Offer valid in US only.
Canadian and International Subscriptions
CLOSE WINDOW
Elizabeth Hurchalla
|
Whether you live in a country cottage with a strawberry patch the size of an Olympic pool or a high-rise city apartment with flowerpots for a garden, the time to start composting is now. Yes, it’ll make your garden happy, but it also has a double environmental payoff: Composting keeps waste out of landfills, and it fertilizes without chemicals. In other words, it isn’t just for you—it’s for all of us. But what the heck is it? “Composting is simply the process of breaking down plant materials to form humus, a cakelike soil that’s so rich it’s basically the world’s best fertilizer,” says Gayla Trail, author of You Grow Girl: The Groundbreaking Guide to Gardening and creator of yougrowgirl.com. Just think of it as recycling, only instead of plastic bottles and aluminum cans, you’re recycling dead leaves and carrot peels. There are many ways to create compost, including just heaping up dry grass clippings and leaves and letting the pile decompose (that’s passive, cold composting). But if you want to recycle kitchen scraps too, consider hot composting—mixing wet and dry waste in a bin, then occasionally turning the pile to aerate it, creating heat and accelerating the breakdown process. Even apartment dwellers can compost. If you don’t have a yard, you can try vermicomposting—that is, composting with worms (not icky ones, and no, they won’t take over your apartment!). If you choose to go hot, here are the basics: Put your bin in a level, shady spot, then add a few inches of brown material, then a thin layer of green material and finish with a thin layer of brown. Next, sprinkle the compost with water so it’s damp, but not wet, like a wrung-out sponge. Stick to the “two parts brown to one part green” ratio when you add to your pile, and always finish with brown on top. Finally, you’ll need to turn your bin. You can do this as often as every few days or as little as once a month, but the more you do it, the faster it will “cook.” In about six months, you’ll find a brown, earthy mixture at the bottom of your bin—homemade compost! Worm Power For this job, you need a particular type of worm called red wigglers, sold at garden centers, bait shops or online. Once you get your worms, tear newspaper into strips and cover the bottom of your bin, then sprinkle water on it till just damp. Next, add the worms with the earth they came in and put your covered bin in a cool, dry, dark place (under your kitchen sink or in the basement—anywhere that won’t freeze or get too hot) and ignore it for a day or two. Then it’s feeding time! Cut fruit and veggie scraps into one-inch pieces and bury them in the dirt in one corner of your bin. A few days later, bury more food in an adjacent corner. Keep rotating corners; by the time you get to the fourth, the food in the first should be almost gone. As you add scraps, always rotate and bury. After a few months, you’ll notice a lot less newspaper and a lot more brown, crumbly stuff in your bin. That’s your compost. To harvest it, push all the contents of the bin to one side. Lay down new newspaper on the other side, then bury food scraps under it. After a week or so, the worms will all migrate to that side, leaving the compost on the other side, ready to scoop up. Note: Avoid garlic, lots of onion and anything spicy or salty, as they can poison worms. And keep in mind that every few months the worms will have cute worm babies. Worms restrict their breeding to match the food available and the size of their bin, so overcrowding is unlikely. If you do feel like you have extra worms, don’t liberate them to the outdoors (they can’t tolerate cold temperatures); donate them to an elementary school or greenhouse. All of these methods are fairly low-maintenance after you get going. And the best bit is, once you’ve fed your garden with this free, fabulous humus, your plants will thrive like never before.(This article is from the July/August '06 issue of Vegetarian Times.) |
Your subscription includes
3 FREE digital recipe booklets featuring delicious Vegetarian Times recipes hand-picked by our editors.
Pay now and get
2 bonus issues!
Pay now and get
TWO EXTRA ISSUES FREE!
That's 11 issues for the
same low price!
CLICK HERE TO PAY NOW
Print
I was wondering if anyone knew of an ensyme or Natural nutrient to add to the compost bin to help decompose the food scraps faster. i used soil, leaves and wood ashes with food scraps and will purcahse worms. It's outside however so it's not breaking down very fast in the cold weather.
How often can I add scraps from the kitchen to the existing pile? When is enough enough? because as vegan I never run out of veggy scraps....
I keep a lidded trashcan on my back porch and throw my scraps in daily. When the weather breaks and the snow melts, we just lug it to the back yard and dump it in the compost corner. I don't feel like I'm wasting all those great nutrients, even if they won't break down til summertime
To Kim Hailey: I wouldn't waste your $$ on products that advertise "compost boosting". It's really the green stuff like alfalfa meal that they add which causes the pile to heat up and compost faster. Alfalfa meal can be found in some garden centers or feed stores for much less...and you can use it as a good nitrogen source for your garden plants as well instead of using a chemical source of nitrogen. Also, try not to use wood ashes in your compost as they are generally extremely alkaline, often with a pH of over 9 or 10. A little, tiny bit is ok, like a few teaspoons. Soil in small amounts is good and is a source of the microbes that do the breaking down. Turning to add oxygen back in will also help the composting process along as well and keep the bad smells to a minumum.
What if we don't have a garden? Does anyone know if the farmers at greenmarkets are willing to take in compost that needs a good home?
The local organic farm near me has a bin that people can dump compostable items in. Check with farmers near you.
Of course, you can still compost and fertilize your lawn or flower beds with it! At present I don't have a garden but I still have a compost pile.
Please be cautious with buying and using worms. Particularly if you are having pine trees and/or evergreens near the compost. Many worms are not native to the United States. If left uncontrolled ("escape") the worms can cause damage to the balance in the surface earth around trees.
I live in a basement apartment in a house & really want to compost . I am concerned about getting roaches or rats. My husband is against it because he believes will get bugs.We haveuse of a shared yard And maybe I could put a bin outside but I don't want to bring rats to my landlords. If I am armed with info I can probably educate others as to the goodness of this process for our yard
This may be a dumb question. But what are considered "kitchen scraps?" Do kitchen scraps include uneaten leftovers? Our family is vegan, and we don't compost, but we want to. I have read that we shouldn't put cooked food into our compost bin. And what about meat alternative products like veggie burgers such as Boca, or "chick n' strips?" Are these "allowed" in your bin? We have the bin, but it is empty because I don't want to put anything in there that shouldn't be in there, like left over soyrizo. Any suggestions would be helpful. I will keep researching, but in the meantime our garbage is going to darn landfills! And it doesn't feel good.
How do you turn your compost if you have it in a trash barrel? Should I keep the lid on tightly?
I found this article interesting, but wonder how this can be converted for a small 6th floor balcony for use in pots.
Please give some tips to apartment dwellers on how to compost indoors (or outdoors on the patio) without attracting insects/pests and complaints from the apartment management.
My family's current method of composting is throwing our vegetable/fruit scraps in different potted plants outside, or at the base of plants in the ground. Sometimes, I will bury, but mostly just tossing it at the base. Am I doing any good by composting this way? Do our plants get any of the benefits from the exposed-to-air items that are decomposing?
Kitchen scraps are vegetable peels and scraps, egg shells, tea bags, coffee grounds, etc. I'm not sure if you can put tofu-based products in it, but I know animal-based products (like cheese, milk, meat) cannot go into a compost bin (except the egg shells). Compost bins sold in stores are made to keep critters out (ie, they have a tight-fitting lid). Some are mounted in the air and can be spun after adding new material to help aid in decomposing. If kept properly (the 2:1 ratio of brown:green) and the lid is kept on you will have no odor, critters or insects. Green material is considered vegetable scraps, egg shells, tea/coffee grounds. Brown material is considered leaves, sticks, and other "outdoor" plant waste. For apartment-dwellers, there is another option. There is a product called "Bokashi" that may be an option for you. It's a compost system that was designed for Japanese apartment owners that had no outdoor space for composting (meaning that it is kept indoors in their apartment). It consists of a bucket and tight-fitting lid, and a package of enzymes to decompose the food. With this system you can put in any food waste you have, including meat, dairy, vegetable scraps, tofu-based products, etc. I haven't tried it yet, but the company states that it is odorless and fast, and can be kept indoors without critter/insect problems. Do an internet search on "Bokashi" for more information.
I have a cold compost system with 2 bins. I also have lids on them to prevent loss of nutrients in the winter rains. When the fall sets in, after I have planted my garlic, I stop adding to the pile that is composting. I then use that pile in the spring. That allows me to start a new pile. When I am ready to spread the compost on my garden, I sift out any stones, rocks, and other uncomposted material, which I put into the new pile. In our kitchen, kitchen scraps are vegetable and fruit waste as well as egg shells. Sometimes I am lucky enough to have a lawn mowing client who doesn't use pesticides so I can take it home and put it in the compost. We don't put meat or oil into the compost pail. A good source that any library should have is the Rodale Book of Composting. For apartment dwellers there is a book called Worms Eat My Garbage about how to start a worm bin. It would make a great science project for any young person.
The definition of "kitchen scraps" I've seen elsewhere includes trimmings, peels or scrapings from raw fruits and vegetables (potatoes, carrots, onion skin, etc.), eggshells, and fruits/vegetables that are wilted or otherwise past the edible mark (cut into small pieces is best - don't throw a rotten apple in whole). Animal products should never go into compost, and I've seen recommendations against bakery products, cheese and other animal byproducts as well. I've never seen the issue of cooked items being put into a compost bin addressed directly, but I think as long as they are vegetable based and put in small quantities it should be okay.
A properly maintained compost bin outdoors should not draw rats or other pests. Meat scraps are what generally attract animal pests, and roaches are more inclined to eat glue and paper than actual food scraps (a "dirty" home does not in and of itself attract roaches, contrary to popular belief).
I "turn" my compost with a 3-pronged garden fork. A trowel or garden shovel could be used as well. It's very important to turn and mix the materials in your compost to introduce oxygen, but it doesn't have to be mixed in the sense of a cake batter - just rearrange the pile to disperse materials evenly and break up clumps. I do keep it covered in order to maintain the "environment" inside the bin, so it doesn't dry out too quickly and lose the energy that helps it break down.
I live in an apartment and have a vermicompost system. It does not smell (well, once in a while something will mold due to lack of oxygen and getting anaeorbic bacteria or something going). If you do get mold, just take out the moldy bits and make sure the bedding isn't too wet or too dry. If it's too wet, at a bit more shredded news paper (or brown paper bags, or office paper or even a bit of junk mail). Too dry, a bit of water. I've had the system going for a year. It's small, an old full width veggie drawer from a dead refrigerator, and the wormies eat about 2pounds a week. I may start a second group so I can double the output.
You will be AMAZED at how good the finished compost is for plants. Everything sprouts in it. Even in the bin I have avocado pits sprouting, squash seeds, apple seeds. I go through and tear up the sprouts because the worms won't eat live things. The worms don't leave the bin unless it gets soggy and even then they've only crawled onto the lid. I have never had a roach, rat, or mouse. occassionally I get a few fruit flies but they haven't bothered me.
I keep the bin under a small table I use as a desk. It's in a fairly dark corner as the worms don't like light. I keep them covered with a card board box slightly larger than their bin just to be sure they are in the dark but have plenty of air circulation.
i've already given a pound of worms to a friend who also loves her wormies. Two more friends are waiting for their worms. It looks like I'll have worms to give about every 6 months.
I encourage all apartment dwellers to give it a try. You can use the compost to grow salad greens on the window sill, some herbs, or as a wierd gift to your fellow wierd friends.
We just started composting. If I had known it was so easy, we'd have done it years ago! I looked at the expensive compost systems ($89 - $400), but then found a site online about how to do it cheaply. I took an old $10 plastic garbage can with a locking lid and drilled holes around it. Start about 4 inches from the bottom and drill the holes about 6 inches apart. Continue drilling rows of holes at 4 -6 inch intervals all the way up. I also drilled a couple of holes in the bottom. The can sits a couple of feet from my back door, and we have had no issues with smell (it smells similar to a typical trash can when we open the lid, but nothing when the lid is on).
To collect scraps, I have a 1 gallon lidded plastic bucket on my counter (got it free with take out soup from the Olive Garden). I toss in tea bags, fruit and veg. peels, and scrape plates after dinner. Every 2 or 3 days, we dump it in the big container. To keep the stuff moist, I rinse the small bucket with water and dump it in. Excess water drains out the bottom. We also add leave and grass clippings, as well as shredded (non-glossy) paper for "brown".
To mix the compost, we lock the lid, lay the can on its side, and roll it around. Within 3 weeks, the bottom layer is almost ready to use, but we'll probably wait until we fill the can to dig it out.
I compost regularly and do often throw in whole pieces of fruits and vegetables. I keep an edger tool (basically a shovel handle with a flat small blade) next to my composting bin. Our city sells these Earth Machine composting bins, which hold 80 gallons, about twice a year for $30 each. I would recommend encouraging any town to set up a similar sale. Our town sells them twice a year in the mall parking lot, every year. There is always a big turnout and even with a couple of semis full of the bins, they always end up sending people home empty handed.
I even throw in old tea and herbs, coffee grounds, leaves, pine needles, and egg shells, hair, and am considering tossing in some old vitamins and expired melatonin, because obviously I lack that as I have insomnia! I purchased one of the green barrells that you can flip pretty easily. I doubt if earthworms can ruin your trees- you are probably thinking about grubs. I took some worms from my garden and put them in the barrell. I have put scraps directly in the garden, but this probably attracts the roof rats. We have some scorpions that like the moist garden, but they are native to this area. Chickens, etc. will eat scorpions. Introduced toads left the premises when we got irrigation! they ate the crickets. I had a quesstion-how long does this take to cook? some may have been in there for a year. I take some out every once and awhile. Also, there are inside worm factories you can set up. greg at Urban farm has some of those:http://www.urbanfarm.org/index2.html Also, please check out this month's Veg Times article on great organizations to donate to, including the one that helps set up urban gardens.
Worm composting is fun in the kitchen, but you SHOULD NEVER let your worms outside. Introduced exotic species can upset the natural order of things in native ecosystems. Read about the worms that are destroying forests in the midwest. Thanks!
ok...i use cow manure in my garden. Can I add "dog manure" to composting?
I compost in my basement all winter. How?
First you take a faily large pot... I use the ones you get from the nursery that has had a tree in it, they are plastic. I think they are about 12 inches in diameter, at least. Don't go for the super large. Next you soak old coffee filters in water and line the bottom of the pot. The purpose her is to close off the holes in the sides and bottom. You then put about an inch of soil over the bottom. I save soil that has been used in the summer in pots of plants that have been on my deck and I do not intend to try to winter over. Finally, when I peel potatoes, carrots etc. I put them in the pot and cover this layer with soil. The next time you peel veggies you repeat the last step. NEVER WATER THIS OR YOU WILL HAVE A MESS. There is enough moisture in the soil and the veggies to get the composting going. DON'T COVER THE POT. In the spring you can take this out and put it in your garden and till it under.
NO Dog or Cat manure. Their diet and stomaches just work different than cows and will not produce the same output :-). I do not know all of the technical details but for your basic backyard compost, you never want to add dog or cat refuse.
i am reaserching compost as a school project,and this web site has helped me learn what is good about compost, but is there a bad side to this wondefull resorce?
Hi. I just recently started composting this spring and I have a pyramid plastic compost bin I bought. I just noticed a cockroach in there,I stirred it and watered it and thought maybe that would help, but is there something to deter roaches? Also can you put coffee grounds with the paper filter in compost also?
wow i have never read somthing so FUN :)
If you have cockroaches its probably means your compost is too acidic, you need to get your C/N carbon/Nitrogen (greens/Browns) ratio balanced. If you go here this is a compost simulator you put in the waste and amts and it tells you if you have the right balance and moisture https://www.aerobin400.com/aerobin400/compostsimulator.aspx. by the sounds of it you dont have enough carbon (browns). If the roaches are really bad you can also add lime, dolomite or wood ash to raise the PH. Rule of thumb when u add ur food waste and garden clippings ALWAYS add some browns,(balled up news paper, torn up cardboard, saw dust, dried leaves, etc..
I have aartistnewsprint with charcoal drawings. Is it safe to use this as "brown" material?
Can you compost lobster shells?
composting is the bees knees
I have a compost pile that I enclosed in a circle about 4' in diameter and 3' tall. I can't really turn the pile because it is so full. Is this a problem?