(ABC 6 News) – The Village Agricultural Co-operative, with help from the University of Minnesota’s Extension office, is putting in a new compost system at its Rochester Covenant Church farm that doesn’t require regular upkeep like most compost systems do.

The new system replaces an older, less effective one, that will make it easier for the Village’s farmers to produce compost and take advantage of its benefits.

Normal compost systems require regular maintenance in the form of “turning over” the compost pile to ensure new oxygen is added and fuels the decomposition process.

However, for years the Village had no one to manage its system, which over time became a constantly growing pile of whatever scraps were left after each year’s harvest.

“Farmers are busy, and anything that you have a group of people doing and you don’t assign to one person, it doesn’t get done,” said Valerie Djuissi, the co-op’s land access navigator.

That’s what they told the U of M Extension educator, Mary Nesberg, when she visited the co-op’s farm to see how she could support their mission.

So, she did some research, connecting with her colleagues at the university, and brought the Village an idea for a new system, called a passively aerated windrow system, that wouldn’t require anyone to manage it directly.

Instead, the desired composting material sits on top of a layer of already made compost and open pipes that bring in fresh oxygen throughout the process.

No need to turn over.

Now, Nesberg and a group of volunteers are working to install this new system so the compost can start cooking, and be ready be spring.

“I think it’s important to be out here helping the people who farm at the Village,” Nesberg said. “I really believe in the mission of providing a space for everyone to be able to afford to grow their own food.”