Making the Most of Compost

I don't know if my title is appropriate, but it rhymed, so I'm going with it. I paid a visit to the Tomato Man (Phil Wingard) a couple of weeks ago, and he showed me this summer's crop, in its infancy stage in his greenhouse. Future BLT's growing all over the place, what a sight!

I've been working on a website for Phil, not for his prized heirloom tomatoes, but for another one of his passions, Edgefield Pottery. It has been fun learning about vintage Southern potters like Dave the Slave, Thomas Chandler, and others. Phil showed me some fascinating pieces of pottery in his gallery, including a "ring jug" that field hands used to carry into the cotton fields while they worked. These jugs fit over their shoulders, like a sling, and were filled with water to parch their thirst.

Anyway, back to the tomatoes. Phil asked me what I had done for my soil lately. I proudly told him how I'd saved vegetable scraps and coffee grounds, then dumped them into my garden during the winter. "That's not so good," Phil told me.

Composting, he explained, is a little more involved than simply dumping kitchen scraps into the garden. Proper compost needs a mixture of dry and green, nitrogen and carbon. Phil showed me his 2-compartment compost bin. He dumps vegetable scraps (nitrogen, green) into one side, along with dry leaves (carbon). He then turns the bin every couple of days or so. When one side of the bin is full (leaving room to turn and mix), he begins filling the second compartment. After a few weeks, the first compartment mixture had transformed into lush compost. He empties compartment one, stops adding to compartment two, and repeats the process.

Inspired, I went to Lowes and purchased a compost bin. Mine is just one compartment, so I'll need to fill it, then leave it for about three weeks (turning regularly but not adding any additional material.)

We'll see how it goes! Stay tuned . . .

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