Having a beautiful terrace garden to lounge in after a long day at work and sip on cold lemonade is a dream of many. As concrete jungles are rising towards the expanses of the sky at an alarming rate, people are yearning for the simpler times and nearness to the elements of nature.There is limited space to begin an elegant front yard garden in all urban households, hence building an intimate space as a rooftop garden or a terrace plant hangout seems like an only solution to the issue. Luckily, a terrace garden is remarkably easy to build and grow plants. You can even get fresh produce from your terrace right onto your table by using a terrace garden’s correct techniques. Terrace gardening requires only a small amount of beginner effort and cost. As you kick start your rooftop garden space, you can duly reward yourself by paying frequent attention to your beloved greens growing on the rooftop. And, you can enhance the whole experience by using compost manure!You will only need to know how to use a waste decomposer for a terrace garden and voila! Behold your plants at full bloom and fruit.
Get your garden space ready
Begin with waterproofing your terrace garden. Doing this will ensure that no water leakage will seep into your house and damage it. Waterproofing your terrace is ideal despite using your deck for a lawn, flower bed gardening, or simple pot gardening. Water drained from pots can cause harm to your roof, too. So, you will need to use a membrane sheet, and then a filler on your terrace that ensures fast drainage of water and no seepage. Secondly, you will need to build a windshield for your tender and young plants. High-speed winds are likely to damage your plants before you can relish in their fresh feeling and greenness. Use metal shields as wind barriers and save your terrace plants from both heavy rains and brisk winds. If you do not have the same means, place your tender plants in the shade of your terrace structure to preserve them from any damage. Now begin by planning a layout for your terrace and marking at what positions you will require which kind of planters. You can make use of earthen pots, long vase-like planters, raised planter beds, or even use your full terrace as a lawn area. Use large planters for big plants or even large shrubs like roses and lemons. Doing this can help you increase your terrace garden produce. Raised garden beds made of wood, etc. help in growing herbs for your kitchen usage. NuVue Products Raised Garden Box is one such raised bed planters that you can use for either flowers or herbs, etc. Small magnetic planters used all over your terrace garden on metallic surfaces add an added layer of sophisticated style to your terrace. The compost mix can always be used in all kinds of plants for the best and healthy growing plants.
Let us begin with our waste decomposer!
For the most effortless gardening and healthiest plants at your terrace, you should use compost manure produced by a waste decomposer.
Waste decomposer
Terrace gardening with waste decomposer makes use of a biofertilizer that helps increase soil fertility and its conditioning ability. You can use it in a container, bin, tumbler, etc. used explicitly to turn kitchen waste and other organic waste such as leaves, old newspapers, etc. into compost. You can always try Nature Friend Organic Waste Decomposer as a decomposer for your terrace gardening. The waste decomposer plus the residue left under the natural decomposition process to give rise to organic compost can then be used for growing plants. In specific compost setups, earthworms are used, and waste decomposer helps attract their population. The resulting compost is called vermicompost and is highly nourishing conditioning and fertilizing for the soil. It helps soil retain all its essential nutrients, and in turn, you get the most beautiful plants!
What is compost?
Compost is organic manure that is highly nourishing for soil, non-toxic for plants, and helps get 100% organic produce! It helps eliminate global waste by reducing leftovers into reusable material to grow plants. Compost making helps reduce a family of four waste from over 1000 kgs to less than 100 kilograms a year! It helps reduce carbon footprint and is overall a helping hand to help the planet breathe a little fresh air.
How to use waste decomposers for a terrace garden?
- Begin with getting a large bin, container, canister, garbage can, or even a bucket.
- Drill holes into your container of choice to allow passage of air for compost making.
- Set this container in your terrace garden in an airy and sunny space by keeping a tray or newspapers underneath the box.
- Add a layer of soil of a couple of inches.
- Now, regularly add green matter, that is, kitchen waste, peels, food leftovers. Now, add the decomposer for terrace gardening with waste decomposer. You can also add the compost tea from vermicomposting or composting containers to add other nourishing elements to the soil mix.
- Balance it by adding brown matter that is dried leaves, old newspapers, waste paper, etc.
- Regularly shuffle the soil layers.
- You will have your terrace garden compost in about a couple of months!
You make use of buckets and other home containers for making a compost bin. If you have strict laws regarding composting as it may attract insects and pests, you can use a tumbler composting or caddy composting. A caddy compost is when you use a small bucket-like container that can be used to use kitchen scraps, fruit and vegetable peels, etc. You can easily store this on your kitchen counter or by the side near your kitchen dustbin so that all compostable material can be collected. Regularly add scraps and peels to create compost without much hassle.Chef’n 401-420-120 EcoCrock Counter Compost Bin is one such caddy compost bin that can be stored right in your kitchen, and the resulting compost can be shifted to your terrace. A tumbling composter is a similar product that you can place somewhere on your terrace. Its compact size as per your needs, along with the no-fuss compost making ability, helps you make compost for your patio garden and quickly transfer it to the soil. FCMP Outdoor IM4000 Tumbling Composter is a sound choice for your terrace space and can help create the most available compost for your plants. Both do not allow any composting odor to escape from the container and are securely closed to not attract any pests and nasty insects.
Terrace garden vermicomposting
If you want the proper nature compost by using the goodness of earthworms, you can start vermicomposting by using waste vermicompost containers at your terrace. These containers come with a layered build that helps the compost build-up at the bottom while you keep on adding kitchen waste, etc. at the top. You can also make your DIY waste decomposer by using this.
Perfecting the soil-compost mix for terrace gardening
Unlike regular soil gardening, terrace gardening requires all nutrients and minerals to be explicitly added. The average soil can quickly be depleted of all necessary gardening nutrients while at a secluded terrace gardening space, and hence requires additional compost and conditioning mixes.
- Chemical soils will deplete your terrace produce from the right nutrients, and you will only have the toxic shell of fruits and veggies. Hence, opt-out of any chemical fertilizers.
- Use an equal mix of regular soil, sandy soil, compost, and manure to make the perfect soil mix for your terrace.
- Regularly keep adding your own terrace compost to your rooftop plants to ensure optimal growth and make your DIY waste decomposer at home for easy compost availability.
- The compost made from kitchen waste has sufficient calcium, potassium, and other plant growth nutrients. Hence, your plants will start blooming in no time!
Getting the perfect tools
Using a waste decomposer is not as easy as using a decomposer and adding its contents to your container bin for making the compost. While the process is relatively straightforward, you will need a few tools to begin your terrace gardening and waste decomposing. First, invest in a good shovel, gloves pair, and buckets if you do not have the one with good quality at home. These act as the startup for your terrace garden waste decomposing. It is always best to buy these products in a tools kit complete with all the terrace gardening essentials. Hence, you will not miss a crucial tool that would otherwise help your decomposing waste mission become a great success. You should also have odor absorbers if you plan to do a terrace waste decomposition with an open container. Along with your waste decomposer, you should also get an activator to speed up the composting process. Biocare India Pvt. Ltd Biozap Plastic 35 L Home Composter comes with all these and an additional stirrer. Another waste composter you should be trying is a tap waste decomposer, which allows you to strain the decomposing juices. The juice or decomposition tea has many essential soil nutrients and is a good soil conditioner. A product with strainers and taps to extract this forms the decomposer that will help nourish your soil ideally. SAMPOORN HOME COMPOSTER comes with such a strainer and compost accelerator to help you out.