Composting Basics: All the Skills and Tools You Need to Get Started

by Eric Ebeling (Editor), Carl Hursh (Contributor), Patti Olenick (Contributor)

How to recycle household waste to make quality compost

You don’t need a science degree or a shed full of sophisticated equipment to make quality compost. What you need to get started is the know-how provided in this basic how-to book along a little elbow grease and the pile of organic materials you regularly throw away. Nature does the rest.
Whether you live in the suburbs, country, or city, whether you have a garden or not, you can recycle household waste in an environmentally friendly way and turn it into black compost. You’ll learn what and how to compost, how to make or buy bins, how to build a compost pile and make compost tea, and how to compost with worms. It’s simple and easy to do, and the best part is that you’ll be saving money and helping to save the earth as well.

Genres: Nonfiction, Gardening

160 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2017

Reviews

[Westminster Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best book on composting I have ever used. The text is clear and easy to follow even when explaining the process of composting. The pictures make it even easier to follow the directions and see what items to compost and how to make the bins. After following the instructions in this book, I had the best and fastest composting I have ever had and I’ve been trying for years. I may even try the worm composting bin. I like this book so much I bought my own copy.

Find Composting Basics at the Westminster Public Library!

[Adolfo Luna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick, concise, and easy to apply basics of composting. Can't wait to try!

[Aprilleigh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book on composting that includes all the usual details about what composting is, why you should compost, and how it works. It includes a pretty decent chapter on vermicomposting. It covers both commercial and handmade compost bins and equipment, including directions for making a simple wire mesh bin, a three-bin system made with pallets, and a compost screener. There are decent lists of both nitrogen sources and carbon sources as well as a list of what not to put in the compost bin. It’s nicely illustrated throughout and contains an astonishing amount of information packed in only 130 pages.

[Janey Dangerous · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book, unlike the shorter composting sections of other gardening books, gave me a clear idea of what kind and scale of composting would work best for my garden base on size and available compost. I also found the instruction much more robust than the Rebel gardener and more digestible than the agriscience book about compost and fertilizer I read before hand. Would recommend this one for beginner gardeners of all kinds. I was able to confidently decide what kind of composting I wanted to use, what kind of system I wanted to buy/use and understand all the pros and cons of each!

[Lisad]

This is a very helpful resource for beginners. All the basics with detailed photos. I was primarily interested in the section about Vermicomposting, and was pleased with all of the helpful information.

[Karen Soanes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Incredibly helpful- I took copious notes and am ready to build a pallet system. So exciting. The pictures and build directions and the tips sprinkled throughout the book set this apart from other books.

[Christine Sopko · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good basic info.

[Hazel · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was adequate for very basic composting ideas. Nothing more.

[Heather Trageser · Rating 5 out of 5]

Seems like a great place to start learning about composting.

[Stan · Rating 4 out of 5]

An informative book on composting. It provided the how to for the beginner composter. Hopefully following these instruction help me avoid the pitfalls a lot of beginning people m aww ke.

[Shevon Quijano · Rating 5 out of 5]

This does exactly what it says - teaches you how to get started with composting!

[Adam Bogs · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great read for anyone interested in building or starting a compost pile in your back yard.

[Brenda Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everything you need to know written so you can understand. From gathering material for your compost, to building bins and storage. It discusses time and what happens at each stage.

[KAREN · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was good, well written and very helpful.

[Cecily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative without being to technical. Great starter book.

[Larry Perez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty basic information, but a quick, clear read.