A simple wooden bin provides airflow and space for layering “browns” and “greens” to create balanced compost at home. Photo by Molly Jameson.
The Dirt on Compost: Hot and Worm Composting at Home
Every week, many of us dump spoiled food or leftovers into the trash and haul yard waste to the curb, not realizing that all of that organic material could be turned into something incredibly useful. Composting is the answer. It’s a simple, natural process that transforms food scraps and yard debris into a rich soil amendment that feeds your plants and improves soil health.
Microbial activity generates heat as organic matter breaks down, causing visible steam to rise from active thermophilic compost piles on cool mornings. Photo by Turkey Hill Farm.
There are two main ways to compost at home: thermophilic (hot) composting and vermicomposting (composting with worms).
Thermophilic composting is the classic backyard method that relies on heat-loving microbes to break down organic material. With the right mix of “browns” (carbon-rich materials like dried leaves, cardboard, and straw) and “greens” (nitrogen-rich materials like vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, and grass clippings), the pile heats up to between 130–160°F. This high heat speeds up decomposition and kills weed seeds and harmful pathogens. Turn the pile occasionally and keep it moist, and in a few months, you’ll have dark, earthy compost ready to mix into your garden beds.
Hot Composting Fun Facts
Food scraps and yard waste make up nearly 30% of what we throw away, most of which could be composted instead.
Microbes in a hot compost pile can double their population every 20–30 minutes under the right conditions.
A compost pile needs at least one cubic yard (3x3x3 feet) of material to build enough mass to heat up properly.
Steam rising from a compost pile on a chilly morning isn’t smoke – it’s water vapor from microbial activity.
Red wiggler earthworms transform food scraps into nutrient-rich worm castings. Photo by Leon County.
Vermicomposting is a little different – and a bit squirmier. This method uses red wiggler earthworms (Eisenia fetida) to process kitchen scraps into a fine, nutrient-rich material called worm castings. Earthworm bins can be kept indoors or outside in a shaded area, making them a great option for those with limited space. It’s clean, odor-free when managed properly, and a surprisingly fun way to recycle your food waste.
Worm Composting Fun Facts
Red wigglers can eat up to half their body weight in food scraps each day.
Worms breathe through their skin and need moist bedding to survive and stay active.
Worm castings contain five times more nitrogen and seven times more phosphorus than average topsoil.
Worm castings contain beneficial microbes that help suppress certain plant diseases in soil.
Finished vermicompost is dark, crumbly, and nutrient-rich – the result of red wigglers breaking down organic waste. Photo by John Edwards.
Both methods keep organic material out of the landfill, reduce methane emissions, and build healthier soil – something every gardener can appreciate.
If you’d like to learn even more about composting and hear additional fun facts about how nature recycles, join UF/IFAS Extension Agents Mark Tancig and Molly Jameson for The Dirt on Compost: Hot & Worm Composting at Home on Wednesday, November 12, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Leon County Extension Office (615 East Paul Russell Road).
Planting season is just around the corner and as you plan your summer garden, consider including watermelons to enter into the Big Melon Contest at the Panhandle Watermelon Festival!
The watermelon festival and the Big Melon Contest have been summertime staples in the Central Panhandle for decades. The Big Melon Contest is an opportunity to showcase your skills as a grower and a chance to win prize money. To make the contest fun for growers of all types of watermelons, a winner and first runner-up will be recognized for each variety of melon entered in contest*, with the heaviest melon in the class winning $50 and the first runner-up $25. In addition to the variety classes, there will be a $300 grand prize paid for the overall heaviest melon in the contest, and $200 for the first runner-up heaviest melon. This contest is open to all ages; however, we do have a separate youth division, Junior Jubilee, which is described below.
The Junior Jubilee Contest is open to kids aged 18 and under. To participate in the Junior Jubilee Contest, kids must register with UF/IFAS Extension Washington County Office between 2/18/25 and 3/7/25. Upon signing up, kids will receive seeds, a grower log sheet, and growing guide. Through the Spring the kids will grow their own melons and record their progress on the log sheet. They will bring their log sheet along with their 2 biggest melons to enter into the contest on designated intake days (6/18-19). All kids who bring a melon back for the contest will be recognized at the melon auction on Saturday, June 21st. Prizes will be given for the 10 biggest melons in the youth division, including a $200 grand prize!
Junior Jubilee Contestants Aubrey and Blake showing off some of the melons they grew for the 2024 Junior Jubilee Contest. Photo Credit: Mark Mauldin
There will be a “How to Grow Watermelons” class for kids & parents at the Washington County Ag Center in Chipley, at 5:30 PM, on February 18th to help kickoff the Junior Jubilee program. Attendance is not required to participate in the contest.
There is no cost to enter a melon into the contest. However, melons entered in the contest are donated to the festival and will be sold via auction. Proceeds of the auction help off-set the costs of next year’s festival. All contest melons will be on display during the festival and their variety, weight, and grower will be announced during the auction.
Melons being entered in the contest must be delivered to the Washington County Ag Center during the designated intake period. Melons will be received and weighed-in at the Ag Center Wednesday 6/18 between 8:00 AM and 4:00 PM and Thursday 6/19 between 8:00 AM and 7:00 PM central time. If you plan to enter a melon, be sure to check the average days from seed to harvest and plan accordingly. For example, Jubilee melons take 90-100 days so must be planted by March 7th for ripe melons to be available by June 18th.
The 2025 Panhandle Watermelon Festival is a free event and is scheduled for Friday June 20th and Saturday June 21st, in Chipley, FL. Friday night includes concerts and kids’ activities at Jim Trawick Park (1544 N Railroad Ave, Chipley, FL 32428). Saturday’s eventsinclude a parade downtown in the morning then vendor booths, kids’ activities, and the watermelon auction (and contest winners announced) at the Washington County Ag Center (1424 Jackson Ave. Chipley, FL 32428) after the parade.
Photo: M. Mauldin, UF/IFAS
The watermelon auction will begin at 12:00 noon central time on Saturday followed by the last concert of the festival.
If you have any questions regarding the contest, contact Mark Mauldin at the UF/IFAS Extension, Washington County Office (850-638-6180 ormdm83@ufl.edu).
For details about the Panhandle Watermelon Festival, please visit the event organizer’s website and/or Facebook pages.
There are common reasons for failure with vegetable gardens in North Florida. One of those reasons is planting at the wrong time of year. We can grow vegetables year-round here in North Florida but it’s important to plant and grow the right vegetable during the right season. Most warm-season vegetables, such as tomato and cucumber, are planted and grow when frosts and freezes are not likely to happen. While the cool-season crops, such as strawberry and onion, are planted and grow during the cooler months of fall, winter and early spring. We have to be careful to select the correct varieties, as well.
Many gardeners overdo it in fertilizing and liming their gardens, which can result in failure. I’ve seen gardeners create problems in their gardens by watering too much or at the wrong time of day. Some gardeners use too much of a good thing such as mushroom compost, wood ashes, Epsom salt or copper fungicides in their gardens, creating lasting problems. And, unfortunately, too many gardeners don’t know how to identify beneficial insects versus pest insects and misuse insecticides as a result.
To be successful with vegetable gardening in North Florida, a person needs to know these basics. This is the kind of information I will cover in the free, two-hour seminar titled Home Vegetable Gardening 101.
The Home Vegetable Gardening 101 seminar is scheduled for Saturday, March 1, 10 a.m. to 12 noon at the UF/IFAS Extension Office in Crestview. The address is 3098 Airport Road in Crestview, FL. Please use the registration form below to register or call (850) 689-5850. Space is limited.
Gardening in the Panhandle LIVE! is launching Season 6 with new topics starting on March 6, 2025! Each episode is delivered live on Zoom Webinar then posted to our YouTube Playlist. If you would like to join us live and help drive the panel discussion, be sure to click on the title below to register and submit your questions a few days prior to air date.
Learn how to incorporate edible plants into your landscape. Whether your goal is a large vegetable garden or one tree with edible fruit, we can help you find ways to make your landscape a source of fresh food!
Are you trying to create a tropical look in your North Florida yard but frustrated with freeze damage? Let us teach you what plants can offer lush foliage and withstand cold weather!
Not only people love Florida’s climate, but many plant pests thrive here, too. Learn how to identify and manage landscape pests using Florida-Friendly Landscaping practices.
We all know the importance of pollinators, but how can you help to support them? Join us to learn how to attract, identify, and count for the 2025 Great Southeast Pollinator Count!
Growing houseplants can be tricky since our indoor climate is very different from outdoors. Learn how to help your houseplants thrive while keeping your home comfortable!
Flowering bulbs can create dramatic impact in the landscape, but some have specific requirements that might not fit our climate and soil conditions. Learn how to select the right ones for your North Florida landscape!
Did you miss a broadcast or want to watch one again?
Fall is just around the corner, and that means it is time to start kale and collards, root vegetables, and salad greens. Photo by Rachel Mathes.
In spite of this record-breaking hot summer, it might be surprising to realize that we are just a month away from the onset of fall. As the sun-soaked dog days gradually relinquish their hold to the inviting coolness of autumn, the allure of the new season comes into view.
If your thoughts are already conjuring images of vibrant leaves and the anticipation of robust greens and earthy root vegetables in your garden, we extend an invitation to explore our newly revamped edition of the North Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide.
We’ve transformed the guide from a static PDF into a user-friendly website, making it easier than ever for you to tap into its wealth of gardening insights. Crafted by the adept hands of the UF/IFAS Leon County Extension, this guide serves as an invaluable resource catering to both seasoned horticulturists and aspiring gardeners.
Dive into an array of articles, planting schedules, images, and informative UF/IFAS EDIS publications – all thoughtfully designed to address your gardening questions. From the basics of getting started to the finer points of site selection, pest management, fostering biodiversity, soil testing, composting, harnessing cover crops, and mastering irrigation techniques – the North Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide website has it all covered.
For those who prefer a tactile experience, physical copies are available upon request at the UF/IFAS Leon County Extension Office, located at 615 Paul Russell Rd., Tallahassee, FL 32301. A quick call ahead will help you ensure availability.
We’re also excited to announce our upcoming Fall 2023 Backyard Gardening Series, set for September 6 and 13, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. on both evenings at the Leon County Extension Office (615 Paul Russell Road).
If you’re eager to explore the art of fall gardening in depth, this series will cover topics like site selection, soil enrichment, effective fall planting techniques, and more, including a hands-on planting activity.
Individual tickets are available for $10 per person if pre-paid online or $15 in cash or check at the door. For families of three to four, pre-paid online family tickets are $20 per family or $30 in cash or check at the door. This registration fee includes both evenings on September 6 and 13 and light refreshments will be provided.
For any further inquiries, please contact Molly Jameson at mjameson@ufl.edu or via phone at 850-606-5200.
There are many interesting and important ways to volunteer for Extension, such as being a Master Gardener for horticulture, a 4-H volunteer for youth development and even being a Scallop Sitter for natural resources!
We need your help! Become a Scallop Sitter!
The Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission and UF/IFAS Extension – Florida Sea Grant have partnered to implement an innovative community-driven effort to restore scallop populations, and we need your help! “Scallop Sitter” volunteers are trained to assist in Bay, Gulf and Franklin Counties. The goal of the program is to increase scallop populations in our local bays. Scallop sitters help reintroduce scallops into suitable areas from which they have disappeared.
Volunteers manage predator exclusion cages of scallops, which are either placed in the bay or by a dock. The cages provide a safe environment for the scallops to live and reproduce, and in turn repopulate the bays. Volunteers make monthly visits from June until December to their assigned cages where they clean scallops (algal and barnacles can attach), check mortality rate and collect salinity data that helps us determine restoration goals and success in targeted areas.
1. Click on the “reserve a spot” to select the county you are participating in.*You must provide your name, contact information and date of birth to secure an FWC permit for your cage!
You’ll receive an invite to our Panhandle Scallop Sitter Facebook Group.
DEADLINE for steps 1 & 2 is May 25th!
3. Pick up your scallops, cage & supplies!
Pickup Information (all times local)
St. George Sound Volunteers
Date: Thursday, June 1st
Time: 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Location: FSU Coastal & Marine Lab (across the canal – see road signage)
3618 US-98, St. Teresa, FL 32358
St. Joseph Bay Volunteers
Date: Thursday, June 8th
Time: 10:00 – 1:00 PM
Location: St. Joseph Bay State Buffer Preserve Lodge
3915 State Road 30-A, Port St. Joe, FL 32456
St. Andrew Bay Volunteers
Date: Thursday, June 16th
Time: 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Location: UF/IFAS Extension Bay County Office
2728 E. 14th St., Panama City, FL 32401-5022
*We know issues happen from time to time with scallop populations. It’s a bummer. If you loose a significant amount of scallops early in this year’s program, we will do our best to accommodate our volunteers with a “second wave” scallop stocking event in August. Also, looking for other ways to help our program? We plan to offer cage building workshops in the fall, stay tuned!
