Master the art and science of composting — from balancing carbon and nitrogen to building hot piles, vermicomposting and using finished compost.
Compost is the heart of a healthy garden. This course teaches you to turn everyday waste — vegetable scraps, dry leaves, grass clippings and manure — into dark, crumbly, nutrient-rich compost that feeds your soil and your plants.
Across five modules you will learn the science behind decomposition, how to balance carbon-rich "browns" and nitrogen-rich "greens", how to build and manage a hot compost pile, advanced methods like worm composting, and how to know when compost is ready and use it well. Each lesson is practical and suited to home, school and community scale.
5 modules · 15 lessons
What compost is, who makes it, and the carbon–nitrogen balance.
Gather materials and build a pile that heats up and breaks down fast.
Turn, water and monitor your pile to keep the decomposers happy.
Worm composting, trench methods and composting at community scale.
Know when compost is ready and put it to work in your garden.
