How to care for the compost when you receive it

Here are our instructions to maintain the best conditions for the network of organisms living in this product.

Storage conditions:

Make sure your compost is kept in a cool location, away from direct sun.

It should be out of windy areas to avoid increased evaporation from the pile.

The compost should never be allowed to dry out lower than 40% moisture.

Any water you add to keep it moist should be free of chlorine. Rain water is a good water source for composts. Typically, we want the compost to be at 50% moisture. Please see our moisture test instructions.

If you must add water, add it from the top. Do not mix the compost when watering, unless you are preparing a portion of your compost for preactivation. And do not over water at once. It is best to add small amounts of water, several days in a row, until you’ve brought the compost back to the desired moisture level.

Generally try not to disturb the compost unless you must.

Do not leave it outside for the rain to over hydrate it.

Do not let the compost freeze. In the winter, we keep our compost in a garage around 10 degrees celsius. Do not put your compost in a fridge either!

Do not store the compost in a container where the microbes will not be able to breathe.

How long is the product good for?

Answer: When stored properly, this compost may be used for a year with the instructions that we have provided. The second year, it is still good, it’s just less dense in microbes at this point, though incredibly rich in nutrients and will still have lovely biology. So you will simply want to use more of it when making a compost extract or a compost tea to have a similar density of microbes as compared to when it was fresh.

After two years, the compost is basically a very rich soil, no longer an inoculum source.

Tip: We have two shipping periods of compost per year, April and September, so you can even do two orders a year for the freshest and most potent compost.

If you live far away and are paying for long distance shipping, Buy enough for the year, not twice a year.

In general, there isn’t a need to buy more than you need for the year, but of course this is up to you!

Any other doubts?

Incarnate your inner microbe, and feel how you need to be treated ;)

OR write to us at info@docterre.ca and we’ll be happy to help!