Compost From the Land Back to the Land

Note: This material is used to describe the compost on farmers, planters, or ordinary people. Made with a simpler language to be more easily understood by farmers. Hopefully useful.

What is compost?
Compost or humus is the remains of living things which have undergone weathering, its form has changed, such as land and odorless. Compost has a complete NPK nutrient content, although a small percentage. Compost also contains other compounds that are beneficial to plants.

What are the benefits of compost?
Compost is like a multivitamin for the soil and plants. Compost to improve soil physical and chemical properties. The compost will restore soil fertility. Hard soil will become more loose. Poor soil will become fertile. Acid soils would be more neutral. Plants that were growing more fertile compost and crop quality is better than plants without compost.

What can be composted?
In principle all the ingredients that come from living creatures or organic materials can be composted. Litter, leaves, grass clipping, twigs, and wood waste can be composted. Manure, animals, even human waste could be composted. Composting of livestock manure, better known as manure. Food scraps and dead animals can also be composted. There is a material that is easily composted, there is a rather simple ingredients, and there is a difficult composted. Most easily composted organic material. Materials are rather easy, aka a bit difficult composted include: hard wood, stems, and bamboo. Materials include composted hard wood very hard, bones, hair, horns, and fur.

Why should be composted first?
Plants can not absorb nutrients from organic materials that are still raw, whatever the shape and origin. Are still fresh manure can not be absorbed by plants haranya. Moreover, crop residues are still in good shape also can not be absorbed by plants haranya. Compost is 'half done' is also not good for plants. Organic matter should be composted to 'mature' haranya to be absorbed by plants. The principle is that plants absorb nutrients from the soil, therefore, should be returned to the ground and given to the ground again.

How do I make compost quickly, easily, and cheaply?
Making compost is easy. Naturally organic material into compost will experience weathering, but the long time between half to one year depending on the material and condition. In order for the composting process can take place more quickly need additional treatment.
Composting is accelerated by adding activator or compost inoculum or starter. This activator is a micro-organism (microbe), which works to accelerate weathering of organic matter into compost. Organic materials are soft and small enough can be composted without having to do enumeration. But a large organic material and hard, should be chopped first. Activators compost must be mixed evenly throughout the organic material for composting process lasted better and faster.
The material will be composted should also contain enough water. This water is needed for the life of microorganisms in the compost activator. The material is more difficult to dry composting. However, too much water content will also inhibit the composting process. So wet should be enough. Materials must also contain enough air. Just as water, air required for the life of microorganisms compost activator.
To protect the compost from the outside environment is bad, the compost needs to be closed. The closure is intended to protect materials or micro-organisms from the rain, sunshine, evaporation, and temperature changes.
Material left in place for some time to mature compost. The length of time it takes between 2 weeks to 6 weeks depending on the materials composted. Soft materials that can be composted in a short time, 2-3 weeks. Hard materials that takes between 4-6 weeks. Characteristic of mature compost is its shape has changed to be more soft, blackish brown color, no odor, and easy to destroy / crumb.

How do I use compost?
Compost that has been cooked can be directly used for crops. There is no limit how many doses of compost materials given to the plants. In general, more compost gives better results. But if the compost will be used for breeding or for plants in pots / poly bag, the compost should be mixed soil with a ratio of one part compost: three parts soil.
Compost can be given as the only source of additional nutrients, or better known as organic farming. Compost should be given in sufficient quantities, so that plants can grow better. Compost can also be given together with artificial chemical fertilizers. Chemical fertilizers can be reduced partially and replaced with the addition of compost.
Compost can be given to plant anything, ranging from farm crops, horticulture, plantations, ornamental plants, fruits, vegetables, and forestry. For example, for plants: paddy rice, upland rice, maize, cassava, beans, cabbage, potatoes, rubber, coffee, oil palm, cocoa, sugar cane, Aglonema, waves of love, mango, acacia, and others.

Compost Straw

Research conducted by the Land Research Center found that the organic matter content in most rice fields in Java P decreased to 1% only. Whereas the ideal organic matter content is about 5%. Poor condition of the organic material is causing many problems, among others: low fertilizer efficiency, low soil microbial activity, and poor soil structure. As a result, rice production tends to fall and demand for fertilizer continues to rise. Solutions to overcome this problem is to add organic material / compost to paddy lands. Compost should be added in sufficient amounts to re-ideal organic matter content as the original.