How To Make Compost in a Few Weeks and What To Compost

How Mantis Composters Work: Our Scientific Advantage 

Composting used to mean grabbing a pitchfork and dedicating a corner of the yard to a messy compost pile. But now there’s an easier way to make compost. Mantis has improved the process.

Mantis Composters are designed to make composting easy, clean and fast. The dimensions of the Mantis® ComposTumbler® are engineered for maximum efficiency in building a superior heat core – they key to successful compost. The drum of the ComposTumbler is balanced and easily turned, mixing the compost tumbler materials and keeping the core stable.

Air flow and moisture balance are essential. When this balance is right, the compost gets hot. Millions of microbes release heat as they decompose the organic matter in the composter. This process is called “hot composting” and the elevated temperatures in hot composting produce finished compost FAST.

The ComposTumbler is designed with air vents on the sides of the drum and on the door so air flow is unimpeded during composting. Drainage units on the door allow for any excess moisture to escape so materials won’t get soggy.

The result is a perfectly balanced, self-contained composting system that turns organic throw-outs into perfect compost in just a few weeks.

There are many Mantis composter models available – one perfect for every household.

You can make compost in 3 easy steps with a ComposTumbler composter:

Composting Tips and Tricks

• Be sure the mix of ingredients you put in your tumbler contains wastes high in nitrogen and carbon for a good balance.
• Do not attempt to make compost using any products that have been treated with chemical fertilizers or pest control products.
• If you have bulky items to compost, such as corn cobs, melon rinds and shrub clippings, run them through a shredder before putting them in your composter.

Menu of Things to Compost

What Other Things Can You Compost?

You can add almost any organic material to your compost, and in small quantities you’re unlikely to upset the balance of “greens” and “browns.” Click below to download a list of some unusual things you can compost.

Benefits of Composting with Drum Composters

Healthier soil, better plants and contributing to a natural environment are all benefits of making compost with a Mantis ComposTumbler.

• Making compost is a great way to recycle. Kitchen and garden waste can be turned into a high-powered natural fertilizer instead of emitting methane gas while sitting in a landfill.
• Compost helps aerate hard clay soil into a better draining, healthier base for plant roots.
• Homemade compost is safe and natural. It doesn’t harm kids, pets, or the environment.
• Compost builds humus in your soil and improves soil structure, texture, fertility, drainage and aeration.
• Compost is a mega-boost for plants, encouraging robust growth, increased yields and more eye-catching flowers.
• Compost helps your plants build resistance against disease.
• Compost bulks-up thin, sandy soil, giving it more substance and texture to support hardy root growth.
• On a newly seeded lawn, spread a thin layer of compost as top dressing. For an existing lawn, aerate first, then spread the compost. You’ll get thicker, healthier grass.
• Composting creates a harmonious, natural balance in your yard and garden.

Turning Your Composting Bins for Better Compost

Compost is that wonderful combination of microscopic mineral particles and decomposed organic material that makes your garden thrive. Composting is what gardeners do to control, or assist, the naturally occurring decaying of organic matter.

In the forest, leaves, plant, fruits and nuts, animal waste, and other organic matter decay over time to return to the soil. This process continuously replenishes the soil with the nutrients essential for plant growth. But, natural or unassisted organic decomposition is usually relatively slow. Moisture content is inconsistent; the decaying plants, leaves, and animals can be relatively large; and the mix of materials in any given area can be somewhat unbalanced.

Turning your composting bins eliminates the problems associated with slow decomposition.

To make great compost in a relatively short time, you need a good combination of materials, adequate moisture, critical mass, and help from nature (microbes, worms, and other bugs).

Turning your composting bin also does the following:

• Redistributes moisture throughout the mix, since the outside of the mixture dries out quickly, especially in the summer.
• Redistributes the microbe population (and worms, if you have them) to fresh food supplies, where they will digest the organic materials and reproduce.
• Helps maintain a balance of green and brown materials (assuming you started with, and have maintained, a good mixture).
• Breaks up clumps, so that smaller particles are available for the bugs and worms that turn raw organic matter into compost.

MANTIS COMPOSTERS MAKE TURNING EVEN EASIER. STRIVE FOR SMALL PARTICLES.

You’ll make better and faster compost if you add small particulate matter to your composting bins. Shredded dry leaves are much better than whole leaves. Coffee grounds are great. Grass clippings should be mixed with leaves, if possible, to prevent clumping. Chop up any stalks from tomato plants or any whole fruits. The little microbes and worms prefer smaller particles (their mouths are much smaller than ours!), and turning a large batch of small particles is much easier.

Maintain a Moist Compost Mix

Just like your garden soil, your composting mix needs the right amount of moisture for optimum performance. If your mixture is too dry, such as when you have a large base of dry shredded leaves, add some water. Spin the compost tumbler to distribute the water throughout the mix – and make sure to stop with the ventilation/drainage vents positioned on the bottom. Excess moisture can then leak out of the vents. Conversely, avoid over-watering because a waterlogged mix is muddy and much harder to turn.

Break-up Large Clumps by Hand

Mantis Composters are easy to turn, and they mix ingredients effectively, but it may be necessary to break up some stubborn clumps by hand. If you’ve added a lot of grass clippings, they may form clumps or mats. Simply open the door to reach inside the compost bin to break up and mix any clumps. Consistently using well-shredded or chopped up materials should eliminate any need to break clumps by hand.

Turn Your Composting Bin Whenever You Add New Material

Remember that whenever you add new material to one of your composting bins, you’re resetting the composting clock to “day 1.” If, however, you take several days or even a couple of weeks to fill the first composting bin, just be sure to give the composting bin a few turns every time you add fresh materials.

Do You Really Need to Turn the Composting Bins Every Day?

No. Turning your composting bins every day is ideal, but not absolutely necessary. Composting should be fun, not work. If you miss a day or two, don’t give up. Just get back to turning the composting bins soon. With the right mix of composting materials, adequate moisture, and frequent mixing, you’ll soon have sweet-smelling, wonderfully nutritious, disease-fighting compost working in your garden!

Start composting with Mantis today!