Composting your yard waste is a responsible step towards reducing load on our landfills. Plus you can create the highest-quality soil amendment known to gardeners!
Composting is an accelerated decomposition of dead plant material. The process is managed by humans. Keys to compost success include:
critical mass - start with a large-enough pile of material, at least one cubic yard
balanced carbon to nitrogen ratio within the pile
sufficient moisture - barely a drop of water will drip when squeezing a handful of the compost material
regular aeration - microorganisms within the compost need oxygen
Intensively managed piles may be "done" in as few as 3 weeks, but many gardeners allow the compost to "cook" twice that time or longer.
Composting resources:
Utah State University Extension offers many excellent publications on composting at their publications website, http://extension.usu.edu//publications Search for "compost".
"Turning" the compost is an important task; it provides oxyen to the microorganisms within the pile. Piles can be turned with a spading fork.
