Today gardeners are adopting the eco-friendly habit of composting at home. Composting helps us to reduce the waste in our landfills, and enrich-rich our soils, offer good nutrients for the plants to grow healthier, and we are also contributing towards a healthier planet. In addition to all, this the fact is that you don’t have to spend money on purchasing compost from your local garden shops. You can now have access to nutrient-rich compost for free. Compost is also known as black gold, the reason being, it is extremely helpful in boosting the yield of your fruits and vegetables. Today we will discuss about compost accelerators, the way they work, and if they are worth it.
Compost accelerator
It is also known as compost starters or compost activators. They consist of concentrated bacteria packages and fungus. When you utilize a compost accelerator it helps to bootstrap or jump-start the process of decomposition. Basically, as the name suggests they “accelerate” the process of decomposition.
This is an excellent way to go about composting, especially if you have plenty of composting materials all year round, and you don’t have the space or even the time to wait for it to get ready. The process of bacteria is working constantly and contributing to the decomposition of all the organic matter is accelerated. Now you would notice bacteria along with insects that include worms, grubs, and termites working at a macroscopic level. However, if you do not use the compost accelerator, the entire process will take several weeks to begin.
Good compost accelerator
A well-compost accelerator has certain features in common that includes;
Ingredients that are rich in nitrogen
Excellently compost accelerators have plenty of ingredients that are rich in nitrogen. In addition, they also have added elements like, calcium and magnesium. All this together when combined help to grow bacteria in the compost pile, boosting the process of decomposition.
Organic formulas
High-quality compost accelerators will definitely have organic ingredients in plenty. The reason for us to compost is for ecofriendly reasons therefore, I always recommend not to use compost accelerators that may have plenty of synthetic or chemical ingredients.
Ingredients with active bacteria
Always utilized a compost accelerator that has plenty of bacteria that are active in it. This helps in cellular replication and quicker decomposition.
Making your own compost accelerator
If you’re not comfortable purchasing an accelerator from your local garden shop, then you can always go ahead and make some for yourself. The entire process is pretty simple, follow the steps;
You will require
- Barrel – 5 gallons
- Warm water – 2 gallons
- Ammonia – half cup
- Soda – 12 ounces
- Beer – 6 ounces
Method
- Mix all the ingredients in the bucket with the help of the shovel
- Add the warm water to the mixture
- Beer will accelerate the pile because, it has yeast in it
- The nitrogen that you have mixed will give the bacteria a boost to break down bacteria like leaves, food, etc.
- Once everything is thoroughly mixed, you can pour it over the compost pile
- With the help of the shovel, you can now mix things up
Once you utilize it, you will be amazed by how well this compost accelerator will work for you. Do let us know if you’ve tried out this recipe and how well it worked for you. All the best!