Compost Offers Environment, Soil Benefits

The closest thing we have as a panacea for improving garden and landscape soil is organic matter – and one of the best sources of organic matter is compost.

The beauty of compost is we can make it ourselves, diverting raw organic materials that might otherwise be sent to already overburdened landfills.

A compost pile can be enclosed to contain its components or can be made in an open pile. The construction of a compost pile is described as a process of alternating layers of raw organic materials – moistening each layer as it’s applied. Maintain the moisture content of a compost pile about like a wrung-out sponge.

It’s important to include equal volumes of such dried, brown materials as fallen leaves, straw, dried grass clippings, sawdust or shredded paper – and such green material as fresh grass clippings, weeds that haven’t gone to seed or the remains of flowers and vegetable crops (unless they were severely diseased or infested with insects or spider mites).

It would be wise to leave out invasive plants like Bermuda grass and bindweed that might root down in the compost pile. Avoid materials like dairy products, meat and grease, and dog or cat droppings.

After a compost pile has been constructed with a proper balance of greens and browns, it will begin to generate heat, potentially reaching an internal temperature of 150 degrees. The temperature can be monitored with a long shaft compost thermometer. After the temperature peaks, the pile should be “turned” or mixed up – turn the pile each time the temperature peaks and cools back down.

It can take up to six months for a conventional compost pile to finish the decomposition process depending on the time of year it’s started.

The process can be accelerated by shredding the components into smaller particles, turning frequently and maintaining its moisture content.

Finished compost makes a good soil amendment for boosting the organic matter in garden and landscape soil – it also can be used as an ingredient in potting soil, or as a mulch around the base of garden and landscape plants.

Don’t overlook minor bulbs: When most people think about hardy spring flowering bulbs, things like tulips, daffodils and hyacinths come to mind. But often overlooked are the so-called “minor bulbs” like grape hyacinth, snowdrops, crocus and squill.

For many purposes, these small plants are better suited than their larger flowered counterparts. They work well in rock gardens, for naturalizing under trees and shrubs and to create pockets of color in perennial beds. Because their bloom time precedes that of the larger bulbs, they are truly the harbingers of spring.

These minor bulbs are best suited to sunny sites but will adapt to partial shade. Wind protection and well-drained soil are also important.

Informal groupings that appear to have come up randomly are most attractive.

Because they are small, they must be massed together in groupings of at least a dozen bulbs of the same kind and color. Because the minor bulbs tend to multiply and spread, a planting will gradually increase in size.

First to bloom in the spring are snowdrops followed in sequence by crocus, Siberian squill, Glory-of-the-Snow, Lebanon squill or Puschkinia, and grape hyacinth.

Because the minor bulbs are closely spaced together in a massed grouping, it’s best to work up a planting area and plant the bulbs about three inches apart and three inches deep – some gardeners plant the minor bulbs over deeper planted tulips, daffodils or hyacinths to provide a sequence of bloom in the same space.

Mole control: Homeowners become concerned when they discover that the surface of their lawn has been disturbed by the burrowing activity of moles. Mole runs create unsure footing, cause the grass above the tunnel to die and complicate mowing.

Moles are furry mammals that grow to be about six inches long with enlarged paddle-like front feet that permit the animal to virtually “swim” through the soil. Moles don’t have external ears and have very small eyes; because of their poor eyesight, they are virtually blind.

Moles live in a system of underground tunnels consisting of deep runways and nest cavities for the winter, and surface runs made while foraging for food.

While the burrowing activity of moles may physically damage the roots of lawn grasses and garden plants, they are primarily meat eaters, feeding on earthworms and grubs, as well as other soil- borne critters.

When damage to bulbs and other underground plant parts is associated with a mole run, it was probably caused by a mouse using the run as a convenient way to get around. The best way to control moles is by trapping. Several types of mole traps are available, but the old harpoon type is as effective as any.

Set mole traps in straight runs that connect areas of more irregular feeding runs – look for evidence of recent activity. If a mole isn’t trapped within 48 hours, move it to another location.

For information about mole behavior and control, call 232-0062, ext. 100.

Phil Sell is a horticulturist with K-State Research and Extensionin Shawnee County.

(c) 2007 Topeka Capital Journal. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.