Compost Your Way to a Better Garden

Posted on May 10, 2017

by April S

I’m sure composting is fairly simple, but trying to figure it out on your own can be challenging for inexperienced gardeners. Why can’t you just throw it all in a bin and hope for the best? Based on my personal experience – you will end up with a giant gloppy mess – believe me, it’s not pretty. Apparently, composting involves just a bit of planning and maintenance – who knew? So, if you’d like to start composting, but simply don’t know where to begin – you may enjoy the following helpful resources …

Start Composting Like a Pro

Library Resources on Gardening and Composting

The Organic Composting Handbook: Techniques for a Healthy, Abundant Garden by Dede CummingsThe Organic Composting Handbook: Techniques for a Healthy, Abundant Garden by Dede Cummings

Print | eBook

Great compost is one of the most important secrets of successful organic gardening. This book helps you learn what you need to know about the various methods of composting and how to adapt them to your home and garden.

The Complete Compost Gardening Guide: Banner Batches, Grow Heaps, Comforter Compost, and Other Amazing Techniques for Saving Time and Money, and Producing the Most Flavorful, Nutritious Vegetables Ever by Barbara Pleasant & Deborah L. MartinThe Complete Compost Gardening Guide: Banner Batches, Grow Heaps, Comforter Compost, and Other Amazing Techniques for Saving Time and Money, and Producing the Most Flavorful, Nutritious Vegetables Ever by Barbara Pleasant & Deborah L. Martin

Print | eBook

Develop mature compost right in your garden. Barbara Pleasant and Deborah Martin explain their six-way compost gardening system in this informative guide that will have you rethinking how you create and use your compost. With your plants and compost living together from the beginning, your garden will become a nourishing and organic environment that encourages growth and sustainability. You’ll also find that the enriched soil requires less tending, weeding, and mulching, so you can do less back-breaking work for the same lush, beautiful results.

How to Build, Maintain, and Use a Compost System: Secrets and techniques you need to know to grow the best vegetables / by Kelly SmithHow to Build, Maintain, and Use a Compost System: Secrets and Techniques You Need to Know to Grow the Best Vegetables by Kelly Smith

Print | eBook

Some of the best fertilizer on the planet can be made with your very own garbage. Starting with something as simple as coffee grounds, old banana peels, bread crusts, and leftover meals, you can start creating a garden with your food waste using the age old secret of composting to build a healthy, happy garden. This book provides a detailed outline of how anyone with a little extra space and a garden can start composting today.

Compost: How to make and use organic compost to transform your garden / Clare FosterCompost: How to Make and Use Organic Compost to Transform Your Garden by Clare Foster

Print

In this new edition of her hands-on guide to the art of composting, House & Garden garden editor, Clare Foster, shows you how to build a compost box, select the best ingredients and put the resulting organic compost to the best use in your outdoor space. By taking some dead leaves, grass cuttings and old banana skins and enlisting the help of bacteria, insects and nature, you can improve and enrich your soil, feed your plants and nourish your vegetables, restoring the natural balance of life in your garden.

Compost : a family guide to making soil from scraps / Ben RaskinCompost: A Family Guide to Making Soil From Scraps by Ben Raskin

Print

Teach your kids that composting is fun with this funky guide that takes you from the nitty-gritty of compost composition and care to Worms and Ladders, a fresh take on a traditional board game. Find out the rules for setting up your very own Worm Lovers’ Society, learn all about the garden-to-plate cycle together, and get your family’s feet firmly set on the road to a planet-friendly lifestyle. Includes information on both kitchen and garden composting.

From Garbage To Compost by Lisa OwingsFrom Garbage To Compost by Lisa Owings

eBook

How does a pile of garbage become compost? Follow each step in the cycle-from collecting kitchen and yard waste to creating compost for your garden-in this fascinating book!

Composting Articles and Online Resources

How to CompostBetter Homes and Gardens

Composting at HomeEPA

Composting Made EasyHGTV

The Easiest Way to CompostThe Kitchn

Compost for All! Choices for the City or SuburbsTreeHugger

Gardening - Pixabay Image
Toledo Library Blog Posts on Gardening

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Plan and Plant a Bee-Friendly Garden

Small-Space Gardening


Featured Image Credit: Image by Joke vander Leij from Pixabay.

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