Organic Gardener's Composting is a novel written by Steve Solomon and starts with a chapter about some composters who are very fussy and take great pains to produce a material exactly to their liking. Simple, less rigorous ways of composting produce a product nearly as good with much less work. One unique method suited to handling kitchen garbage might appeal even to the ecologically concerned apartment dweller. The overly-large garden produces dozens and dozens of stumps and uneaten savoy cabbages. Sprouting potatoes, mildewed squash, and shriveled apples are spread atop brassica stalks. With the first frost in October, there is a huge amount of garden cleanup. Compost turning can be a laborious, sweat-inducing, back-breaking task or it can be rather quick and simple. Even with a really sharp shovel, it is exceedingly challenging to penetrate a compost pile. One requires a hay fork, sometimes known as a "pitchfork" by most people. Spading forks with four wide-flat blades don't work well for turning heaps, but in extremes, I'd prefer one to a shovel. The normal "combination" shovel is made for builders to move piles of sand or gravel. A combination shovel has a decidedly curved blade that won't scrape up very much with each stroke.
