Turning up the heat in the compost pile?

My first attempt at a compost pile cost me the majority of the summer, it just was not heating up. After reading a few articles here at DG, I realized I just did not have a good combination going there so I started all over. I'm using a garbage can with holes drilled in it. I started off with a bit of shredded newspaper, then kitchen scraps, a little bit of straw, and lastly a few plant trimmins. The trash can is 1/2 full now. I watered each layer as I added. Its been about a week and its not hot, does it take a while? Am I still lacking something or just being impatient? LOL, I'm anxious to get something going before it gets real cold.

Thanks for any info!

Jen

Jen, do you have access to large quantities of Comfrey? I read an article over the summer in Organic Gardening that Comfrey can jump start a compost pile. I think it's because it has alot of nitrogen in it, but don't quote me on that. All I know is that after reading that article, I raided every bed of comfrey I could find, added it to my compost piles and also made comfrey tea to spray as a foliar spray. It worked wonders. Just be careful to not add any seeds or flowers to your compost pile. The stuff is vicious and invasive and you can't get rid of it. Only plant it where you absolutely know you'll never need to plant anything else.

Good luck.

Jen, it's ideal if you had a bit of compost from an already active pile to jump start the new one. If not, try putting some soil in there, or a compost starter you can buy at a gardening supply store. The idea is to get some of the bacterial action going as soon as possible. Also you will need to get plenty of air into the barrel by means of either fluffing the pile or sticking something down to the bottom to pull material up. A really good pile needs to be a bit larger than yours; I'd fill the garbage can up to the top with fresh grass clippings (they are very high in nitrogen and will help to heat the pile up). Poke at it every few days and keep it damp but not wet, airate it frequently and then see what happens.

Hi Jen
Your first problem is a lack of volume. To get really hot compost you need a volume of about a cubic yard of material (a pile 3'wide,3' deep' and 3' high is a cubic yard) and the pile needs to be constructed within a couple of days. The outer 6 inches or so of a pile never gets very hot as it acts as an insulator between the heating core and the outside air. Here is a website that will give you all the information you need to understand the composting process. http://whatcom.wsu.edu/ag/compost/fundamentals/index.htm
As for the heating process, a properly built compost pile should heat up to its maximum temp. in 3 or 4 days. Your proportions sound about right and you should not be able to wring out water when a handfull is squeezed.( should feel like a wrung out spounge). A pile built gradually and in a garbage can will never reach a hot temp but will still compost over time. There are several other good compost sites if you go to google and search compost.
George