The Key

The key to growing healthy vegetables is healthy soil, and the best way to improve the health of your soil is with compost. There are probably as many theories on how to make compost as there are people who are making it.

In our backyard, we currently have three compost bins in various stages of decomposition. All of our kitchen vegetable scraps (no meat or dairy) go into the piles, along with weeds we've pulled around the garden. The green material is layered with brown material, usually dried leaves or grasses. I also add a bit of soil on top of the kitchen scraps, to get some micro-organisms to work on them right away.


Every few months I'll sift the finished compost out into a wheelbarrow, returning the larger pieces that haven't yet broken down to the pile. If it's early in the summer, let the compost dry on a tarp before storing it. If it is still wet, it will continue to break down in storage, reducing the amount of compost you have available.

I have a good supply of compost on hand, so the finished compost from this summer will be spread on the beds next spring. I'll also add compost in mid-summer or fall, before late-season planting.