For me, composting requires no apologetics. Ever since I began gardening compost has been part of the deal and it’s always made sense to produce it. Yet, to an outsider looking in making compost may seem like the most bizarre activity and demands some sort of explanation.
So, what is the point of composting?
Obviously the first and foremost reason is that composting is a form of recycling. It takes all our plant material waste; lawn trimmings, fruit and veggie scraps, prunings, dead leaves etc and decomposes them. This decomposition then transforms back into a rich humus that can once again be used in the garden. This saves our landfill areas from expanding too fast and gives us back a resource that will eventually become useful in our own gardens.
Second, it provides organic matter for our gardens. It seems a tad bizarre when I watch neighbours haul away their green waste to landfill only to pick up a trailer-load of mulch on their way home. Duh! Sure, the time factor of creating compost may seem a little inconvenient but with the range of compost tumblers available these days, the time lag is significantly reduced.
This organic matter then becomes the predominant fertiliser in the garden. It can be used to amend the soil in your garden beds, become a liquid fertiliser in the form of compost tea and provide a feeding mulch during the warmer months.
The benefit of re-using compost in your garden is two-fold; (1) it saves money, and (2) it diminishes any future problems caused by using inorganic fertilisers, pesticides or bringing sordid mulch onto your property.
One side benefit that I enjoy is that because I turn my compost heaps by hand, it gives me a free workout each week. People pay heaps to join a gym and get their fitness and muscle tone in shape when all the workout you need can be accessed within your own yard.
Composting can only be seen as a win-win situation. Every form of green waste remains in your yard and the result of the composting process means you get cheap, possibly free, inorganic matter. How can you lose?