The way compost is made in nature, it can take as long as 3-5 years before the materials completely break down and become available to growing plants. By making our own compost we can quickly give it to our plants to ensure they will be healthy and strong. The way we scrape the ground smooth to put a house on it removes any decayed organic matter that might have been lying there. The ground that was scraped away contained broken down elements from years of nature working on the surface and below.

Every year, the seaons bring growth & decay, again and again. Eventually it breaks down enough to become available to the new plants that are sprouting. Now that you have a yard full of dust, you want to change it into something green. It just makes sense to put back what was removed so the plant will have something to feed on. This demonstrates what a person is attempting to do when they make compost to use in their yard, pots, garden and flower beds. The plants know what they need to grow, and if it is not there you cannot expect the plants to be happy.

A healthy vegetable plant will produce lots of tasty fruit to eat. A healthy flower plant will produce big, beautiful flowers. Healthy plants resist disease and infestation better than unhealthy plants. Compost also amends (or improves) the texture of the soil, adding 'tilth', which is just the right amount of water-holding ability and perking ability. If your soil will not 'hold' water, like sand, the water will flow right through it very quickly, making it available for the plant only during the short time it is there. Water is necessary for the roots to be able to move the chemicals from the soil up to the plants. Without a consistent supply of moisture, they cannot feed, and therefore they won't grow and produce the way we want them to.

One the other hand, if you have a thick, hard, clay like soil that does not allow the water to penetrate the surface or drain through it, the plants will drown from lack of oxygen at the root level. The roots need a proper balance of moisture and air to be grow. They are very much like humans in this respect, they need some of each, and not too much of either, thankyou. They say "Man does not live off bread alone" (he needs a glass of wine, too).