Environment

Compost benefits the environment because it:

• Recycles organic resources which keeps them out of landfill space
• Saves water, as it helps the soil hold moisture which reduces water runoff and the need for more frequent watering
• Controls soil erosion
• Reduces the need for commercial fertilizers, petrochemical fertilizers and soil conditioners because compost naturally contains the nutrients which fertilizers are used to replace - compost contains both the nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium trio from which most commercial fertilizers are made and the nutrients (vitamins, minerals and thousands of micronutrients) which most bought fertilizers lack in the first place
• Also reduces the need for "icides" (which not only kill insects, pests and weeds, but kill beneficial bacteria necessary for uptake and processing of soil compounds into plants) (Less "icide" use means less poison in the air we breathe, the food we eat and the water we drink)

Gardens

Compost helps gardens grow because it:

• Improves the quality of almost any soil by increasing the soil's organic matter
  Compost contains a large variety of the nutrients which plants require for healthy growth
  When plants get what they naturally need, the result is a stronger, healthier, more vibrant garden
• Improves the structure and texture of the soil by lightening clay soil to allow root spread, water penetration, etc. and by helping sandy soil hold water
• Encourages healthy root structure and function
• Produces plants with fewer pest problems which in turn helps the environment by decreasing the use of pesticides
• Helps to control insects, diseases and "bad bacteria" that might overrun plants in a more sterile soil lacking natural checks against their spread
• Has suppressed many fungal diseases when applied over turf
• Helps balance soil pH (acidity/alkalinity)

Health

Compost increases our health because: The human body and brain get energy, get building blocks for repair and maintain and strengthen their immune system from what they are fed. Our food creates fuel for us to burn as energy, incorporates nutrients necessary for our repair and creates compounds that support our immunity from what they are fed - namely soil. Unhealthy soil leads to unhealthy food, which in turn leads to unhealthy people. Compost not only makes the soil (and food and humans) healthier it helps plants interface more productively with the dirt.

Much like our digestive system cannot breakdown and absorb nutrients without a multitude of "good bacteria" growing inside us and helping the process along, plant roots cannot absorb nutrients from the soil without different kinds of bacteria to open the root doors and to transport nutrients through. Of course the nutrients and the bacteria must both be present in the soil to produce healthy food. This is where composting comes in. The natural breakdown of organic material frees valuable nutrients and creates an environment that promotes good bacteria. Plus compost:

• Retains nutrients, moisture, and air
• Adds nutrients and beneficial microbes and bacteria to soil
• In addition to nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium, compost is high in vitamins, minerals (such as manganese, copper, iron, and zinc) and a myriad of micronutrients