Inhibited, Retarded and Excitable Microbes.

Inhibitors - pH – You can alter the pH during the composting process but if you are hot heaping it is a good idea to leave things like lime out of your heap as the microbes don't like it. Your compost will work faster in the 7-8 pH range. So it will end up slightly acidic. Then if you need to, add some lime last thing before you dig it into the soil. Tiny white worms in your compost may indicate that you need to add lime or your compost is too moist.

Also take note that some plants in your garden are allopathic. This means they contain chemicals to ward off other (competing) plants. These are not therefore ideal compost fodder and it is a good idea to throw your rhododendron, gum and walnut bits elsewhere in another corner of your garden. Likewise with diseased plants. Leave these out of your compost. Plants (weeds) such as dock, dandelion couch can be left in a bucket of water to rot until harmless (ie won't grow again). Lupins and gorse are okay if they are green and flowering. They are not so flash if they are seeding, unless that is the new look you are going for in your flower garden.

Activators. - An activator is something that will excite your microbes and as they do all the work they should have a little happiness now and then. Comfrey has a big tap root so has drawn up lots of deep nutrients so it is a good activator for your compost heap. Blood (blood and bone) is also used as an activator. Seaweed, including kelp having grown fast is a source of plant frowth hormone and also mucilage which is a useful frost retardant.

Air - Size matters – make sure if you are cutting or shredding that you don't make your materials too fine as then your compost will get too dense and the microbes can't breathe, then your compost heap will become anaerobic (stinky, black and slimey).

Accelerators – You can add something like EM Accelerator (EM=effective micro-organisms) to your heap mixed in with molasses and water. EM is made by Nature Farm. It's a bit like adding yeast to your bread dough.

Worms – Use tiger worms (not pasture worms)