Composting is the oldest and most natural form for recycling organic material. Natural biological processes breakdown organic material under aerobic conditions into stable compost. Compost has many uses including land restoration, enhancing soils and acting as a direct growing media for plants.

For the biological process to work effectively, sufficient quantities of carbon, nitrogen and oxygen are required. The microbes utilise the carbon and nitrogen as sources of food. By-products of this process are carbon dioxide, water and heat. The heat generated by the microbes kills off unwanted pathogens, weed seeds and bacteria. When the microbes have used the available carbon and nitrogen they start to decline in numbers and the heat being produced is reduced, indicating the end of the active composting process. To produce high quality compost curing is required. Curing allows the compost to stabilise, which helps to prevent nitrate leaching and reduces the electrical conductivity, high levels of which can damage soil structure. The longer the period for curing the more soil-like the compost will become. Apex green compost is used in peat free and peat reduced bagged products, agriculture, horticulture and landscaping to provide an organic matter and nutrient rich soil improver and growing media.

Most organic materials can be represented as a mixture of three groups of chemicals - lipids and carbohydrates, proteins and amino acids, and ash, lignin and cellulose. In the presence of air and water a wide range of bacteria, actinomycetes and fungi act upon the above chemicals.

The lipids and carbohydrates are broken down via a number of intermediates into carbon dioxide and water. At the same time energy is released in the form of heat. It is this biologically produced heat that raises the temperature of the material being composted. The proteins and amino acids are broken down into a number of chemicals including carbon dioxide and water. The more resistant components of the organic material - the ash, lignin and cellulose - contribute to the final compost.

In the process of carrying out the above chemical changes particular species of microbes increase in number within the composting material. The newly produced microbes contribute to the composting process and also enable more breakdown to occur allowing the generation of more microbes. A series of different species of microbes flourish at different times during the composting process. Some of these microbes die and become part of the organic material being broken down. The composting process is improved by ensuring that nutrients are plentiful and that there is enough oxygen.