What is the simplest way to make home made compost?

Composting is the process of breaking down organic matter (food waste) in the presence of air and water, using microorganisms and small insects present in nature. The final product is called compost which is rich in readily plant nutrients forming a part of healthy soil. It is a very easy process to make compost at home. I have also made compost at home. There are a few steps to make homemade compost which are as follows;-
1. In order to make compost you simply need a container, It can be anything from a bucket to a normal dustbin or a garden pot.
2. Drill some holes in the container so as to let some air in easily.
3. Collect dry organic matter (dried leaves, sawdust) in a container. Line the bottom with a layer of soil.
4. Now start adding food waste in layers alternating wet waste (food scraps, vegetable and fruit peels) with dry waste such as straw, sawdust, dried leaves.
5. Cover this container with a plastic sheet or a plank of wood to help retain moisture and heat.
Every few days, use a rake to give the pile a quick turn to provide aeration. If the pile is too dry, sprinkle some water so that it is moist. Within 2 - 3 months, your pile should start forming compost that is dry, dark brown crumbly and smelling of earth. There are also readymade composting kits available for those who want to overcome the initial resistance to starting composting.

You can make compost outdoor or indoor. Please remember that our compost should have both carbon-rich material and nitrogen-rich material.
Dried leaves, Hay, Straw and Twigs are some of the carbon-rich materials.
Vegetable scraps, Fruit scraps and Coffee grounds are some of the nitrogen-rich materials,
Find a place in your back yard where the sunlight will be very less, Pile these carbon-rich and nitrogen-rich materials layer by layer. The ratio of these two materials should be 66% carbon-rich material and 34% nitrogen-rich material, Keep the material wet by spraying a little water. Turn the material regularly so that there will be good aeration. By seeing the consistency of the material and colour of the material you will know when the compost is ready. This is how we make compost in an open area.
If there are no open areas, you can make them indoor also. You can use a plastic or a metallic or a clay made vessel. Make some holes on the top and the bottom for aeration. Keep a paper at the bottom of the vessel. Keep this in a vessel so that when you rake the material spillage may not be there on the ground. Then add the materials as mentioned in the above method layer by layer and keep raking as and when required for better aeration.

In our houses many food items are wasted and there are many items like peelings of the vegetables or
fruits which can be effectively composted easily in our house itself. Then there are some items like used tea leaves, wasted twigs and parts of green vegetables etc that all are a good source for composting.
The basic container for making compost can be a simple bucket or some old tin container etc which are generally available in our house and we give them to the waste paper vendor from time to time. These old items can be used as a container.
We also require a lid for the container and one can use a big cardboard or old plastic tray for the purpose.
Most important thing in the composting is layering of the waste material and one has to collect dry leaves, grass etc from some nearby park or playground where generally a lot of tree leaves fall down and are cleaned by the municipal cleaners from time to time.
Once we put a layer of these dry materials then we can spread the waste food and other organic material over this layer and again make a layer of dry leaves over it. After it we have to sprinkle some water on it to wet it to make it conducive to organic degradation. So if we do it alternately for 15-20 days the container would be full and will start composting itself. Only thing is time to time we have to sprinkle some water in it to keep it slightly wet.
In 2-3 months time the material in the container will degrade and its volume would also shrink down which is a sign that composting is effective and it will eventually change into the compost which can be used in the flower pots etc.
The container can be kept in the balcony but away from the sun as scorching heat may dry it and the organic decay process is halted.

Composting is the process where the carbon based materials are utilised with the proper mix up of nitrogen based materials in the right proportions and adding water and oxygen which will facilitate the activity of the microbial critters to breakdown into a nutrient dense product which could be utilised for our veggies and other produce.
Before we start breaking up the brown and green materials into the tiny areas so as to increase the surface area for the faster chemical process, we would take up the following steps as enlisted below-
1) Let us start from the brown layer. If it is in the dry state, we need to add some water ensuring that the water should be in the correct proportion not allowing the same for the overflow.
2) Let us sprinkle the finished compost over the brown layer. This will enhance microbial mechanism.
3) Let us add the green layer one by one with the spread of each layer evenly so as to maximise the surface area.
4) Layering and watering should be repeated until the pile is at least 3 feet high.
5) When the compost file is full add water slowly letting it to be soaked.
6) Place the thermometer in the centre of the piles and the temperature is to be recorded each day. We would see that there is a gradual increase of temperature each day. Within a couple of days, it would attain the range of 100 - 120 degrees centigrade indicating that the compost process is finally over.

I was recently advised by one of our members, Dr. Deepali, that banana peels are a good natural fertilizer for plants, including for vegetables. As per her advice, I made a slurry of chopped banana peels and water and put that in the plant's soil. However, this attracted a swarm of fruit flies. How to avoid that?

It depends on whether you have a backyard, or spare space or are living in a flat.

If you have enough land space, you can have a better organised compost using compost bins, pipes etc. Many local bodies are supplying them free of cost or we can buy them in market.

However when one is living in flats, then space crunch is a problem. Here one has t us flowerpots etc for making home compost. The inputs will be the kitchen wastes. Odour and flees or insects may be the problems we face. For this also solutions or sprays are available in the market. Even compost catalysts are also available.

Take a sufficiently big bucket or suitable container. If possible place a layer of soil. Coiry fibers from coconuts are also good. Then add kitchen waste little by little. place waste paper shreds over them. Keep in a place where sunlight is available. If the waste is not wet sprinkle some waiter just to wet it. After two days shake or stir the inputs. If composting has started go on adding every day watching the progress. Alternatively the wastes can be ground in a mixie and added for fast composting. (Do not put any dry wastes like metal, plastic, package covers etc)
For first few days monitoring has to b done to avoid insects, flees etc. and bad odour-and suitable action taken. The wetness should just sufficient for compost formation and not watery and flowing. When the bottom layer onwards starts showing dry and black, then that portion can b taken out and spread at the roots of plants.

The wastes may attract rodents also. So one has to be vigilant and monitoring. Some wastes like peels, coffee/tea slurry can be put directly at plant roots. and covered by soil.

Any rotten vegetable or fruit, egg peels, dried leaves, used tea and coffee filters, etc. can be used to make compost. Making compost is a step-by-step procedure. First, you should pile up the organic material in a bare space or keep it in the compost bins and then cover it with soil. Add material in layers and cover it with soil. Water it occasionally. Mixing and turning the compost once a week is also required.


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Banana peel is a good fertilizer for plants. It adds several kinds of essential macronutrients to the plants as it is rich in calcium, potassium, magnesium, and phosphorus, which make the plants' stems and roots stronger. It also improves photosynthetic activity and nutrient distribution in plants. Banana peels can be used in the form of banana peel slurry that can be sprayed on the plants, or you can use banana peels as such by sowing them in the soil directly, but a little bit away from the plant's roots. If you are concerned about fruit flies (which is quite obvious), then you need not worry because you have planted only an ornamental plant. Fruit flies are pests that can cause damage to soft and ripe fruits and vegetables. They lay their eggs on the soft skin of ripe fruits and vegetables as well. To avoid this condition, you can spray some fine soil on the plant's leaves. Or spray lavender oil on the plant leaves (or you can place cotton balls dipped in lavender oil).

Compost is very necessary for plant growth and when it comes to homemade compost it is the best option because it is the cheapest and the best for plants as it is prepared from home waste. So it is one of the techniques of turning waste to best. There are various ways of preparing homemade compost. You can even keep the tea stuff for son days and then after when it is easily mixable in soil pour it thoroughly. This is very beneficial for plants. You can also use banana and onion peels. Put them in a container and mix some water in them. Then after one or two days spray the water on plants and then put the peels in soil and mix them well. One of the traditional techniques of preparing compost is by using leftovers and peels. You can dig a small area in your garden and then put a holed container in it. Put leftovers and other waste and mix sand. You can even put some earthworms in it and it is commonly known as vermicompost. Cover the surface with sand and wait for some days. Your nutrition-rich compost will be ready.
If you are scared about pests then you can spray neem water on plants. Took some neem leaves and boil them in water after that let the water cool down. Spray this on plants. Also, turmeric is beneficial for this treatment.