Frequently Asked Questions

Humus compost is produced through regular intervention, careful control, and constant monitoring to create a rich compost comprised of finely broken-down organic matter. For organic matter to be classified as humus, it must be processed through the body of a microbe.

A humus-based environment is distinct in how it nurtures both plants and soil microbes. Unlike traditional agricultural practices that supply plants with minerals and nutrients, this symbiotic environment enables plants to signal the specific minerals and nutrients they need for optimal growth and health.

Microbes thrive on the humus-based protein, using it as their home base. In the process, they consume a significant amount of atmospheric nitrogen, converting it into a form readily available to plants, known as plant-available nitrogen.

This is the key difference between humus compost and regular compost. While normal compost provides some organic matter and nutritional value, humus compost creates a dynamic environment that supports a thriving ecosystem for plants and microbes.

Reduced Synthetic Fertiliser Requirements: Less reliance on synthetic fertilisers, promoting natural soil health.

Increased Yields: Boost crop yields for a more productive harvest.

Healthier Root Growth: Stimulate stronger and healthier root systems for plants.

Reduced Water Requirements: Improve soil's water retention, reducing the need for frequent watering.

Disease Suppression: Enhance plants' natural defences against diseases.

Reduced Soil Compaction: Improve soil structure, reducing compaction and improving aeration.

Increased Plant Resilience: Strengthen plants' ability to withstand environmental stresses.

Compost quality and benefits can be categorised into three levels:

• Industry-standard compost
• Supercharged compost
• Humus compost

During the decomposition of organic matter, cell walls break apart, releasing valuable contents known as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into the atmosphere. These VOCs easily evaporate at room temperature, resulting in a loss of beneficial nutrients.

To counteract this, we use proprietary US-based technology and humidifiers during the composting process to capture these VOCs. This ensures that all the beneficial cell material is retained, producing our supercharged compost.

Humus compost goes a step further by being supercharged compost that has been additionally decomposed and restructured. For compost to be classified as humus, it must be processed through the body of a microbe. As microbes process the supercharged organic matter, they form it into humus proteins. These proteins enable the compost to facilitate the conversion of atmospheric nitrogen into a usable form for plants, providing an infinite nitrogen source.

In simple terms, would you prefer to add something to your soil that continually supplies nitrogen or something that contains nitrogen but is quickly depleted?

At Better Soils Australia, we create our compost using a variety of organic inputs, or 'feedstocks,' which are carefully balanced for their nitrogen and carbon content. This balance is crucial for creating an optimal composting environment.

We monitor CO2 levels, moisture content, and temperature daily, allowing us to intervene regularly to maintain control over the composting process. Additionally, we employ proprietary US-based technology to ensure our compost is of unique and superior quality.

At Better Soils Australia, we ensure the safety of our compost through stringent quality testing, exceeding the industry standard AS 4454.

We conduct daily quality checks, monitoring and logging temperature, CO2 levels, and moisture content. These checks confirm that our compost meets the required temperature and duration to eliminate weed seeds and pathogens like E. coli, salmonella, and sulphides.

Additionally, we carefully regulate the compost's temperature to prevent it from getting too hot, which could harm the beneficial microbes that make our compost so effective.

Composting is a highly environmentally friendly alternative to traditional waste disposal and fertiliser production. Studies indicate that aerated composting reduces CO2 emissions by 71% compared to landfill disposal.

Our composting process involves a 'thermophilic aerobic' reaction, where we monitor temperature, moisture, and CO2 levels daily. This prevents the compost from becoming anaerobic, a condition that occurs in landfills.

Anaerobic conditions in landfills produce three main gases:

• Carbon dioxide (CO2)
• Methane (84 times more potent than CO2 for global warming)
• Nitrous oxide (N2O, 296 times more potent for global warming than CO2)

By diverting our feedstock from landfills, we prevent the emission of these harmful gases and return our finished compost products to the soil, promoting a healthier environment.

You can use our compost in a variety of settings. Our customers apply it to:

• Vineyards, both under vines and between vine rows
• Market gardens and vegetable farms
• Broad-acre cropping fields such as wheat, canola, and barley
• Grazing paddocks for livestock
• Planter boxes and garden beds
• Raised garden beds
• Sporting grounds and ovals
• Parks and recreation areas
• Erosion management and control areas

Our feedstocks include a variety of materials, such as:

• Animal manure
• Green waste, including garden and agricultural green waste
• Food Organic and Garden Organic (FOGO) waste like coffee grounds, fish waste, and fruit and vegetable scraps

Plus, our secret ingredient is clay.

You can use our soil amendments year-round. Whether you're transplanting your favourite plants, enhancing the organic content of your garden soil, or improving your garden's drought tolerance, these products are effective any time of the year.

No, composts vary greatly worldwide. Even after 5% decomposition, which is classified as compost, 95% of the decomposition process remains.

Various methods, such as static aerated, static anaerobic, and thermophilic aerobic, are used to produce compost, each with its own advantages and disadvantages.

Notably, most composts are likely still in the composting process, making them semi-reactive, odorous, and harmful to soil, plants, and the environment. These composts may contain weed seeds, plant pathogens, chemicals, and high levels of inorganic salts.

When purchasing compost, ensure it is not "average." Quality compost should resemble soil and contain nitrogen, potassium, calcium, and trace elements, benefiting the soil and plants.

Soil biology involves studying the living organisms (soil biota) within soil and their interactions with each other and the environment.

Soil biota can be categorised into four groups based on size:

• Microflora (fungi, viruses, and bacteria)
• Microfauna (protozoa and nematodes)
• Mesofauna (small arthropods)
• Macrofauna (insects and larger arthropods like earthworms)

Soil biota is essential for maintaining soil health. Some studies suggest that there may be up to 15,000 different species per gram of soil.

Mycorrhizae form a unique symbiotic relationship with plant roots. These fungi cannot survive independently in the environment because they cannot photosynthesize and produce their own carbohydrates. Therefore, they rely entirely on the plant and its root system for a source of carbohydrates.

In return, the plant communicates its nutrient needs to the mycorrhizae, which then absorb these nutrients from the soil and deliver them to the plant.

This relationship is crucial because plant roots typically only reach a small portion of both the topsoil and subsoil. The hyphae, or hair-like projections, from the mycorrhizae greatly increase the surface area available for absorbing nutrients, leading to significantly enhanced nutrient uptake by the plant.

Some may argue, "But the synthetic fertiliser I use contains all the necessary nutrients my plants need!" While this may be true in some cases, it's not universally applicable.

Synthetic fertilisers require repeated applications, often in increasing volumes, year after year, resulting in significant costs over time.

Additionally, synthetic fertilisers can only benefit plants they directly touch or are in proximity to. This raises concerns about missed areas, unequal nutrient distribution among plants, and the risk of over-application of certain nutrients.

In contrast, with humus compost application, plants can signal their specific nutrient needs, allowing for targeted and timely supplementation. This approach aims to optimise soil health, thereby enhancing plant health.

The ultimate goal is to increase plants' resistance to disease and changing weather conditions, reduce reliance on artificial inputs, and provide long-lasting benefits year after year.

Regenerative agriculture, also known as eco-agriculture, represents a shift in mindset from traditional farming practices.

Traditional agriculture, developed in the 1920s and 30s to meet the world's increasing food demands, has unfortunately led to unsustainable practices. While these methods initially met the demand, they have had long-term detrimental effects on soil and surrounding ecosystems.

Traditional agriculture relies on monocultures, synthetic fertilisers and pesticides, and soil tilling. In contrast, regenerative agriculture focuses on minimising soil disturbance (no or minimal tillage), using organic fertilisers, maintaining plants in the ground year-round (cover cropping), and implementing crop rotation and diversification.

The principles of regenerative agriculture aim to restore soil biodiversity, improve plant quality, enhance farmers' livelihoods, increase yields, ensure food security, and improve nutrition and human health. Moreover, these practices help slow and reverse soil degradation and contribute to combating climate change.

The Earth's soil stores more carbon than all the world's forests combined.

Since the early 1920s, modern agricultural practices have led to a significant loss of soil carbon globally. This was evident in the USA during the mid-1930s Dust Bowl, where unrestrained topsoil from the Great Plains turned to dust, often forming huge black clouds that deposited soil across cities like NYC and Washington. A similar phenomenon occurs in Australia, where topsoil from regions like the Mallee in Victoria is sometimes picked up and deposited across Victoria, New South Wales, and even New Zealand.

The decrease in soil carbon reduces soil water-holding capacity and compromises the availability of nutrients to plants. This leads to reduced plant health, lower drought tolerance, and decreased ability to fight disease and produce nutritionally complete food.