Looking to give your landscaping or garden areas a boost, or maybe a breath of fresh area before winter comes? Look no further than compost. Composting not only breathes new life into existing soil with its various nutrients, but also infuses your landscaping and gardens with bacteria and fungi that will in turn feed your plants and shrubbery and keep them looking their best.
Compost is an organic material that is added to soil in order to give plants the boost they need to thrive. Compost combines food and yard waste into one material to supplement soil and improve its structure, texture, and overall integrity.
Compost has been around for centuries, and can even be dated back to the Greeks and Romans, as well as Native Americans and the early settlers of North America. Because it’s easy to produce, some people make it at home over time, and others choose to purchase it at very reasonable prices through Pillar Aggregates, LLC.
Compost is made from accumulated waste, that is then broken down by bacteria and fungi. Both food and yard waste is combined, and then supplemented with dryer products like paper, cardboard, twigs, or leaves to provide the carbon needed to produce what we know as regular compost. Because the process is lengthy, many choose to outsource or purchase their compost from third party sources for convenience and ease of use.
Now that we know what compost is and how it’s made, it’s time to put it to work!
As we’ve said prior, compost is generally used as a part of residential and commercial landscaping projects to enhance garden areas or areas otherwise sustaining plant life or flowers. It’s a soil supplement, or conditioner, that is put over top of the existing soil in a thin layer (1-2 inches deep) and incorporated into the entire area.
Be careful not to dig holes to put compost within your landscaping area or flower beds, as compost used in this way will actually deprive your plants of moisture, instead of protecting your plants and nourishing them, as it will when incorporated into the entire area.
You can also apply compost as a mulch substitute around plants, or apply it directly beneath mulches to keep plants nourished while protecting roots from extreme temperatures or erosion. When adding compost, make sure not to take any plants out of their beds, or injure the roots of any of your plants while applying it.
In addition to supplementing the structure and texture of your garden or flower beds, compost can also be used as a top dressing for existing lawns, which will improve your lawn’s look and integrity. Add compost by aerating your lawn, and allowing your compost to infiltrate your lawn’s roots, and use a rake to distribute the compost across the entire area.
Compost can also be combined with other elements (like bark or sand) for use as potting soil for plants. Don’t use pure compost as potting soil, however, as it can damage your plant’s roots.
Now that you’ve learned about compost and how to use it, it’s time to apply that knowledge! Contact Pillar Aggregates today for all of your compost needs. Don’t know where to start in your landscaping project? We’ll be there to help you every step of the way.
