Composting Techniques for vegetable Farming

Following are a few basic methods to prepare compost manure.

Inputs like weeds, plant residue, chicken manure, goat droppings etc, which are of bio degradable nature must be used as these are available in plenty. Composting should be done in the shortest of time to retain maximum plant nutrients. Good organic manure rich in plant nutrients can be prepared within 90 days.
The base of the heap layer, coconut leaves, husk, outer shells, paddy straw etc should be added & a uniform bed has to be made. on top of this, weeds, plant residue, and other greens should be added.

Add a layer of chicken manure or goat droppings or cow dung evenly on the surface of the plant residue bed
Add microbial mixture solution & water the surface of the layer lightly to retain moisture.

Again add another layer of farm greens, weeds, plant residue &on top of it another layer of fresh manure , topped with microbial solution.

moisture must be maintained, this can be achieved by adding/spraying water every time manure is added

repeat the process with farm greens+ manure+ microbial solution till desired height is achieved. generally a height up to 6 feet is suitable. 6 to 7 layers will do fine.
In the monsoons, it is recommended to cover the top of the heap, in order to avoid leaching of nutrients due to excess rains. The sides however need not be covered as aeration is vital in bacterial degradation of plant residue & manure.

During dry spells, watering the heap is done on a daily basis to avoid drying of the heap. adding water increases the temperature within the heap , thus destroying harmful eggs and larvae that are harmful to vegetable crops

The compost heap is ready to use after a period of 60 to 90 days. The organic matter is rich in plant nutrients & can be readily utilized for all stages of plant development in almost all crop varieties.


Photos and content by Pritham 'Heavy metal farmer' denzil dsouza