The Best Compost – True Agronomists Know

Best Compost For Growing Plants

Choosing what qualifies as “best” in each given area of competition depends on a variety of factors. Whether it is achieved through widespread consensus, the endorsement of acknowledged authorities, or perhaps even merely due to its authenticity, having the title “best” signifies a lot and should be regarded doubtless. In agriculture, the effectiveness of composting is unquestionably accepted and utilized by most agricultural providers and agronomists. For that, people with interest and expertise in compost created varieties of ideas on how can a compost be more effective and acclaimed the title “best compost”. However, despite all of these developments in composting, some people still continue to make a distinction between compost and fertilizer.

Many people are unaware of the connection between compost and fertilizers. Applying compost and fertilizer serve a partially different purpose. The sole objective of fertilizer, which is created entirely from nitrogen source materials, is to accelerate plant growth. Contrarily, compost enriches the soil by producing a balanced mixture of nitrogen and carbon source elements. The thing is, you can use fertilizer and compost simultaneously. However, using too much fertilizer might contaminate both your soil and your plants due to the high nitrogen content of fertilizer.

The best compost is decided not just by a single factor but many. But for this article, we’re not going to focus on materials, ingredients, or the actual process of making compost. What we are going to focus on is the most suitable compost you can use for a specific time of the year.

The BEST Season to Compost?

Earth’s natural movement on its own axis and around the sun is what causes the 4 different seasons we experience each year. Other living things, such as plants, are also affected by the constantly changing weather in the same way humans are. That is how some plant species developed low-temperature resistance while lacking high-temperature resistance, thus, the latter is true for others.

Spring

Spring is the season of revival for most living things after a long-suffering from glacial months. During this time of the year, animals begin to come out from their hibernation. Some other animals which moved to tropical places during winter return to their original habitat. The Spring season brings an increase in rainfall which aids the growth of infant seeds that froze from the snows of winter.

Spring distributes a balanced of heat and cold temperature to the earth’s surfac. This season is a perfect time for plants and flowers to bloom and prosper. The symmetric weather condition of the spring season occurs because it is in between winter and summer. A healthy compost needs the warmth from the sunlight to thrive and produce more carbon, while also needing enough moisture considering how the beneficial microorganisms in it need water to survive.

Whether you’re using a compost pile, bin, or tumbler, the increased temperature during spring will surely bring good news to your compost mixture. If you already have a compost pile before spring, just add some new carbon source materials and mix them regularly to bring the warmness back while allowing air to naturally flow within your pile.

If you’re new to composting and still trying to figure things out, it is advisable to compost during the spring season when you’re less to consider the weather condition.

Summer

The hottest months of the year is when the sun is most active. You’d feel like the days are way longer than nights. Believe it or not, summer is the best time for your compost mixture, and plants to thrive! Unlike spring, the summer season brings us too much increase in temperature. Yet this phenomenon suits perfectly for decomposing organic materials. The hotter it is, the faster your compost mixture develops. However, it is important to remember that too much is never good, and that goes the same to your plants and compost pile. As much as humans need water, a compost pile in summer requires enough water to thrive.  Your compost needs moisture in order for the beneficial organisms to survive.

Starting your compost pile in summer means you have to water it daily, at least three times to avoid dehydration. Without any proper maintenance, your compost may dry out delaying the process of composting.

Another thing from your pile that needs maintenance is the airflow. Due to too much heat, your compost may harden and cause it to compressed allowing only small amount of oxygen to enter. Humans need oxygen to survive and that goes the same for essential organisms in your compost pile.

Autumn

After long months of suffering from the sun’s warm rays, days slowly begin to go shorter as the autumn season approaches.

Autumn is often called by many as “fall” for the reason that leaves from the trees fall naturally during this season. Leaves even vary in different colors such as red, purple, orange, yellow, and brown. The good thing about these leaves is that all of them can be mixed in your compost pile. If you’re curious about the reason behind leaves falling from trees during autumn then you might wanna continue reading. Trees and plants instinctively fall from trees as they knew winter is coming. The sudden decrease in temperature triggers leaves to fall off naturally as freezing from winter will only damage the leaves that will transfer to the other parts of the plant.

Autumn is a great season for harvesting, but not totally suggested to compost. Composting relies heavily on high temperatures. However, the good thing is composting continues as long as the temperature is above freezing. The process might completely halt if temperatures drop below freezing for numerous days, weeks, or even months at a time. Organic materials cannot continue to be decomposed by microorganisms until the temperature rises. Yet, there is nothing to be worried about. The microbes will automatically restart the composting process whenever the temperature rises.

Winter

If you’ve never composted before, you might be unsure if it’s viable to continue during the winter. Due to the relatively low temperature and the presence of snow everywhere, it is likely that your composting process and conversion of kitchen waste will be delayed.  Fortunately, the decomposition of organic materials may proceed to progress efficiently throughout the winter. Even in the winter, you can begin composting but don’t expect any rapid progress.  When the temperature drops, the breakdown process slows down, but it doesn’t completely stop. Bacteria, fungi, and other microbes can live year-round in compost piles and will begin decomposing organic matter as soon as the temperature slowly increases.