Compost: The natural way to make food for your garden

by Kenneth Thompson

An expert on organic gardening explains how to create the finest compost from ingredients found around the house, in a handbook that includes step-by-step photographs and instructions on practical composting tools and techniques.

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction, Science, Reference, Adult, Green

192 pages, Hardcover

First published February 19, 2007

Reviews

[Gemma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I originally purchased this book as a gift for my father, Years ago. After calling him repeatedly to ask him a million compost related questions to which he always found the answer in this book I decided to get.my own copy, finally.
It is a brilliant reference, and one I often refer back to. Set out in a simple, easy to read style, with natural and inspiring photos.
I have to say it is a lovely book full of everything you could want to know about composting .
Makes a great, unique gift for any garden enthusiast.

[Tweedledum · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rather repetitious but then how many ways and times can you say “Make a layered pile, water occasionally, cover it up and be patient! ? Thompson’s no nonsense approach debunks a lot of expert gardener advice and extravagant claims by sellers of elaborate bins.

I am immensely proud of how successful my composting efforts have been this year and probably did not need this book to tell me what to do... but now lockdown has eased and charity shops daring to open again I was ridiculously pleased to carry this home in triumph from Saturdays mini excursion to a small dales town that had such a shop open!

Read most of it on the way home while hubby, who is shielding and has hardly poked his nose outside the door for 4 months, drove. Honestly the book made me feel really good about my compost and my recently reconstructed new pile.! I loved the photos which reminded me of how magical the transformation process is and how much I love sinking my hands into newly formed compost. It’s been almost impossible to find a family membet or friend who can share this enthusiasm so Ken Thompson gets a big thumbs up there!

I may have been very successful with my compost but it’s really been more by luck than judgement and has involved a huge amount of sieving and sifting! ... but the book gives lots of helpful tips and explanations of what, why and how that I did not know. I look forward to even more success in the future .

[M Aghazarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

More of a primer than a reference book, but the incredibly gorgeous layout makes it easy and comfortable to read in one sitting

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked the look of the book - lots of pictures and various fonts, it was easy to read. Lots of different ideas for bins and for different types of composting. I also thought the information was good although a little confusing. It was also not written specifically for Florida compost piles. All the examples and research are from the UK. And as much as I am generally an anglophile, I would have preferred more US specific info. I'm banking on the last sentence in the book "Even if you do everything wrong, you will still make decent compost eventually." I still would recommend this book along with the IFAS sheet on composting which is specific to FL. (http://livinggreen.ifas.ufl.edu/waste...)

[Kelly Martin · Rating 2 out of 5]

If I had of read this book when I started composting I would never have down it! He makes it sound so much harder than it really is. I've been composting for almost 20 years now. I have two bins of my own and the town bin as well. twice a year I take good compost out of my bins. that is enough to much about 4 beds. All Free of charge! If you buy one of the composters from any hardware store they have ample instructions that come with it.

[Martinxo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good introduction to the art of composting. Thompson is a bit down on wormeries though, suggesting they are more of a hobby than a reliable resource of the dark stuff. Worth reading if you're at the start of yr compost journey.

[Center For Study Indonesian Food Anthropology · Rating 4 out of 5]

Halo, Kerabat !

Buku ini akan membantu mengatur sisa-sisa konsumsi agar dimanfaatkan menjadi lebih bermanfaat dengan cara dibuat kompos, namun untuk membuat kompos tentu saja ada beberapa hal dan kebutuhan yang perlu diperhatikan, buku ini mudah dibaca seperti tutorial, namun akan cukup membantu dalam mengidentifikasi jenis kompos yang ingin diolah.

Mengompos memiliki banyak manfaat. Ini melindungi lingkungan dari kerusakan limbah dan eksploitasi gambut. Daur ulang limbah rumah tangga dapat mengurangi penggunaan lahan dan meminimalkan limbah yang dibakar atau dibuang ke tempat pembuangan sampah. Para tukang kebun bisa membuat kompos dengan limbah mereka sendiri, menghemat uang, dan menggantikan penggunaan gambut dalam produk tanah dan pupuk. Dengan lebih banyak orang yang terlibat dalam mengompos, kita dapat mengurangi dampak negatif terhadap lingkungan, menciptakan keberlanjutan, dan mengurangi ketergantungan pada sumber daya alam yang terbatas.

Limbah yang dibakar dan limbah organik di tempat pembuangan sampah menyebabkan polusi udara dan efek rumah kaca. Metana dari limbah organik adalah gas rumah kaca yang lebih berbahaya daripada karbon dioksida. Kompos dapat mengurangi emisi CO2 dengan mengembalikan materi organik ke tanah, yang bertahan lama di sana. Penggunaan kompos yang lebih luas oleh petani dan tukang kebun dapat memberikan kontribusi penting terhadap upaya pengurangan emisi CO2 sesuai Protokol Kyoto. Dengan mengompos, kita melindungi lingkungan, mengurangi dampak negatif, dan mempromosikan keberlanjutan dengan memanfaatkan kembali limbah organik menjadi sumber berguna untuk tanah.

Sekilas tentang Protokol Kyoto adalah perjanjian internasional yang ditandatangani pada tahun 1997 untuk mengatasi perubahan iklim. Tujuan utamanya adalah mengurangi emisi gas rumah kaca yang berkontribusi pada pemanasan global. Inti dari Protokol Kyoto adalah memberlakukan kewajiban pengurangan emisi bagi negara-negara industri yang telah ditetapkan sebagai Annex I Parties. Negara-negara tersebut diharapkan mengurangi emisi mereka dalam periode tertentu dengan persentase tertentu dibandingkan dengan tingkat emisi pada tahun referensi. Protokol ini juga memberikan insentif untuk pengurangan emisi melalui mekanisme fleksibel seperti mekanisme Pembangunan Bersih dan perdagangan emisi. Protokol Kyoto menjadi landasan penting dalam upaya global untuk mengurangi dampak perubahan iklim.

Kompos membutuhkan campuran bahan yang tepat, air yang cukup, kehangatan, dan udara yang cukup. Hewan dan mikroorganisme yang mengubah bahan tumbuhan menjadi kompos membutuhkan makanan yang sama seperti manusia, yaitu karbohidrat, terutama dari tepung dan gula. Selulosa, karbohidrat utama dalam tumbuhan, tidak dapat diuraikan oleh manusia, tetapi dapat dicerna oleh mikroorganisme kompos. Selain itu, mereka juga membutuhkan nitrogen dan fosfor untuk membuat protein dan molekul penting lainnya. Memahami dasar-dasar kompos ini penting untuk menciptakan tumpukan kompos yang sempurna dan mempercepat proses penguraian bahan organik.

Proses pengomposan membutuhkan udara yang cukup. Udara lebih penting daripada makanan dalam tumpukan kompos. Jika tidak ada cukup udara, pengomposan menjadi anaerobik, yang lebih lambat dan menghasilkan produk yang tidak sedap. Saran tradisional adalah mengaduk tumpukan kompos untuk memperkenalkan udara, tetapi kebutuhan ini bisa membuat beberapa tukang kebun enggan mengompos. Terdapat dilema antara bahan yang kaya nitrogen yang terurai cepat tetapi kurang memiliki kekuatan struktural. Begitu bahan tersebut mulai terurai, mereka kehilangan struktur dan menjadi kumpulan tanpa udara yang berbau tidak sedap. Memastikan adanya udara yang cukup penting dalam pengomposan yang efektif.


Pengomposan klasik melibatkan pengumpulan limbah nitrogen dan karbon, serta pengisian lapisan-lapisan dalam bak kompos. Perhatikan agar tumpukan memiliki ukuran minimal satu meter kubik. Jika tumpukan terasa kering, beri air dan tutup dengan penutup bak atau karpet bekas. Tumpukan akan menghasilkan panas dan perlu diaduk saat mulai mendingin. Proses ini perlu diulang tiga kali. Namun, pendekatan klasik ini seringkali rumit dan menyebabkan banyak tukang kebun mengabaikan membuat kompos. Perlu diingat bahwa saran ini tidak mengungkapkan kesulitan yang sebenarnya.

Kompos untuk realis
Limbah kayu dapat menyebabkan masalah yang cukup besar sehingga saya akan mulai dengan mengasumsikan Anda tidak memiliki limbah kayu. Nanti, kita akan melihat apa yang bisa dilakukan dengan limbah kayu, tetapi pertama-tama mari kita pertimbangkan apa yang dapat Anda lakukan secara realistis dengan limbah taman lunak, limbah rumah tangga, dan rumput yang dipotong.

Nah, disini kerabat akan mendapat beberapa tips :
1. kompos itu bisa dirajang dan gunakan langsung sebagai mulsa.
2. Buat tumpukan kompos terpisah yang khusus dirancang untuk limbah kayu.
3. Buat tumpukan sebagai habitat.
4. Biarkan orang lain menanganinya, jika komposmu kebanyakan.
5. Bakar limbah kayu tersebut.

Buku ini juga menarik dibaca karena bacaannya tidak terlalu berat yang prosedural dan teoretis, tampilannya juga menarik banyak foto-foto jadi tidak membosankan, buku ini ditulis oleh seorang ekologis.

Hatur nuhun.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first year composting and this book is true to it's title "The Gardener's Essential Compost and Recycling Bible"

[Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

I finished this book in a few hours, it’s a nice quick read but I feel somewhat discouraged after reading it. The book didn’t have a logical structure to it and I think it made composting seem a lot harder than it has to be.

[Catie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very helpful little book about backyard composting. The author is from the UK, so some of his suggestions aren't feasible or available in the US. I appreciated his no-nonsense approach. The book ends with "Even if you do everything wrong, you will still make decent compost eventually." 😂

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book. I think this is a great resource for beginner level composting especially what I needed. It also gave some resources for if you want to do more composting. I would have like to see some recommendations on fermenting compost.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

The ancient art of piling things up and leaving them in a corner to rot.
Most life on earth depends on it!

[Mallory · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great, easily worded guide for beginning composters with visuals.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice little intro to composting. Not planning my own pile, but planning to partake in a community compost program. Just need to go pick up my bucket.

[Tessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice introduction to the topic.

[Clivemichael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well designed, comprehensive and accessible manual. Great pictures. Aimed at the temperate zone.

[Annie Lanouette · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informative enough.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great reference book filled with beautiful pictures for anyone wanting to learn more about composting.

[Tessa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative without being overly dense or dry.

[Sally · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great primer on compost
From library
Wish I could keep it

[Anastasia Tuckness · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of best gardening books I've read--practical, reasonable, informative, fun to read, all wrapped up in an easy-to-hold, easy-on-the-eyes package. I feel like an expert on compost now and I had fun learning about it. DK publishing is really good! This book is full of pictures of a great variety of compost bins, compost piles, and everything related to compost. The pictures plus the creative use of colored pages, varying font sizes, and small illustrations all work together to make this book work.

And I learned a lot of things about compost. Here are the ones I want to remember:
-Adult male urine is a great compost "activator" because it adds ammonia. I had never heard this before but then last week I read in a gardening magazine that one of the fancy gardens in Britain was using this method. Can be added "directly" or in diluted form.
--Eventually, at some point, no matter what you do or do not do to it, your compost pile will decompose down into dirt. You can make it go faster with some techniques, but you really don't have to--someday the process will complete itself naturally.
--His favored technique involves a simple bin, layers, worms, and (!) no turning! It's called high fibre composting and the big difference is you add cardboard and paper, crumpled into 3D balls, into your compost pile. It adds enough air and structure to keep your kitchen waste and grass clippings from collapsing, and it breaks down faster than leaves or woody stuff.There will be an active layer of worms in the middle of the pile.
Here's the factsheet from its creators: http://info.cat.org.uk/questions/land...
--A dedicated worm bin can be a pain, it can smell, and it requires about as much work as a pet hamster. (We will not have one!)
--Weed seeds will be taken care of if you have a robust colony of red worms in your compost bin.
--According to his research, only REALLY large piles of compost actually get hot in the middle. (Or, at the least, it requires a lot of turning and proper siting and just the right stuff inside it to get it hot.) However, my mom swears that her black plastic bin full of compost gets quite hot in mid-summer Iowa, so maybe "traditional" hot composting is attainable here. (The author lives in Britain.)
--More on leaves: composting ones include ash, cherry, elm, linden/basswood, maple, poplar/cottonwood, willow. "Bad ones" that will take forever to break down include: beech, birch, hornbeam, oak, and sweet chestnut (mostly brown leaves).
--Mown/shredded leaves/grass will work well as a mulch or when added to the pile.
--Spreading "incomplete" compost on your garden will only take away nitrogen if you dig it into the soil. Earthworms will get it into the soil more effectively and gently than you will. (Be careful of your soil's tilth!)
--A 2-bin system can be great--when one fills up, leave it alone to decompose, move some worms over, and start on the other.
--To get red wigglers--talk to a neighbor, go to a bait shop, or "put a bag of fresh green waste with a hole in the bottom on any patch of bare earth."
--Everyone has a different idea of "done compost" so don't worry about it. Just use it.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book felt really good in my hand and I really liked the paper it was printed on and the colors and PHOTOGRAPHY. The design aside, inside was filled with good information on how to go about making your own compost and how to have a successful pile. My goal for my garden is to make enough compost to enrich my kitchen garden. I used purchased worm castings last year because I can't find a good place to keep a worm bin in the winter and my husband has a hard time with the idea of having a worm bin in general) and *some* compost - but I don't have nearly enough at the moment.

What I especially appreciated was the laid back approach the author obviously has with regards to composting. Of course you CAN go and buy compost activator and use it and CAN buy expensive compost tumblers to speed up the time in which you can make compost but it's not really necessary if you are patient. He mentions that if you start with a pile of stuff it will all eventually become compost and most of it within about 11 months. If you have the right ratio of soft waste (kitchen scraps, grass clippings) and hard waste (thin branches, etc) it will happen sooner.

This confirmed that I need to get a second bin just like the one I currently have. The stuff keeps decomposing down but I just keep throwing new kitchen scraps on top of it and am never able to really use it unless I get to the bottom stuff which is rather hard to do even though I have ample space in my bottom opening. So all in all a good book for those interested in starting to make and use compost in their own garden.

[Sarah Gabriel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This may seem like an odd book to spend time with. After all, how much can one possibly write on the subject of compost? You’d be surprised. I’ve toyed around with the idea of a compost pile for a while. There was even one very short-lived attempt at it. Let’s just say climbing into a pit of smelly waste with a pitchfork to turn all of it was not top of my to-do list. But now with a better garden than I’ve ever had before, and plans to expand, I decided it was something I needed to think about again, with the hope of finding an easier way of doing it. Really, with the amount of waste the average household can produce between the house and yard, there should be more than enough material to work with and make a success out of composting. But how to accomplish that?

Compost by Ken Thompson is the best and most simplified explanation of the process I could ever have hoped for. Many nonfiction books on topics like this read as though they were written by some grand horticultural scientist sitting in his state-of-the-art conservatory, judging all other gardens like his own. This was nothing like that. This was much more like an average (though knowledgeable) gardener sharing what he knows with other average (though less knowledgeable) gardeners.

Read my full review at http://closetoheartandhome.blogspot.c...

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

First of all when other reviewers have pointed out that this book would be appropriate for the coffee table I can't disagree. The pictures are beautiful and important text is enlarged and highlighted which makes it very desirable to flip through. Unfortunately, the book is a little too center on ascetics and less on real, useful content. In fact I found it difficult to read as many of the pages featured black text on a darkly colored page. Still, the book has some merit as a coffee table book useful to drawing attention to green gardening and green waste disposal. Since I don't even have a coffee table I think I will skip purchasing but I'm glad I got to read it. I do like that it points that that stuff rots, and you don't have to be a botanist to get started. Finial note: I find it kind of incomprehensible that this book is not printed on recycled paper nor is it printed with soy based ink. This book would make terrible compost!

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book was easy and enjoyable to read. Despite being 196 pages long, it has lots of images and most pages have only small amounts of text. Most of the content was familiar to me because I read it after I had regularly made compost from food scraps and yard waste for several years. The book did settle (or claim to settle) a few issues I had heard of, such as whether applying unfinished compost to soil "robs" the soil of nitrogen. The book says that is only true if you till the unfinished compost into the soil. If instead you simply lay the unfinished compost on the surface of the soil, it will break down slowly without competing with plant roots for nitrogen.

I'd call this a fine general introduction for someone with little or no composting experience, and an interesting refresher for the experienced composter.

[Christine K · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this is a really good book for someone like myself that's just getting interested in composting. It's photo heavy which is easy on the eyes but also shows exactly what they mean when they talk layering compost, diff bins, etc. Also beneficial is the lack of pushing towards commercial grade products- many assume you can get and do everything you would need with a compost bin you can buy at Home Depot- and this book really lays out that that's certainly not the case, may not be your best option and that you can save money, and possibly recycle products, by making your own.

I felt like this book gets 5 stars for a gen overview- almost a super pamphlet on recycling but am giving it 4 stars bc some of the sections did not go as in depth as I would have preferred and the content seems to jump around.

Quick, light reading for starters.

[Tamara]

Since I'm starting the trend of relating books to TV shows, this book is like Good Eats on the Food Network. An interesting topic, but too exacting and scientific for my tastes.

I just wanted to know what I'm allowed to put in my pretty new rotating composter. This book makes it all sound so precarious! I think I'll just dump stuff 50/50 (50% green matter, 50% brown matter) and see what happens!

But, on a complete side note, this book smelled good. Hmmm...

[Johnny Brooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great little book on composting. Easy to understand, book design is fun and attractive. Takes what can be presented as a complex and labor intensive activity, and explains it simply. Ken Thompson does not prescribe how you should compost, but gives plenty of ideas for different methods.

The last line in the book describes it best: "Even if you do everything wrong, you will still make decent compost eventually."

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who has been bitten with the gardening bug but who is very lacking in knowledge this book was great!

Clear, precise explanations about compost. It told me everything I wanted to know and did so in a beautifully produced book with gorgeous artistic pages. I borrowed this from the library but would love to own my own copy. It wouldn't look out of place on your coffee table.

[Traci · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mostly pictures, every other page. BUT it was very informational. I learned about the different kinds of mixes that you can have by what you put into your compost pile. Also what kind of bins you can use, what exactly you should put into your pile depending on what you want to do, and lastly what you could do with your compost.