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6 Must-Know Composting Tips to Get You Started
By Henry Allpas

Managing an efficient compost pile is an art. You will run into problems sooner or later on your road to becoming a composting extraordinaire. The following is a list of 6 tips that every good composter should know.

1. Keep a close eye on the temperature of your compost pile; it should be warm, but not hot. Try to maintain the temperature between 40 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit. On the rare occasion a compost pile can become so hot that it can spontaneously combust. On the other hand, if the compost pile is too cold it will take forever for your compost to mature.
2. The moisture level of the is important. It should feel about as moist as a wrung-out sponge. If the compost is too dry add water and if it is too wet try to physically raise it (this should have been a consideration when you first built your compost pile) so that the excess liquid can drain out of the bottom
3. Cut up or shred anything you put into your pile for composting. This will increase the surface area of the fresh organic matter helping it to decompose more quickly
4. Aerate your compost pile 4 to 5 times each season. This prevents anaerobic decomposition which can produce toxic byproducts. You will know it is time to aerate when your composter starts to smell of ammonia
5. Keep the ratio of Greens to Browns at about 25:1. Greens are carbon-based organic matter and Browns are nitrogen-based organic matter.
6. Do not dump your fresh lawn clippings onto your compost pile. Instead spread the clippings over the pile and mix them under or spread the grass clippings on the lawn and let them dry before you add them to pile. If you do not do either of these the fresh, wet clippings will clump together and remove oxygen from the compost pile possibly leading to anaerobic decomposition which leads to toxic byproducts

If you want to learn more about composting toilets or just composting in general visit my website and join the movement to reduce, reuse and compost! http://www.bigsteamypile.com

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