Compost question...

[jaykush]

if you can it helps a lot to let the compost sit and "cure" before use. meaning just stick it in a pile or bin with holes to rest and balance out for a week or two.

from that last picture, that's what id be using as worm bedding. i bet they go nuts over that stuff and turn it into some great castings.

 

[CascadeFarmer]

Tumbler round 2 done, pulled and 1/4" screened after 12 days. Was probably a few days early but it'll all work out in the end...

Round 2 drying/curing for storage...the setup is mainly so the kitty don't go in and arch it's back...

Round 3 chopped up and in the tumbler. Pretty equal portions this time of comfrey, nettles, mullien, candy flower and yellow dock then lesser amounts of miners lettuce, chickweed and red clover...

 

[jaykush]

drying? why the drying? keep that compost in the shade!

 

[CascadeFarmer]

drying? why the drying? keep that compost in the shade!

I'm boxing everything up and will blend all the batches together later this summer, send a sample to the lab for testing then use during the winter indoors. I know it ain't optimum and will lose microbial activity but life ain't perfect. Rather that than go anaerobic in storage. Really got no place outdoors to keep it Jay.

That's my thinking...don't know if it's logical...lol.

 

[mad librettist]

it didn't look done to me!

 

[spurr]

Without going microscopic, how does one evaluate compost quality?

I just smell it; I look for a nice, pleasant aroma,exactly like a properly running, naturally filtered and planted fresh water aquarium smells.

Texture I don't like it sticky or gummy.
Anything else to look for?

SD

Key factors to check out without a scope, IMO:


Bagged:

1. Smell: no ammonia; but that's not the whole story because NH4 can be in high quantity without ammonia (NH3) smell. The smell should be earthy, a smell attributed to (mostly) fire fang (actinobacteria), and often means compost is not only 'finished' but rich in humus.


2. pH: should be ~5-9; but more often 6-8.


3. Texture and jar test: add some compost to a jar of water, shake and let settle, filter the slurry and look for sand. Many sellers of compost and vermicompost and vermicast (screened source of castings) add sand to their product to increase weight and rip off customers.



Un-bagged, from the pile/bin:

1. Same as above under "bagged"

2. Look for actinobacteria: used to be called actinomycetes (but there is ambiguity still; read here) in the compost, you can often seem them with naked eyes. During thermophilic stage actinobacteria are active and do much breakdown of lignin (ex., into humus), re "humification". They are also active in the second mesophilic stage (second 'cool' stage), which is also referred to as the maturation stage. Actinobateria are work-horses (along with some fungi such as white rot fungi, and other bacteria) during the maturation stage because they are good at degrading (breaking-down into humus) lignocellulose (the cell structure of carbon rich plants).

One can find actinobacteria on dog poop once it's a bit old and dried. It's the white stuff that forms on dog poop, it can look like flakes or filaments.

You can see actinobacteria communities with your naked eyes, below is are a few pics.
(Actinobacteria can appear as white 'flecks' or as 'filaments')

(pile of compost, white flecks are actinobacteria)

So when testing compost, look for actinobacteria in terms of maturity. However, in bags of compost you're unlikely to find them with naked eyes. Actinobacteria form what look like filaments or flecks, and do not thrive when the compost is too-often turned, and when screened.

Here are some refs:

"Development of compost maturity and Actinobacteria populations during full-scale composting of organic household waste"
K. Steger, A.M. Sjogren, A. Jarvis, J.K. Jansson and I. Sundh
The Society for Applied Microbiology, Journal of Applied Microbiology, 2007
IJournal of Applied Microbiology SSN 1364-5072
(tull text PDF) http://www.woodsend.org/pdf-files/JAM_solvita-sweden.pdf


"Effects of differing temperature management on development of Actinobacteria populations during composting"
Steger K, Jarvis A, Vasara T, Romantschuk M, Sundh I.
Res Microbiol. 2007 Sep;158(7):617-24

​

 

[spurr]

sunnydog

I had read some information on several vermicomposting sites (legitimate - not people trying to sell you a plastic worm bin and a pound of red wigglers) and more often than not there was mention of using thermal compost as a main source of food.

So I check with our good friend, MM, and he shared that this a good way to improve mediocre compost by turning it into quality worm castings.

Since getting poorly made compost isn't much of a challenge it can be a really cheap way to feed your worms. I'm using a mix of composted horse manure, bagged compost (formerly a top-quality product) and composted chicken manure which looks much like Canadian Sphagnum Peat Moss actually. Weird.

I layer it like a lasagna and hit it with an AACT to get things moving. The worms make pretty quick work of these products. Something to consider perhaps.

CC

I agree with that. I like to use field collected and aged (not dried) horse or cow manure, or good fresh compost, to start my worm piles and bins. I keep a pile of cow and horse manure under a tarp (in the shade of a tree) at all times, so I have worm bin (and compost) 'starter' ready to go at all times. The large infusion of bacteria/archaea from adding good compost or manures is like an 'all you can eat' restaurant for worms, and the bacteria/archaea (as well as fungi) assist in breaking down the OM in worm bin/pile.

 

[mad librettist]

heya spurr, I noticed a while back when I was living in the country that the white stuff came faster and stronger on the dog poop when I put EM in the water and gave bokashi as treats

 

[spurr]

Hey buddy,

IIRC EM has actinobacteria in the 'mix' of microbes, or at least used to. Maybe some actinobacteria species survived (not sure if they encyst) your dogs digestive system and GI, to be pooped about ready to 'wake' up on the pre-inoculated dog pop?

 

[mad librettist]

not sure either. could even be oral-anal transmission. they are dogs after all.

they had nice fresh breath as well.

 

[CascadeFarmer]

it didn't look done to me!

That's what I said in an earlier post...lol. Figured I got at least 6 more batches to do this year and when blended no problem. At worst it'll be worm food.

Spurr...thx for the info and will look through it in more detail this weekend.

 

[jaykush]

I'm boxing everything up and will blend all the batches together later this summer, send a sample to the lab for testing then use during the winter indoors. I know it ain't optimum and will lose microbial activity but life ain't perfect. Rather that than go anaerobic in storage. Really got no place outdoors to keep it Jay.

dude just cover it with something anything to keep the direct sun off, uv rays kill microbes. adding some water every now and then to keep it moist wont be that hard either.

 

[spurr]

dude just cover it with something anything to keep the direct sun off, uv rays kill microbes. adding some water every now and then to keep it moist wont be that hard either.

Compost fleece[1] (aka compost blanket) for the win! I use them like a religion, no matter what the weather. I use the brand "ComposTex"[2], it's good, and inexpensive vs. the Luebke suggested band "Top Tex"[1,3] .

In hot, direct sun they are must, JayKush is spot on as usual, cover the compost. It's helps keep out heat (and UV), keep in moisture and cools the pile (when not in peak thermophilic stage).

Moisture content should stay above 45%, below 70%, Jay is correct, keep 'er moist, but not too moist.

Here are some images:

​

[1] "composting blankets, compost fleece" by Steve Diver (link)

[2] ComposTex: link (the owner of this company is a great guy)

[3] "Controlled Microbial Composting and Humus Management: Luebke Compost" by Steve Diver (link)

 

[Microbeman]

Key factors to check out without a scope, IMO:


Bagged:

1. Smell: no ammonia; but that's not the whole story because NH4 can be in high quantity without ammonia (NH3) smell. The smell should be earthy, a smell attributed to (mostly) fire fang (actinobacteria), and often means compost is not only 'finished' but rich in humus.


2. pH: should be ~5-9; but more often 6-8.


3. Texture and jar test: add some compost to a jar of water, shake and let settle, filter the slurry and look for sand. Many sellers of compost and vermicompost and vermicast (screened source of castings) add sand to their product to increase weight and rip off customers.



Un-bagged, from the pile/bin:

1. Same as above under "bagged"

2. Look for actinobacteria: used to be called actinomycetes (but there is ambiguity still; read here) in the compost, you can often seem them with naked eyes. During thermophilic stage actinobacteria are active and do much breakdown of lignin (ex., into humus), re "humification". They are also active in the second mesophilic stage (second 'cool' stage), which is also referred to as the maturation stage. Actinobateria are work-horses (along with some fungi such as white rot fungi, and other bacteria) during the maturation stage because they are good at degrading (breaking-down into humus) lignocellulose (the cell structure of carbon rich plants).

One can find actinobacteria on dog poop once it's a bit old and dried. It's the white stuff that forms on dog poop, it can look like flakes or filaments.

You can see actinobacteria communities with your naked eyes, below is are a few pics.
(Actinobacteria can appear as white 'flecks' or as 'filaments')

(pile of compost, white flecks are actinobacteria)

So when testing compost, look for actinobacteria in terms of maturity. However, in bags of compost you're unlikely to find them with naked eyes. Actinobacteria form what look like filaments or flecks, and do not thrive when the compost is too-often turned, and when screened.

Here are some refs:

"Development of compost maturity and Actinobacteria populations during full-scale composting of organic household waste"
K. Steger, A.M. Sjogren, A. Jarvis, J.K. Jansson and I. Sundh
The Society for Applied Microbiology, Journal of Applied Microbiology, 2007
IJournal of Applied Microbiology SSN 1364-5072
(tull text PDF) http://www.woodsend.org/pdf-files/JAM_solvita-sweden.pdf


"Effects of differing temperature management on development of Actinobacteria populations during composting"
Steger K, Jarvis A, Vasara T, Romantschuk M, Sundh I.
Res Microbiol. 2007 Sep;158(7):617-24

​

As we all should know from the wise teachings of that great composting expert http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVLF5XGxOnU [don't miss part 2] actinobacteria KILLS mycorrhizal fungi so unless you are growing brassicae you never wish to see actinobacteria (actinomycees; ha ha ha) in your compost. And you don't want actinobacteria to TAKE OVER your compost pile and turn it into charcoal do we. I mean what idiot grows in charcoal?

To everyone besides Spurr just to let you know this is said tongue in cheek.

 

[CascadeFarmer]

I'm not concerned about the retained microbial content. I'm more interested in the nutrient/humus content. This compost will be a base for what I do this winter. A lot will get fed to worms. I'm running on 2 week cycles and will dry the compost in a garage on the floor over a weekend now. I have no place to store this outside. I'm happy with how things are going except...

...ran away on me a bit. After 24 hours it was warm then this morning high 130's and even when I covered it from the sun it took off. I mixed in more straw, pine bark fines for more browns and to reduce the moisture content.

I'm just having fun and learning.

 

[Scrappy4]

Are those compost covers made from the same type of fabric as the smart pots?

I know the compost sak is. Compared to my main compost heap, that is simply a pile on the ground, the sak composter heats quicker, and makes compost quicker. It does seem to dry out quicker though.

I'm wondering if I will get roots growing up into it, like my ground pile.....shredder

 

[CascadeFarmer]

Compared to my main compost heap, that is simply a pile on the ground, the sak composter heats quicker, and makes compost quicker. It does seem to dry out quicker though.

Tumblers rock and easier to control the temp, moisture level, oxygen level (by more frequent opening and tumbling) and general mix/recipe. 2 weeks start to finish under optimal conditions.

 

[CascadeFarmer]

Ha ha...just checked and up to 152 F in one spot. No manures/guano/etc. Some strong ammonia so guess I'm burning off some N...ooops. Can't wait for this round to be over so I can adjust the recipe again to slow things down a bit.

 

[spurr]

As we all should know from the wise teachings of that great composting expert http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVLF5XGxOnU [don't miss part 2] actinobacteria KILLS mycorrhizal fungi so unless you are growing brassicae you never wish to see actinobacteria (actinomycees; ha ha ha) in your compost. And you don't want actinobacteria to TAKE OVER your compost pile and turn it into charcoal do we. I mean what idiot grows in charcoal?

To everyone besides Spurr just to let you know this is said tongue in cheek.

Wow, I that 10 minutes of my life back, after watching that video! Ha. Where is part two?

You know what we should do? Start a lecture circuit called "Correcting Dr. Ingham: time to your your monies worth". Why anyone would give her money, to "learn", is beyond me.

I'll just take a couple of minutes and correct the myriad of wrong claims she made in only 10 minutes (I am only correcting the biggest untruths ... ):

1. Actinobactiera do not kill AM fungi as a rule, in soil or media. They do however exude antimicrobial substances, than can hinder many types of microbes. However, the populations of Actinobacteria are in most all cases to low in soil and media to cause negative effects on fungi. In petri dish sure, high populations of actinobecteria (ex. Steptmomyces spp.; not all actinobacteria species exude antimicrobial substances) can hinder some AM fungi, as well as other types of fungi and bacteria too.

If we believe Dr. Ingham, that Actinobacteria are 'bad' for AM fungi, and will kill them all as a rule (which isn't true[1,2]), we shouldn't be using Sphagnum peat, ever, if we want to use AM fungi. The reason is Sphagnum peat bogs are often rife with actinobacteria[3,4], the very genus she identified in that video, Streptomyces spp. (should we now call it Streptobacteria?). If what Dr. Ingham claims is true, re Actinobacteria hindering fungi, then nearly all species of fungi would be hindered, and I doubt MicrobeMan would see good numbs of fungi see in compost tea made with sphagnum and lots of glucose (unsulfured black strap molasses).

In soil or media mixed with compost that had visible actinobacteria populations, the chance of hindering of AM fungi is very very low. This is due to a few factors, but mainly because the food source (ex., glucose) and conditions (ex., heat) are not ideal for actinobacteria to proliferate.

It's a very good thing to see actinobacteria on compost, because as mentioned, Actinobacteria account for a large deal of compost OM (i.e., liginin -- lignocellulose) humification into humic substances[5]. Such as humus, as well as humic acid and fulvic acid; both of the acids in quantity, when combined, equal the "humic fraction" of the compost[6,7].

Actinobacteria is mostly comprised of aerobic genus and species, but some are anaerobic. Most aerobic actinobacteria do well in thermophilic and mesophilic temps, even some do well in hyperthermophilic temps (which can also increase lignin break-down). So some genus and many species of Actinobacteria thrive in compost piles with sufficient carbon inputs, at all stages. Compost is made better by Actinobacteria.


2. She mentioned 65'C (~149'F) is as hot as a pile should get, and after that, "charcoal" is made. She fails to realize that (1) carcoal is not made and hyperbole is best left to politicians and (2) the thermophilic stage goes up to about 160'F. IIRC, regulations for compost (re pasteurization) in the US is a minimum of 3 days at 150'F with a couple of turns of the pile (if not using forced air piles). Not only that, but it can be helpful to lignin break-down to allow the pile to reach "hyperthermophilic" temps of ~175-212'F (80-100'C)[8] for a few days; caveat: using 80'C is the goal, not > 80'C. Many types of Actinobacteria and other bacteria, and often more types of fungi and protozoa, are active in hyperthermohpilic range (~170-180'F (76-82'C)). However, overall decomposition of OM slows once temps exceed ~160'F, just above the thermophilic rage of ~122-158'F (50-70'C)[9]. One temps go back to thermophilic range thermophilies will again re-populate the pile (after reaching temps of hyperthermophilic stage).


3. Oxygen consent of "air" is 21%, not 22%. That may seem like a small difference but it's not. At 23-24% oxygen in "air", things like hair and clothing will light on fire very easily, other things can actually spontaneously combust. This just goes to the overall picture of a sloppy-with-the-facts, yet not ignorant person, that is Dr. Ingham.


4. She claimed that Actinobacteria prefer lower oxygen levels of "17%" (6.5 ppm O2, according to Dr. Ingham), so that was why, according to her, the 'layer' of Actinobacteria was below the surface of the pile. She also made inference about oxygen percentage needed by aerobic microbes to thrive, e.g., > 17%, ~20% O2. She was wrong on both the claim and inference.

It should be noted, she didn't actually test the oxygen content of that layer of Actinobacteira, even though doing so is simple and she claimed 17% oxygen as fact. Instead, she claimed 17% oxygen simply due to the presence of Actiobacteria. Wow ...

She was wrong about why the Actinobacteria were in one main layer, it was not due to lower oxygen levels of "17%". That is because (most species genus and species of) Actinobactiera like oxygen. And 17% oxygen in a compost pile is not even close to anaerobic; 17% oxygen is good for a compost pile and anaerobic level of oxygen is ~5% O2[10]. The Actinobacteria was in one layer, IMO, because that layer had high carbon matter (lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose) and was hot, as well as moist.

If we consider < 12% air porosity (pores filled with air) to be anaerobic for soil and soilless media, compost piles and vermicompost piles (some academics would suggest < 10%), that means the oxygen content with respect water-filled pores and OM (no pores), would be less than 2.52% (because O2 makes up 21% of "air"). However, that's not the whole story because most aerobic microbes respire Co2, so some of the pores are filled with Co2, not O2; until natural soil/compost/etc. diffusion and convection takes place to move O2 into soil and Co2 out of soil.


5. That's all for now, I've spent enough time on her today. I hope Rodale is happy! Mwahahaha!



Refs:

[1] "Axenic Germination of Vesicular-Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi: Effects of Selected Streptomyces Species"
G.L. Tylka, R.S. Hussey, and R.W. Roncadori
The American Phytopathological Society (1991), Vol. 81, No. 7, pp. 754-759
(full text PDF): http://www.apsnet.org/publications/...ues/Documents/1991Articles/Phyto81n07_754.pdf

• The above paper shows no inhibition of AM fungi spore germination in presence of the Actinobacteria species Streptomyces avermitilis, S. griseus and S. orientails. In fact, of the two main endomycorrhizal fungi species studied (Gigaspora margarits and Glomus mosseae), G.mosseae spore germination was stimulated by the presence of S. orientalis, S. avermitilis and S. Griseus. The mycorrhizal fungi G. margartis was stimulated by only S. orientails.

[2] "Inhibition of the Growth of Fungi by Streptomyces spp. in Relation to Nutrient Conditions"
Skinner, F. A.
J. gen. Microbiol., (1956), Vol. 14, pp. 381-392
http://mic.sgmjournals.org/cgi/reprint/14/2/381.pdf

• From way back in 1956 ...

Actinomycetes are numerous in soils (Waksman, 1950), and a high proportion of strains isolated can antagonize bacteria and fungi in culture (Waksman, Horning, Welsch & Woodruff, 1942; Schatz & Hazen, 1948). There is no doubt that most examples of antagonism encountered in mixed cultures are due to the production of inhibitory substances by the actinomycetes. These antagonistic effects are often so striking that it is tempting to consider such substances as being factors of considerable importance in influencing the balance of natural soil populations. Nevertheless, though many species of soil actinomycetes can produce their antibiotics in artificial culture when supplied with nutrients of the right kinds in adequate amounts, it is by no means certain that they can form the antibiotics in sufficient quantity to antagonize other micro-organisms in soil where the quality and amounts of nutrients may not permit rapid growth (Robison, 1945; Waksman, 1945). A study has accordingly been made of the ability of some soil actinomycetes to suppress the growth of fungi, particularly by the production of antifungal inhibitors, when growing under conditions unfavorable to luxuriant development.

[3] "The leading role of actinobacteria in aerobic cellulose degradation in Sphagnum peat bogs"
T. A. Pankratov, S. N. Dedysh and G. A. Zavarzin
Doklady Biological Sciences (2006), Volume 410, Number 1, 428-430, DOI: 10.1134/S0012496606050243
http://dx.doi.org/10.1134/S0012496606050243


[4] "Cellulolytic streptomycetes from Sphagnum peat bogs and factors controlling their activity"
T. A. Pankratov and S. N. Dedysh
Microbiology (2009), Volume 78, Number 2, 227-233, DOI: 10.1134/S0026261709020143
(full text PDF): http://www.springerlink.com/content/w17781pg61027866/fulltext.pdf


[5] "Microbial community succession and lignocellulose degradation during agricultural waste composting"
Hongyan Yu, Guangming Zeng, Hongli Huang, Xingmei Xi, Renyou Wang, Danlian Huang, Guohe Huang and Jianbing Li
Biodegradation (2007), Vol. 18, No. 6, pp. 793-802, DOI: 10.1007/s10532-007-9108-8
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10532-007-9108-8


[6] "Composting and Formation of Humic Substances"
R.B. Harrison
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780080454054002627

In: Encyclopedia of Ecology
Editor(s)-in-Chief: Sven Erik Jorgensen and Brian Fath
Academic Press, Oxford, 2008, Pages 713-719, ISBN 978-0-08-045405-4
​

[7] "Formation and properties of humic substance originating from composts"
Chen Yona, Chefetz, B., Hadar, Y.
http://www.mendeley.com/research/formation-properties-humic-substance-originating-composts/

In: The science of composting: Part 1
Editor(s)-in-Chief: Bertoldi, M. de, Sequi, P., Lemmes, B., Papi, T.
Blackie Academic & Professional (1996), Pages: 382-393, ISBN 0751403830​

[8] "Space Agriculture for Manned Space Exploration on Mars"
Masamichi Yamashita, Yoji Ishikawa, Makoto Nagatomo, Tairo Oshima and Hidenori Wada
Space Agriculture Task Force
http://surc.isas.ac.jp/space_agriculture/Archive/PDF/SpaceAgri_JSTS.pdf

• see section: "Fertilizer produced by hyperthermophilic aerobic composting"

[9] "On-Farm Composting Methods"
R.V. Misra, R.N. Roy and H. Hiraoka
(full text PDF) ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/006/y5104e/y5104e00.pdf

In: "Land and Water Discussion Paper 2"
Natural Resources Management and Environment Department
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome, 2003
ISSN 1729-0554
​

[10] "Compost Chemistry"
Authors: http://compost.css.cornell.edu/credits.html
Cornell University Composting Science & Engineering
Cornell Waste Management Institute ©1996
http://compost.css.cornell.edu/chemistry.html

Oxygen

...

So, how much oxygen is sufficient to maintain aerobic conditions? Although the atmosphere is 21% oxygen, aerobic microbes can survive at concentrations as low as 5%. Oxygen concentrations greater than 10% are considered optimal for maintaining aerobic composting. Some compost systems are able to maintain adequate oxygen passively, through natural diffusion and convection. Other systems require active aeration, provided by blowers or through turning or mixing the compost ingredients.

...

 

[spurr]

@ all,

Three other things about Dr. Ingham and her idea's about "good" thermophilic compost:

1. She doesn't turn her piles, IIRC, and turning is important (unless forced air is used) to keep oxygen levels high in compost. Turning is also helpful to (a) mix the compost which speeds time to maturity and gives more homogenous finished compost; (b) mix the feedstock inputs of carbon and nitrogen (layering is far from ideal); and (c) reduce or increase heat (depending upon stage of compost). Turning can be unhelpful in terms of increasing nitrogen loss (as ammonia before it's converted into ammonium by microbes) and reducing nitrogen reclamation (re the final N content of the compost).


2. She doesn't concern herself with Carbon to Nitrogen ratio, she prefers to use the green vs brown paradigm. That is one of her main flaws in terms of compost.


3. She doesn't concern herself with keeping moisture content ideal, i.e., 45% to 60%.


4. She doesn't concern herself with formation/creation of humus and humic substances (increasing the humic fraction). Adding such things as humic acid powder, gypsum and/or calcidic limestone (for Ca) and zeolite or bentonite powder (for clay) will increase the humus score (re Luebke compost system) and humic fraction of compost.

Using compost inputs such as rock dusts (for Ca) and clay-loam, was first started by the Leubke's, IIRC, for their Controlled Microbial Composting process[1]. They use clay-loam for the clay particles, to increase humus of the compost (re humus score). They termed the humus created by clay-loam input "clay-humus crumb" (aka clay-humus aggregate).

Some folks from Rodale funded by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, a few years ago, took the chemistry of creating humus a bit further than Luebke's. Adding humic acid powder, gypsum (this is good because it offers Ca and S, but doesn't increase pH) and clay; the results were surprising (and good)[2].

I have talked on occasion to one time Luebke family right-hand man for the US, George Leidig*.He is the one who told me the "secret" to why clay-loam is used for CMC (Controlled Microbial Composting); CEC and clay-humus crumb (what I term "clay-Ca-humus aggregate"). He also told me he has tested using clay powder, not clay-loam and clay powder works much better; which makes sense due to particle size and CEC (re Percent Base Saturation) of pure clay vs clay-loam. He told me he used very fine pure bentonite clay powder (leftover during processing of kitty litter) in place of clay-loam and he got the highest "humus score" he has ever hear about and seen: 100 (and it would go higher if the score was no based on 100).

* author of the must read: "Rock Dust and Microbial Action in Soil: The Symbiotic Relationship Between Composting and Mineral Additives"; Spring 1993 issue of Remineralize the Earth[1].​

FWIW, to my piles I add the following inputs:

• zeolite powder (for silica and clay, as well as CEC (cation exchange capacity) and AEC (anion exchange capacity)
• pyrophyllite clay powder (for silica and clay, as well as CEC and AEC)
• gypsum (for sulfate to 'trap' ammonia and calcium to build humus and increase flocculation of compost)
• humic acid (either as powder or watered in; I also add humic acid when turning and re-wetting the pile)
• azomite (for rock powder and micro-nutrients)
• soft rock phosphate (to increase final P level of compost and for microbes, many require a lot of P for best composting)
• alfalfa meal (if I have to increase N, artificially)

Refs:

[1] "Controlled Microbial Composting and Humus Management: Luebke Compost"
Steve Diver
http://www.ibiblio.org/steved/Luebke/Luebke-compost2.html


[2] "Good compost made better: The Rodale Institute takes “black gold” one step further"
Christine Ziegler Ulsh with Paul Hepperly, PhD
http://newfarm.rodaleinstitute.org/depts/NFfield_trials/2006/0413/compost.shtml