UF/IFAS Okeechobee County Extension Service

458 Highway 98 North

Okeechobee, FL 34972-2578

Phone: (863) 763-6469

E- mail: dfculbert@ifas.ufl.edu

April 21, 2004

Feature Article - for release the week of April 26, 2004

Dan Culbert - Extension Horticulture Agent

MAKE "IT" HAPPEN DURING COMPOST WEEK!

Do you want to be a successful Florida Gardener? Many of Florida’s horticultural experts know that the secret to a successful garden and landscape in the Sunshine State is to add organic matter to the soil. With a little effort and knowledge, this material can be free from your own Florida Yard. The secret is Compost, and today’s column will give you some ideas on how to make and use this black gold.

According to Dr. Joan Bradshaw (Florida’s former Master Gardener Coordinator), May 2 to May 8, 2004 is International Compost Awareness Week. What better time to get started on the way to a healthy Florida Yard. In support of this special week, today’s column will give some quick rules for composting and suggest ten ways to make compost happen in your backyard.

Compost is decomposed organic material that has many uses in the garden and the Florida Yard. It’s easy to collect kitchen waste and add it to leaves from the landscape, and in no time, your magic stuff will appear. Be sure to keep meat and other animal-based materials out of your compost heap.

A pile more than 4 feet in diameter is recommended. It will slowly heat up and you are on the way to lots of rotten fun. Heat will kill many of the weeds, insects, diseases, and nematodes that may be present. Remember to turn your pile every once in a while, and keep it moist but not wet for best results.

Here are some suggestions for International Compost Week:

• Build a homemade compost bin - Using pallets placed on their edge, lightly nail them together to form a three walled structure to hold materials to be composted. Another alternative is to use 2 x 3 hardware cloth fencing to make a 4 foot diameter circle. One of our local Master Gardeners has made her compost bin from an old bathtub. Place these in a sunny location for best results.

• Buy a commercially made compost bin - at a garden supply store. There are many choices - be sure to do your homework to save money. There is good information available to compare the costs and kinds of bins: http://compost.ifas.ufl.edu/tutorial/Bins.htm

• Use compost as mulch - composted yard waste can be used to help conserve moisture, suppress weeds, and provide a limited amount of nutrients to plants. If you have marly soils that have lots of shell rock in them, this is one of the few ways to reduce high pH levels of these alkaline soils.

• Use the Florida Compost Analyzer to improve your mulch making. It can be found on the internet http://compost.ifas.ufl.edu/ ; come by our office if you don’t have a computer.

• Use compost tea as a starter solution - a solution of compost seeped in water can provide some soluble nutrients to newly transplanted plants in the landscape and garden. Some compost enthusiasts are also looking at other beneficial substances that can be found in compost tea. Visit this website for more information: http://www.composttea.org/

• Solarize your garden - using clear plastic, cover your vegetable garden over the summer. Sunlight under the plastic will heat up the soil, reducing or eliminating pests in the soil and break down plant residue into compost.A UF/IFAS bulletin is available http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/NG005

• Manage garden and landscape pests without chemicals - the use of chemical pesticides can often destroy good bugs along with bad. And, chemical pesticides may also reduce the number of decomposing organisms that make compost happen.

• Construct a worm bin - our office has a bulletin Earthworm Biology and Production http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/IN047 if you want to know more about using compost to grow earthworms. Unless you have a business license, avoid selling these "fruits" of your labors, but your fishing buddies will appreciate regular gifts of bait as they head out to the Lake.

• Get together with your neighbors to share successes and excess compost. Likewise, there may be occasional sources of good compost "feed-stock" (leaves) that appear throughout the year - take advantage of these resources and help keep them out of the landfill.

• Purchase biodegradable products - look for starch-based materials or plastics labeled as containing TDPA. Several companies produce biodegradable "styrofoam packing peanuts" that melt in water. http://www.biogroupusa.com/ . There are plastic bags and rolls available that will break down into substances which can be recycled into the natural environment. Some products may even be label that says they can be composted. http://www.degradableplastics.com/index.html

Finally, keep in mind the following guidelines to a healthier environment: reuse, reduce, recycle. Following these ideas will not only save money, energy, and resources, but can result in Florida Friendly Yards.

Master Gardeners can answer your questions about your Florida Yard - call or visit them on Tuesday afternoons here at our office. If you need additional information on composting , visit out webpage at http://okeechobee.ifas.ufl.edu , or stop by our office at 458 Hwy 98 North in Okeechobee. Our phone number is (863) 763-6469, and you can email us at okeechobee@ifas.ufl.edu .

Trade names, where used, are given for the purpose of providing specific information. They do not constitute an endorsement or guarantee of products named, nor does it imply criticism of products not named. The Florida Cooperative Extension Service - Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer authorized to provide research, educational information, and other services to individuals and institutions that function without regard to race, color, sex, age, handicap, or national origin. Florida Cooperative Extension Service / IFAS /University of Florida. Larry A. Arrington, Acting Dean.