Composting 101: What are the Benefits to Composting?

What are the Benefits of Composting?

The answer to that question is fairly simple: it is good for your garden and also the environment!

Benefits to Your Garden

Compost is one of nature’s best mulches and soil amendments, and you can use it instead of commercial synthetic fertilizers.  Using compost improves soil structure and aeration and increases the soil’s capacity to hold the proper amount of water.  The organic matter that compost gives provides food for the microorganisms in the soil, which in turn keeps the soil in a healthy, balanced condition. Nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus will be produced naturally as a result of feeding the microorganisms.

Since compost improves the soil, in turn you will have healthier and more productive plants. Compost provides virtually all of the essential nutrients for healthy plant growth.  Just like a time release fertilizer, compost almost always releases the nutrients a plant needs over time, so it gives your plants a slow, steady, consistent intake of exactly what it needs.  Another benefit is that compost improves the plants strength and makes it more resistant to diseases.

Benefits to the Environment

The sad reality is, that one third of the landfill space is said to be full of organic waste that could be turned into something useful rather than fill that space!  And the more we compost, the less we contribute to the cost of trash removal.  When you provide your space whether it be on your homestead or just your small yard with what it needs through compost, you also reduce dependency on synthetic fertilizers.

You will also save money by creating something beneficial out what you may have thought of garbage scraps.  Just think, we may not have control over what others do, but you can make your piece of the environment as free of chemical pollution as possible.

Your yard, flowers, or garden will thank-you in return by providing you with happy, healthy, thriving plants, flowers and hopefully be very delicious produce.

So next time you think about throwing away organic materials, start composting instead.  You will benefit as will your garden and earth we call our home .