Composting Made Simple

What is composting?

 Well according to recycleworks.org, composting is nature's process of recycling decomposed organic materials into a rich soil.  Anything that was once living will decompose.  By composting your organic waste you are returning nutrients back into the soil in order for the cycle of life to continue.  

Finished compost looks like soil and smells like a forest floor.  I must admit, my kitchen composter smelled more like a barnyard floor until I learned to balance what I added. You can compost grass/lawn clippings, hay, leaves, straw, weeds and other garden waste, wood chips and sawdust, and also kitchen waste- which is what I do.  There are several types of composting and a number of reasons why you should.  The main reasons why I chose to start composting is to teach my children about recycling waste and to feed my garden organically. The countertop kitchen composter I use looks like this:

Notice the holes on top.  Waste needs oxygen in order to decompose.

In it I add used coffee grinds, banana peels and other fruit and veggie waste (adds Nitrogen).  But, I also add waste like old newspaper and cardboard (adds Carbon).  I put a layer of  Nitrogen, then a layer of Carbon to keep the composter from smelling.  It is really quite simple.  Just add waste and in a matter of days it will begin to heat up and decompose.  In about 8 weeks you are blessed with "black gold."  

My little counter top ceramic composter is cute, but does not hold a lot.  Just enough to give my seedlings grown indoors a good initial feeding.  I came across a great idea for a DIY compost bin made of a rubber tote.  Just take an old plastic storage bin and poke holes all around it with a drill.  Rest the bin on bricks in your yard so that the bottom of the bin can receive air as well.  Sounds pretty practical.  This is the next project that I have planned for our next sunny day.  I will fill it all summer and I should be able to cover my garden beds over in the fall in preparation for the winter months.  Wish me luck!