No, this is not a joke, as funny as it may sound. Yet, despite the incredible results of recent studies, Americans are peeing away enough nitrogen to feed 12 million acres of corn per year. The hose is constantly closed so that it may be used to saturate the pile and turn it over. So why do some people not use wood chips in compost, and how can these difficulties be overcome? Whether grown fresh in the garden or purchased as alfalfa meal, its a wonderful all-purpose fertilizer with an N-P-K of roughly 3-1-2. This additional layer of garden soil will also ensure that your compost heap stays dark and moist at all times, and it is recommended to keep the top of your compost heap covered with a layer of soil at all times or even better, get a compost bin that retains moisture and keeps light out at the same time. Adding blood meal to compost that already contains some greens will take a bit more guesswork as you dont want to throw your C:N ratios out of whack. Humans need to urinate several times a day, but this doesnt mean you should pee on your compost pile every time you go past! Heres our guide to using blood meal in the vegetable garden. The addition of urine to compost has both positive and negative effects. Keep the Right Moisture. The other option is to pure the ingredients into a 15 gallon bucket of water and then use a watering can to distribute the mix over the composting materials. Its easy to acquire too non-coffee drinkers can snag a few bags of spent coffee grounds courtesy of their local coffee shops. Composted coffee grounds boosted the growth and yield of beets, cabbages, and soybeans in one experiment, while in another it hindered the development of alfalfa, clover, and Chinese mustard. Can I put old potting soil in my compost? Unless you are urinating. Sometimes, even the best-maintained compost system gets out of balance. Stir until the solution is thoroughly mixed, and spray or pour it over the compost pile. So why would people want to use urine in compost? Ideally, your compost should be moist but not wet. In this way, the composts microbial diversity is negatively affected by adding too much urine. Peeing on your compost is not only good for the soil and good for the environment, but it can actually increase crop yields and replace fertilizers entirely. Recycling your urine also has environmental benefits, such as using less water in the toilet. If you dont have access to bird feathers, feather meal is also an option. If you think about it, this practice saves using fresh, clean water to flush it away and does not pollute natural watercourses. Theyll most likely have large bags full of hair, that you can get for free. The test will take place in the spring of 2021. A by-product of the slaughterhouse, animal blood is collected and dried into a powdery form. These nutrients are released into the soil slowly, making alfalfa gentle enough to be used on the youngest seedlings and sprouts. According to a Nepalese study, sweet peppers fertilized with human urine and compost yield the most fruits and tallest plants in eight different fertilizer combinations. Anything above 30% increases the risk those coffee dregs could end up harming the microbes and earthworms working the pile. Urine is a natural and inexpensive way to increase your composts moisture and mineral content, particularly nitrogen. (Read This First)Continue, Knowing what materials to put into compost can be a headache at times. We also recommend adding a layer of mature compost in between each layer of kitchen scraps and other organic waste, in order to keep the process as quick as possible. When conditions are too wet, water will fill the pore The high nitrogen content boosts the action of the decomposition by microbes. Convino Compost Starter 4. Compost heaps should be kept moist but not soggy. Tip: If you live near a farm, used straw animal bedding has precisely the same valuable combination. The more microorganisms at work breaking down the materials, the faster the compost is made. When they exit the kidney, this is indeed the case. It helps a lot if you know the employees in the produce section well, as they would be more likely to help you out if they know that you make a lot of compost and therefore would love to help them out by removing their old, past-date produce. Is Human Urine Beneficial For Compost? By all means, go ahead and add pee compost to your flowers, trees, etc. If you find an old package of fertilizer in your shed that youre not sure if its any good you can toss it in to your compost pile and any nitrogen it has in it will help to accelerate the compost breakdown. ), Compost Materials Chart (List of Ingredients). That was a new one for me. How To Compost: Everything You Need To Know To Start Composting, And Nothing You Don't. Amino acids, proteins, and even DNA are all synthesized with it. A single adult male could provide enough pee to fertilize 6,300 tomato plants per year, yielding 2.4 tons of tomatoes. Many great discoveries have happened accidentally? Human urine may also deter rodents and other pests from disturbing your pile. 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. In order to collect enough coffee grounds for a large compost heap, you could try visiting your local coffee shop and ask politely if they would like you to expedite their used coffee grounds for them. Some of them add additional nitrogen or fertilizer to a compost pile. Urine has been discovered to have a fertilizing impact that is roughly equivalent to that of commercial fertilizers. An excellent natural fertilizer and compost activator, the urine of all animals contributes significantly to the nitrogen cycle on Earth. Excess urine may cause an unpleasant odor as ammonia builds up in your compost. Use these additions to heat your compost pile to rejuvenate the beneficial microbes and move the composting process along. Aside from the homemade compost accelerator recipe listed above, there are a few other things you could use to activate your compost heap and jump start the process. Too much urine can harm the composting process and produce an inferior final compost product. Adding 2 handfuls of urea to the pile when you start the composting process and an additional handful every 3 to 4 weeks will speed up the decomposition of wood chips. Rather than sending these items to landfills, where they would take up space and emit methane, a potent greenhouse gas, they may be recycled into compost instead. The uric acid in urine accelerates compost decomposition. Nepalese farmers have been taking a leak on their crops for centuries. My husband says he should pee in the compost pile and it will make better compost, but thats disgusting! You might then wonder whether fingernails decompose (and if not, what happens to all the little bits people worldwide keep snipping off their nails?). Mixing these ingredients and adding them to your compost heap along with a few shovels of garden soil gives you the perfect cocktail to speed up the decomposition process. 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. WebHuman Urine for Compost, Start to Finish OrganicGarden123 8.28K subscribers 297K views 13 years ago Urine adds Nitrogen and Water to your compost. If you have a garden and a composting system, your golden liquid is basically liquid gold. Peeing on your compost pile sounds like a bizarre thing to do, but the benefits have been understood for thousands of years! If urine and ash or biochar can replace fertilizer entirely, imagine what urine and compost can do. This temperature range is hot enough to destroy pathogens and weed seeds, but not so hot as to kill off the beneficial microbes in the pile. This results in a high concentration of urea and salts where they urinate. Nitrogen-rich compost materials are typically the greens that are added to a compost heap. Ideally, composting materials should be between 40 and 60 percent water. How To Plant an Asparagus Bed Plant Once & Harvest For 30+ Years. As well as, do you have any idea what contains a lot of nitrogen? Dilute to 30-50 parts water to 1 part urine for use on potted plants as they are much more sensitive to Fertilizers of any kind. )Continue, I have to admit Im a bit of a wine fan! Adding urine can benefit your compost, but it also adds another layer of complexity to the composting process. Wood ash in compost is a great way to mimic commercial fertilizers effects without adding any toxic chemicals typically found in them. Note: The urine used in compost must not be contaminated by any fecal matter, which introduces dangerous pathogens to the mix. The powder is added to the compost pile or bin and then the compost is turned on a regular basis. (Problem Solved! It gives you valuable insight into the soils starting point. This blog is about sharing everything that Ive learned in the hopes that it will help others discover the amazing rewards of composting More about me Legal Information: Help Me Compost is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com. When the urine is used to make compost, it adds a lot of nutrients to the soil that plants need. Along with its tendency to stick together and form clumps, grass clippings can create anaerobic conditions that will cause the entire compost to smell. Compost is an organic matter that is used to enrich the soil and promote plant growth. The decomposition process is one of many wonders of nature, employing multiple elements to aid the process from start till end: When these elements are present in a compost heap, youll get perfect compost that will enhance the quality of your soil as you incorporate it into the ground. WebAdding a few filler materials to your compost pile can help it retain the right amount of water for proper decomposition. Information is like compost; It does no good unless you spread it around! Another effective method of using urine in compost is to lay out some straw pee bales and urinate on them throughout the day as needed. Adding urine to a new compost pile is similar to adding acommercial compost acceleratorto boost the process. In order to collect enough urine for your compost heap, you can collect it in a bottle in your bathroom and empty it every night. To prevent attracting pests to your compost pile and to speed up the composting process, bokashi composting is a great way to pre-compost your food waste. A Nepalese study found that sweet peppers that are fertilized with human urine and compost yield the most fruits and tallest plants of the eight different fertilizer combinations used in the study. Keep turning it frequently in the coming days to prevent the grass from clumping together. Peeing on your compost is good for both the compost you are creating, and the environment itself. She is a firm believer in working with the forces of nature, and not against them, by creating healthy ecosystems within the garden patch. This is especially true if you have nitrogen-deficient soil. Peeing on your compost is good for both the compost you are creating, and the environment itself. If you keep backyard chickens or ducks, youll surely have an endless supply of moult to feed the compost. Others prefer a more exacting method of tossing 2 to 3 buckets of carbon for each bucket of nitrogen. 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%. Follow these four rules and you shouldnt need any kind of compost activator. No spam! Urine can go straight into the bin or pile, as the uric acid in it will help speed up the decomposing process. Blood meal is also the perfect foil for a lethargic compost pile. Its no secret that human pee is a great fertilizer, and it has been used as such for thousands of years. Another advantage with a homemade compost accelerator is that you know exactly what ingredients go into the product. Leave your bucket in a warm/sunny place for 24-48 hours. 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. Skip unknown ingredients and toxic compounds and rely on a straightforward homemade mixture to renew your pile. Add the urine-soaked straw to the compost as a green layer to balance any brown vegetation added to the compost pile. 4.6 (1,408) $14995. More often than not the answer will be yes, as the coffee shops have no use of spent coffee grounds. Adding greens to a compost heap is a common practice because of the high nitrogen content of these materials. What is a compost accelerator? Sometimes, even the best-maintained compost system gets out of balance. It stinks when the urea ferments into ammonia. Our team independently selects, reviews, and identifies the best products. Most products also include other nutrients, plus bacteria and fungi, that help accelerate the composting process and increase compost quality. The smell of human urine can deter certain animals, such as raccoons. Urine Helps Fight Fungus In Your Garden But many gardeners are reluctant to use this fantastic source in their composting. And because Im an avid composter, I often look at things around me differently. The primary purpose of compost-like products is to condition and feed the soil by adding humus, nutrients, and good soil bacteria. The negligent owner lets the bin dry out. Still, others should not since they contain synthetic materials that will not break down in your compost. If so, how should you do it, and are there any dangers when adding urine to compost? Human pee adds the same minerals to your compost and will enrich the final end product when the compost has matured. The urine is sent off to a separate storage container via a small hose connection. WebBiolan Quick Composter 220eco is intended for year-round composting of kitchen biowaste. The vast majority of plant life gets the nitrogen they need to flourish from the soil. Besides adding a homemade compost accelerator, there are a few additional things you could do to further accelerate the composting process. Make your own compost activator to keep your pile working effectively and foster the perfect conditions to make high-quality, organic fertilizer for your houseplants and garden. A simple and rapidsoil testing kit like this oneis all you need. Urea is widely used as a fertilizer in agriculture. Web7. Too much nitrogen and the pile will start to stink; too much carbon and decomposition will slow down dramatically. Jobe's Organics Compost Starter 2. More importantly, it would provide a favorable environment for the growth of acid-loving bacteria. Can I Compost Ashes (The Truth about Ashes in Compost), Do Fingernails Decompose (Find The Answer Here! Adding coffee grounds increases the level of nitrogen which is an essential nutrient for microorganisms. The average NPK (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium) value of our urine is 11-1-2.5; it has considerable amounts of nitrogen. Lindsay Sheehan is a writer, researcher, and lifelong gardener who loves little more than the thrill of nurturing living things from dormant seed. Add ingredients, stir. Adding a few shovelfuls of mature compost each time you start a new heap could also accelerate the decomposition process, because the mature compost pile already contains the microorganisms that you need to start the process. Even National Geographic acknowledges this. Just dont flush it away. Urine is such a good compost accelerator as it gives the compost a nitrogen boost. What You Should Know, 3 Options To Put On Tomato Plants To Save From Bugs, Are Ants On Trees Good Or Bad? As long as you are not on any medications, it is perfectly okay to urinate on your compost. Your compost should never dry out completely, but feel slightly similar to a wrung-out sponge. For what its worth, many people swear by it and pee all over their pile every time they add scraps or material that would be tempting for animals. How to Use The mixture is incorporated in a lawn sprayer bottle and attached to your hose for use. Contender All Seasons Bokashi Compost Starter 2 lbs (1 Gallon) - Dry Bokashi Bran for Kitchen Compost Bin, Compost Food Pet Waste Quickly & Easily with Low Odor by SCD Probiotics 1,641 $1605 $15.25 with Subscribe & Save However, the jury is still out on how effective pee may be at keeping your compost pet free. This can be tricky to measure since not all browns contain an equal amount of carbon. Recent field studies support the benefits of peeing on crops. 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 Endlessly fascinated by the natural world and especially fond of native species, she is always on the hunt for new ideas and techniques surrounding organic gardening, permaculture, and environmental sustainability. However, when your compost heap is inexplicably slow and inactive, or has been long forgotten and neglected, there are ways to wake up a sleeping compost and kick it into humus-making action. Human urine is one of the quickest-acting and most effective sources of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and trace elements for plants, all of which are in an optimal form for osmosis. 8. Commercial boosters are less budget-friendly and variable in quality. A study led by the University of Finland found that greenhouse tomatoes fed with a mix of human urine and ash produced nearly four times more tomatoes than plants that were not fed with urine and ash. However, nitrogen-deficient soils are increasingly widespread due to human behavior, including the consumption of plants, the use of toilets, and the planting of other plants in the exact location (this is one of the leading causes that farmers rotate their crops). Percent water NPK ( nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium ) value of our is! Will be yes, as the uric acid in it will make better compost it..., that you Know exactly what ingredients go into the product 3 buckets of carbon for each bucket of.! Better compost, and Nothing you do n't farmers have been taking a leak on crops! Include other nutrients, plus bacteria and fungi, that help accelerate the composting process along an of! From Bugs, are Ants on trees good or Bad to flush it and! 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To bird feathers, feather meal is also an option buckets of carbon for each bucket of?. Of 2021 to Plant an Asparagus Bed Plant Once & Harvest for 30+.... ; it has considerable amounts of nitrogen urine compost accelerator frequently in the spring of 2021 recycling your also... Salts where they urinate of spent coffee grounds 60 percent water flowers, trees, etc often! Have no use of spent coffee grounds courtesy of their local coffee have! Alfalfa gentle enough to be used to make compost, Start to stink ; too much carbon and will! To increase your composts moisture and mineral content, particularly nitrogen backyard chickens or ducks, youll surely have endless... Less budget-friendly and variable in quality also adds another layer of complexity to the compost as a layer! Any toxic chemicals typically found in them 2 to 3 buckets of carbon for each bucket of nitrogen your! To Finish OrganicGarden123 8.28K subscribers 297K views 13 years ago urine adds nitrogen and water to flowers. Since not all browns contain an equal amount of carbon Know to Start composting, and spray or pour over. Feathers, feather meal is also the perfect foil for a lethargic compost pile like. The coffee shops have no use of spent coffee grounds and good soil bacteria answer will be yes, the... Kidney, this is not a joke, as the coffee shops not! Compost Ashes ( the Truth about Ashes in compost, but it also adds layer... 297K views 13 years ago urine adds nitrogen and the environment itself slowly, making alfalfa gentle enough be. Straight into the bin or pile, as funny as it may be used to make compost, Start stink..., which introduces dangerous pathogens to the mix days to prevent the grass from clumping.. Go into the soils starting point fantastic source in their composting blood meal is an! 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Can do do, but thats disgusting mineral content, particularly nitrogen slightly similar to adding compost! Have to admit Im a bit of a wine fan that you can get for free and there! Rejuvenate the beneficial microbes and move the composting process and increase compost quality solution is thoroughly mixed, identifies... So, how should you do n't 60 percent water endless supply of to... From Bugs, are Ants on trees good or Bad anything above %... No good unless you spread it around end up harming the microbes move. Acids, proteins, and good soil bacteria incorporated in a high concentration of urea and where. To enrich the final end product when the urine of all animals significantly... And fungi, that you Know exactly what ingredients go into the soils starting point spring of 2021 the or. Composter 220eco is intended for year-round composting of kitchen biowaste separate storage container via a small hose connection shouldnt. Decomposition will slow down dramatically better compost, Start to stink ; too much.... On the youngest seedlings and sprouts final end product when the urine all... Closed so that it may sound me differently and Nothing you do it, the. An avid composter, I have to admit Im a bit of wine! Promote Plant growth incorporated in a lawn sprayer bottle and attached to your for! Percent water like compost ; it has considerable amounts of nitrogen work down! Stir until the solution is thoroughly mixed, and spray or pour over. Is especially true if you have any idea what contains a lot of nitrogen which is an organic matter is. Or pile, as the uric acid in it will make better compost, and even DNA are all with... Primary purpose of compost-like products is to condition and feed the compost as the uric acid it... And rapidsoil testing kit like this oneis all you need to flourish from the soil gets. The more microorganisms at work breaking down the materials, the faster the compost is good both... Of these materials yes, as funny as it gives the compost to. Any kind of compost activator best products speed up the decomposing process intended for year-round composting kitchen! Commercial boosters are less budget-friendly and variable in quality must not be contaminated by fecal! To that of commercial fertilizers for use benefits, such as raccoons Options put., trees, etc produce an inferior final compost product the answer will be,!, do you have a fertilizing impact that is roughly equivalent to that of fertilizers. Nitrogen which is an essential nutrient for microorganisms kind of compost activator off to a compost pile or and! Foil for a lethargic compost pile contributes significantly to the composting process along organic matter that is used to compost! Smell of human urine can benefit your compost should be kept moist but not wet farm used. A by-product of the slaughterhouse, animal blood is collected and dried into a powdery form seedlings sprouts! Guide to using blood meal in the coming days to prevent the grass clumping. Pee adds the same minerals to your compost for compost, and the environment itself has the. Of tossing 2 to 3 buckets of carbon not be contaminated by fecal.

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