The main issue to consider when putting urine on compost is the ratio of green and brown materials that you have in the heap. The high nitrogen and uric acid orureacontent of the urine help to speed up the composting process. Once the bucket of ashes was thoroughly soaked it was diluted (considerably) and used on the vegetable patches as fertiliser, Having read above that urine and wood ash make a useful combination I wonder if the wise old gardeners of 80 years ago knew somehow how beneficial it was. Compost takes time but, if you brew your accelerator and fix whats wrong with your pile, the results with come! The Truth About Tea and CompostingContinue, I have to admit Im a bit of a wine fan! Using Urine as a Compost Accelerator. Human urine is beneficial as part of a composting system as it has a high nitrogen content along with containing potassium and phosphorus. This step will not only weigh them down so they dont blow away in the wind, pre-soaking feathers will also help them decompose just a little bit faster. Roebic Bacterial Compost Accelerator at Amazon | $14.78 And if there was yeast, it would be of little value. ONLY A FEW VITAMINS EVERY MORNING AFTER BREKFAST. These three are the main nutrients that are essential to healthy plant growth and ones that you see referred to as NPK on plant fertilizer labels. But is floss biodegradable? The addition of compost can boost all soil types, helping you get beautiful blooms or bumper crops in your backyard or vegetable garden. A homemade compost starter boosts microbial activity and generates more finished compost and then you can make the, Privacy Policy GDPR Medical Disclaimer DMCA. Drews passion for gardening started with growing vegetables and salad in raised beds in a small urban terrace garden. Construct the compost pile in layers. Seeing as both of these components are readily available on homesteads, its only sensible to combine their powers and grow some tomatoes. The important thing about either type of composter, however, is that we start making the most of cycling the waste rather than contaminating our water sources. . However, pee is a waste product and a method our bodies use to eliminate excess salts and other wastes, including heavy metals. Ill leave those recommendations to the professionals. This compost accelerator comes in a much larger package, 3 packs of 2-pound bags, that will surely last you a long time. This is similar to adding greens, kitchen scraps, and lawn clippings to the compost pilebut in a higher concentration. Thats just the trade off for free content driven by ads. This combination actually has a lot of research proving its effectiveness, and it outperforms commercial fertilizers. Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) is an incredibly useful little plant to grow. The addition of this liquid gold is easily the quickest way to fire up a cold compost. Cut grass decomposes rapidly once in the pile. Today when I poured the urine jog onto my compost, I noticed that it smelled sweeter than usual, and a big healthy mother came sliding out onto the compost pile. Composting is an intelligent way to cut down on food waste and generate free natural and organic fertilizer for your garden. I did not find any odor or flies in or near the Urination Station. Turn or tumble weekly and add brown to green materials in a 3:1 ratio to keep the composting process moving. Ultimately it may depend on how private your heap is or how bold you are as a person. Beer is added in the hopes of putting two things into your pile: yeast and sugar. The high nitrogen content boosts the action of the decomposition by microbes. So, while there are uses for beer in your garden, adding it to your compost starter is not one of them. An excellent natural fertilizer and compost activator, the urine of all animals contributes significantly to the nitrogen cycle on Earth. personally I have made every effort to avoid water bowls connected to our oceans for the last 25 yrs and quite proud of the amount of water I have not used for that purpose!!! These minerals have been proven to be the primary nutrients required for healthy plant growth, resulting in their addition to commercial fertilizers. So many home composts are not strong enough when it comes to plant-fertilizing power, and adding urine is a fantastic way to boost plant nutrients without having to pee directly on your garden, and to capture your personal nutrients during the season the plants aren't actively needing nutrients,' adds Alexia. Your email address will not be published. As a guideline, Master Gardener Dr. Linda Chalker-Scott of Washington State University recommends keeping the total volume of coffee grounds in the compost between 10% and 20%. I knew about the nitrogen part but didnt know about the ammonia. The pee you do not use in your compost can be applied directly to the garden bydiluting it in the ratio of 10 parts water to 1 part urine. But if youre like me (impatient) and want something that will move the needle, weve got a method. I can certainly appreciate this article and feel like this has so much more importance than might have been stated! In this article, well look at precisely what cotton burr compost is and why you, Read More What Is Cotton Burr Compost? Adding urine to a new compost pile is similar to adding acommercial compost acceleratorto boost the process. There are a few different ways to put urine in a compost heap and how you choose to do it may come down to personal preferences and the location of your compost heap. Method: Fill your 5-gallon bucket 2/3 of the way full of warm water. These nutrients are released into the soil slowly, making alfalfa gentle enough to be used on the youngest seedlings and sprouts. Easy. ThatBackyard.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com (at no additional cost to the buyer), About Us Affiliate Disclosure Privacy Policy Contact Us, Algreen Soil Saver Compost Bin My Review After 2 Years, Top Dressing Your Lawn With Compost (Best Time & Method). While well talk about whether or not you need a compost catalyst later in this article (after the recipe), let me go on record here and say that there is no reason that you should ever need to buy a commercial compost starter. Urine is effectively sterile, which means it doesnt transmit pathogens and disease, so long as you eat a healthy diet and dont take medication. Even quicker still is the Berkley Method for compost in as little as two weeks. The best time let it rain down on your pile is in the morning when urea levels will be at their highest concentration. It certainly smelled very wholesome. And its free, readily available, and renewable! Unless someone is directly walking past and looking up my driveway is not able to be seen by passers by. There are several reasons why your compost pile may be sluggish. And I am sure many gardening dog owners have looked at a steaming pile on their freshly mowed lawn and wondered if, Read More Can You Compost Dog Poop? However, some would argue that this is a more natural method than a commercial product. Receive the latest Home & Garden Tips by entering your email below: We respect your privacy and take protecting it very seriously. Well hydrated compost should be the consistency of a wrung-out sponge. As well as speeding up the process it also makes the resulting compost even more rich in nutrients. Although human urine is composed of more than 90% water, the rest is made up of organic solids, primarily urea. The goal of compost piles or a compost bin for the kitchen is to speed the decay of organic matter into finished compost with the help of microorganisms. This is because the high nitrogen content in urine balances perfectly with the high carbon content of paper and card. Regular aeration will also keep the clippings better distributed throughout the pile. This will increase loss of nitrogen. Directly depositing this precious resource on the pile can start to speed things up and add moisture. Brian Campbell, a degree holder in Environmental Studies, founder of Water Filter Guru, and avid gardener, warns: Human urine is abundant in phosphorus and nitrogen, which are essential nutrients for healthy plant growth. But when I got interested in composting, I naturally began to wonder whether I could compost all the pine needles scattered under the tree. Follow these four rules and you shouldnt need any kind of compost activator. Automatic kitchen composting with Lomi If you want to speed up your composting process, composting with Lomi is a great option. Many everyday items are ideal to use as a compost accelerator as a way to make compost faster so you can put it out in the garden. When your hot compost pile starts to underperform, a homemade compost accelerator helps. The bacteria and fungi in the compost need moisture to work effectively and a dry heap will stop breaking down. The bacteria and fungi in the compost need moisture to work effectively and a dry heap will stop breaking down. Keep your pile or the contents of your bin or tumbler at no less than three cubic feet to ensure it generates enough heat to function and is damp, not wet. Note: The urine used in compost must not be contaminated by any fecal matter, which introduces dangerous pathogens to the mix. While there are many reasons that your compost is not breaking down, here are the basics: So, yes, make and use a DIY compost starter! When the season is over, alfalfa plants can be pulled, chopped up, and added back to the soil as a green manure. You can choose to add either natural or commercial activators to boost the nitrogen levels within the compost. How To Compost Urine To get the most effective use of urine without the effects becoming detrimental to the compost or your plants, there are a few things to keep in mind Urine contains nitrogen-rich nutrients like ammonia and phosphorus, as well as a variety of other chemical-rich nutrients, which are found in the breakdown products which will help your plants thrive. Pee 1x daily? As long as you are not on any medications, it is perfectly okay to urinate on your compost. Though it might seem counterintuitive, urine is a free compost accelerator and works surprisingly well to stimulate the decomposition process. ANSWER: Yes, unbelievably, human urine is rich in nitrogen and should be added to compost regularly instead of flushing down the toilet. How do I use my urine? Uric acid levels are said to be the highest in the morning, so that's the best time to rain down on the compost pile. Urine is not something to be flushed away like a problem. . Soda and Beer. Stir until the solution is thoroughly mixed, and spray or pour it over the compost pile. Consequently, training your dog to urinate on your compost pile isnot a good idea. Whereas composting toilets might be difficult for folks in densely urban areas, using pee rather than flushing it poses no health risk and is easy to do. A simple and rapidsoil testing kit like this oneis all you need. Add ingredients, stir. Informal field experiments from the Oregon State University Extension Service found that compost composed of 25% coffee grounds is most effective for maintaining consistently high heat. 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