Questioning compost

The most frequently asked questions about compost are:

How long does it take?
Do I need to turn the heap (or windrow), and if so, how frequently?
Is horse manure a good input?
Can I put meat or other putrescible material into my compost?
How much do I need to make for my garden (or farm)?

The answers to these are fairly straightforward: respectively, they are:

As long as it takes, and anything up to six months.
No, but if you do, only once or twice, to thoroughly mix the components, and possibly to add water if it is too dry. OK, turning can accelerate the process, but do you want a predominance of heat-loving bacteria species
Not very, as it is somewhat lacking in bacteria species, is very fibrous, and often has traces of veterinary products in it.
Yes, in small proportions, such material will easily break down in the composting process.
Make as much as you can – you’ll never have too much!

Composting is one of the least understood processes undertaken by the gardener and farmer. Basically, we are assembling a range of components which have the maximum possible capacity to support the growth and reproduction of bacteria and other plant-available nutrients, collectively known as humus. Poor composts are low in humus, while good composts have a high proportion of humus.

Contrary to popular belief, compost is not a means of recycling nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (NPK). A compost heap is a site of transformation of dead material into living micro-organisms, of ‘producing’ plant-available colloidal minerals and, it is claimed, of transmutation.

The biodynamic compost preparations are designed to finesse and maximise the natural processes of decay and synergetic up-building in the process.

Although the first principle of biodynamics is local nutrient self-sufficiency, some highly desirable inputs may have to be obtained from ‘outside’, like seaweed, rock dust, spent coffee grounds, bacterial brews from various sources such as the forest floor (or purchased ‘EM’), a little prior ‘good’ compost, molasses,…and cow manure. Cow manure is the queen of manures, rich in a long suite of bacteria from that enormous rumen, second to no other. Last but not least, clay: up to 10% is a wise inclusion, as it has an almost miraculous ability to boost the mineral and microbial activity of the compost pile.