish I had the time, energy and space to plant and care for most of the plants listed (except beets).Now is the time to go through these catalogs and compare seeds, yields, dates to maturity and other information on what you plan to grow this year.
I like to read all the tomato descriptions, but I wait to buy from the Master Gardener Tomato Sale in April. I think I most enjoy eating tomatoes right off the vine, when they are warm and tasty. I call this grazing in the garden.
If you see other seeds you want to try, compare sources and decide which company to buy from. It is a little too early to start the seeds, but you can get your pots and soil ready for the growing season. Don't forget to include some nectar-producing plants to feed the bees, butterflies and moths and perhaps a bat or two. Many of these can be planted right alongside your vegetables.
The weeds have really taken advantage of our warm, rainy winter. Mine are growing into a forest. An old-fashioned hoe works well for weeding and also gives you a workout. And it's not too late to try sheet composting to cut down on weeds. The Napa County Master Gardeners produced a video [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMiUB8ErEys]
on sheet composting. If the cardboard has not decomposed by the time you are ready to plant, just cut planting holes in it.
Any dormant fruit and landscape trees should be pruned now before they get flowers and leaves. Consult a book on pruning or online resources if you're not sure what to do. Be sure your pruning tools are clean and sharp, a good indoor chore to tackle when it's raining.
Now is the time to plant bare-root fruit trees or other new plants you want in your landscape. Monitor new plantings to make sure they stay damp if it doesn't rain. The new roots need moisture to grow so the plants get established.
Check mulched areas to see if you need to add more. Keep mulch away from tree trunks to avoid rot.
Visit local nurseries to see what they have in stock and get ideas. They are getting new plants regularly now. If you see something you want, buy it before the supply runs out.
Check your compost bins to make sure they are damp; use a pitchfork to turn and aerate the materials. If you have worm bins, check them, too, and add more worms if necessary to keep the decomposition going. If you don't have enough material in your compost bin or worm bin, add shredded newspaper, cardboard and food scraps to keep the decomposers happy. If rain is forecast and the bed has gotten too dry, I take the cover off. When the material is as damp as a wrung-out sponge, I replace the cover.
Consider removing your thirsty lawn and replacing it with drought-tolerant plants in a design of your choosing. It takes some research, but in the end, you will not be watering, mowing and battling the ground rodents. And you will be so proud of what you have done. Lawns require a huge amount of water and chemicals to keep them looking good.
The City of Napa still has a Cash for Grass offer (https://www.cityofnapa.org/585/Cash-For-Grass). Consider taking advantage of that program. Last but not least, sign up for a Master Gardener workshop to learn more about gardening. You'll find a calendar of these at napamg.ucanr.edu/.
Library Talk: Napa County Master Gardeners will give a talk on “Creative Cucurbits: Loofahs and More” on Thursday, February 3, from 7 pm to 8 pm. Save room in the garden for some crazy cucurbits and learn how to prepare them for your own use or as gifts. Register to receive the Zoom link at https://ucanr.edu/2022FebCucurbits.
Got Garden Questions? Contact our Help Desk. The team is working remotely so please submit your questions through our diagnosis form, sending any photos to mastergardeners@countyofnapa.org or leave a detailed message at 707- 253-4143. A Master Gardener will get back to you by phone or email.
For more information visit https://napamg.ucanr.edu or find us on Facebook or Instagram, UC Master Gardeners of Napa County.
Advice for the Home Gardener from the Help Desk of the
UC Master Gardener of Contra Costa County
Help Desk Response: Thank you for contacting the UC Master Gardener Program Help Desk with your question about compost.
You said that your compost bin is not getting hot. If the compost pile is not heating up, then the pile is too wet or too dry or there is not enough green material (or nitrogen) present. If too wet, the material should be spread out to dry. If too dry, add moisture to make it “spongy”. If neither of these, then the nitrogen is low and this can be corrected by adding materials high in nitrogen (lawn cuttings, etc.).
You asked whether you can place materials which are not fully composted into the garden bed. My comment was that yes this is possible, but that it will draw nitrogen from the soil to continue the composting process in the garden bed. Also, heat is the driving force to kill funguses or other living material in the pile prior to placing it in the vegetable bed.
We discussed making sure there is enough nitrogen present in the composting contents. The document linked below on rapid composting discusses this –
https://vric.ucdavis.edu/pdf/compost_rapidcompost.pdf
And here is a link on composting basics that you might also find informative:
http://sonomamg.ucanr.edu/composting/composting_basics/
Free Recycle Smart Compost Class: You might also be interested in the compost class offered by Recycle Smart. The class is free, and was developed to help residents understand the importance of organics recycling, build composting systems, recycle food and yard waste at their homes, build healthy urban soils and support thriving landscapes. For APPLICATION, dates and more information visit www.RecycleSmart.org/CompostSmart. The application deadline for the next class is February 22, 2019.
Good luck on your compost. Please do not hesitate to contact the Help Desk if you have more questions.
Help Desk of the UC Master Gardener Program of Contra Costa County (MCW)
Note: UC Master Gardeners Program of Contra Costa's Help Desk is available almost year-round to answer your gardening questions. Except for a few holidays (e.g., last 2 weeks December), we're open every week, Monday through Thursday for walk-ins from 9:00 am to Noon at 2380 Bisso Lane, Concord, CA 94520. We can also be reached via telephone: (925) 608-6683, email: ccmg@ucanr.edu, or on the web at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/Ask_Us/. MGCC Blogs can be found at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/HortCoCo/ You can also subscribe to the Blog.
Advice for the Home Gardener from the Help Desk of the
UC Master Gardener Program of Contra Costa County
Thank you for contacting the UC Master Gardener Program Help Desk. It was nice to speak with you this morning. You asked about when to spread compost on your garden--whether you should do it now or wait until spring. There is no wrong time to put compost into the garden, but the microbes that decompose the compost and make nutrients available work much slower in the winter. As soon as the soil warms up, the microbes work faster. If you choose to wait until spring, make sure you apply it at least a couple of weeks before you plant.
Here's a link to information about rapid composting you might find interesting: https://vric.ucdavis.edu/pdf/compost_rapidcompost.pdf.
And more information about using compost in the home garden can be found at:
http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/files/221120.pdf.
Please don't hesitate to contact us again with further gardening questions.
Help Desk of the UC Master Gardener Program of Contra Costa County (SEH)
Note: UC Master Gardeners Program of Contra Costa's Help Desk is available almost year-round to answer your gardening questions. Except for a few holidays (e.g., last 2 weeks December), we're open every week, Monday through Thursday for walk-ins from 9:00 am to Noon at 2380 Bisso Lane, Concord, CA 94520. We can also be reached via telephone: (925) 608-6683, email: ccmg@ucanr.edu, or on the web at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/Ask_Us/. MGCC Blogs can be found at http://ccmg.ignore.edu/HortCoCo/ You can also subscribe to the Blog.
Advice from the Help Desk of the
UC Master Gardener Program of Contra Costa County
Advice from the UC MGCC Help Desk: Thank you for contacting the Master Gardener help desk with your question about compost and rodents.
There are several different designs for compost bins to prevent rodent access, all of which have their benefits and disadvantages. The easiest way to keep rodents out would be a fully-enclosed and elevated tumbling bin, however these bins tend to be smaller than other bins. There are also plastic on-the-ground bins that hold more, but are more difficult to rodent proof, although it's definitely possible. Then there are wooden bins or open compost piles that pretty much cannot be rodent proofed.
There are some steps you can also take to reduce the attractiveness of compost in any container. Since rodents use the bins to find food and often as well a dry and comfortable place to live, make sure you keep the pile moist and turn it regularly. Bury and cover food waste deeply into the compost, making sure you don't add meat, grease or dairy products.
There are other things you can do to reduce rodent population in your yard. Don't feed and/or leave uneaten pet food outside. Cleanup around bird-feeding stations where the birds have scatter food. Clear thick vegetation, especially ground covers. Keep garbage and trash picked up and stored in a container. Seal access to crawl spaces and attics as well as make the area under decks and sheds inaccessible. The goal is to to eliminate rodents' cover and hiding spots.
This year especially, rat complaints at the MGCC Help Desks appear to be quite common. Rats appear to be a bigger problem in our area than are mice, and roof rats are the primary pest. Rats can chew and cause damage inside homes, especially attics and crawl spaces, and they can get into stored foods, especially pet food in garages. In the garden, they can damage fruits and vegetables, sometimes wiping out entire crops. They can also spread diseases to humans and other animals.
The University of California has a good information sheet on rat management for the home and garden: http://ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn74106.html. And here are two links to good information about composting: http://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/pdf/8037.pdf and http://sacmg.ucanr.edu/files/163139.pdf.
Additionally, if you live in Contra Costa County, you can request assistance on rat and mice control from the Contra Costa Mosquito & Vector Control District. While the District won't trap or bait for rats and mice in or around private e homes, they will assist homeowners with rat or mouse problems with advice and a free inspection from one of their state certified technicians to assist in rodent prevention and control (skunks too!). Their web page at http://www.contracostamosquito.com/rats_mice.htm provides the details.
Please let us know if you have more questions.
(all pictures from the Contra Costa Mosquito & Vector Control District)
Help Desk of the UC Master Gardener Program of Contra Costa County (SEH)
Note: The UC Master Gardeners Program of Contra Costa's Help Desk is available year-round to answer your gardening questions. Except for a few holidays, we're open every week, Monday through Thursday for walk-ins from 9:00 am to Noon at 75 Santa Barbara Road, 2d Floor, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523. We can also be reached via telephone: (925) 646-6586, email: ccmg@ucanr.edu, or on the web at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/Ask_Us/ MGCC Blogs can be found at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/HortCoCo/ You can also subscribe to the Blog (http://ucanr.edu/blogs/CCMGBlog/).