To produce compost the bacteria that digest the material need Nitrogen and when they die the Nitrogen they ate becomes available for plant use again, that N does not simply disappear. Nitrogen in compost is mostly not readily available, it needs bacterial activity to free it.
What kind of test did you use to determine there was no Nitrogen in your compost?

I put a plant in it. The plant(s) needed nutes. I solved that by ferting with worm castings. Your comment makes sense, though. Sigh .. I never was any good at chemistry. How to I "reactivate"? I feel like the Captain "Engage!" but ensign cannot find the throttle. What suggest, ye?

Or perhaps the pH was off?

I've found the clay around here gains a lot of tilth and fluffiness if compost is made on top. I put piles over my garden beds in the fall, and it helps them. It moderates moisture and freezing/thawing, but the biggest thing may be the worms coming up to get the compost. Their tunnels increase porosity and castings improve fertility. I definitely concur it's a good thing for the soil underneath.

I move my bins all the time. Each time I turn the compost I change locations. It does help to do this. I highly recommend it.

Thanks,Tox and tropical! I'm new at gardening so I thot I'd ask if it was weird to do this. I mean, that soil under looks SO wonderful I'm going to dig some up and relocate it. I will start composting atop the garden, then, moving it every year,then!

thanksagain
bon

Finished compost is very close to neutral pH, 7.0. To get the bacteria that digest your material working faster they need a source of Nitrogen and that can be green plant material or animal manures or some other N source.
Many of us build compost piles on various parts of our gardens, in my case because I'm somewhat lazy and don't want to truck compost very far to spread it. If you have a somewhat permanent compost bin that makes things harder then just a pile of some fencing to contain it.

It's an excellent idea, and the concept behind sheet composting - you take a section of the garden, or a piece of land you would like to become a garden, and build a compost pile there for a period of time. The soil beneath it reaps the benefits of the compost above, both by the action of the soil life moving up into the compost and by the compost settling on top of what will be the garden bed. It is problematic because it is possible for unwanted plants, in the form of seeds and roots, to survive in the soil below the compost and to subsequently thrive when the compost is moved to another location. With the awareness of that possibility, it is an excellent way to create new garden beds over the course of time.

The more success you have at composting, the better your soil gets. So, this inspires you to compost even more. In time you will become a compost wacko like me. You will always look around for things like fallen fruits you can take home. You won't leave a tea bag in a restaurant or a lemon wedge either.

Thanks! Fortunately, I don't have weeds growing in it. Oh my gollies I know I put a lot of weeds in it to start, but I do have SWARMS of pill bugs that end up skimming off the vegetable leaves. Maybe predators will come in due time. I hope. Otherwise, it's great stuff!