COMPOST DEFINED
![[benefits of compost]](chapter03_02_files/compostbenefits.jpg)
According to the dictionary, compost
is “a mixture of decomposing vegetable refuse, manure, etc. for fertilizing
and conditioning the soil.” The Practical Handbook of Compost Engineering
defines composting with a mouthful: “The biological decomposition and
stabilization of organic substrates, under conditions that allow development of
thermophilic temperatures as a result of biologically produced heat, to produce
a final product that is stable, free of pathogens and plant seeds, and can be
beneficially applied to land.”
The On-Farm Composting Handbook says that compost is “a group of organic
residues or a mixture of organic residues and soil that have been piled,
moistened, and allowed to undergo aerobic biological decomposition.” The
Compost Council adds their two cents worth in defining compost: “Compost is
the stabilized and sanitized product of composting; compost is largely
decomposed material and is in the process of humification (curing). Compost has
little resemblance in physical form to the original material from which it is
made.” That last sentence should be particularly reassuring to the humanure
composter.
J. I. Rodale states it a bit more eloquently: “Compost is more than a
fertilizer or a healing agent for the soil’s wounds. It is a symbol of
continuing life . . . The compost heap is to the organic gardener what the
typewriter is to the writer, what the shovel is to the laborer, and what the
truck is to the truckdriver.” 4
In general, composting is a process managed by humans involving the
cultivation of microorganisms that degrade organic matter in the presence of
oxygen. When properly managed, the compost becomes so heavily populated with
thermophilic microorganisms that it generates quite a bit of heat. Compost
microorganisms can be so efficient at converting organic material into humus
that the phenomenon is nothing short of miraculous.
Source: The Humanure Handbook. Jenkins
Publishing, PO Box 607, Grove City, PA 16127. To order, phone:
1-800-639-4099.
http://www.jenkinspublishing.com/