Composting is an extremely important part of gardening, luckily, you don't have to be special to become a master at doing so. Similarly to cooking, composting is part science, and part art. Just as a chef needs the appropriate ingredients to create an amazing meal, a successful compost also requires the best ingredients. Okay, enough with the cooking analogies! There are many fantastic things you can use in your compost. Things such as grass and hedge trimmings, twigs, scraps of vegetables, leaves and even tea bags can be used to create your compost.

In the preparation of compost, you will require mainly organic materials, including water, microorganisms and air. You will also require a very small amount of nitrogen. Basically, you are trying to decompose organic materials which is the primary role of microorganisms in the form of small plants and animal life. An example of microorganisms are tiny quantities of manure or garden soil. The water, air, and small amount of nitrogen then act as an environment to promote the production of compost.

As a general rule of thumb, the more surface area that the microorganisms have, the faster the decomposition of the materials will occur. Ways that you can help break down your organic materials quickly are by using a large knife, shredder or even a lawnmower.

If we were referencing cooking again, the compost pile would be considered as your cooking oven. As a result of the microorganism activity, the compost piles will begin to catch heat.

The microorganisms within your compost pile will work the most efficiently with some moisture. As a general rule, an amount of moisture similar to a wrung-out sponge will be adequate. It is also imperative to ensure that your compost has many avenues of receiving air. Furthermore, the air in your compost pile will usually be consumed much quicker than the moisture, to combat this you can mix the compost pile around via the use of a rake or any other gardening tools.