Go Green - Go Compost
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Compost rules - okay!
Going green is great. It helps the environment, saves money, makes you feel good and doesn't break lemon laws..... Try it.
One of the simplest ways to begin your ‘green’ adventure is to recycle your kitchen waste, and doesn’t cost a fortune to start. It saves putting your kitchen waste into the bin or recycling bins that councils sometimes provide – which saves time, effort, and money on the part of the recycling bins collection service – but best of all, enriches your garden with natural goodness.
So start composting.
Make life easy
Composting is easy.
Composting is best done in a container - a composter. I’ve tried open-sided heaps covered with old carpets but they take a lot of looking after. Make life easy. Use a composter container - it doesn't have to be expensive.
Preferably, you should put the composter in a sunny spot and on bare soil. If you can’t find a spot with soil, then make certain you put a few sheets of paper and twigs on the bottom. Pick a place where you can easily add stuff to the bin; and easily shovel compost out.
As with all things in life, if you make it easy to do, you’ll do it. If you make it difficult, you’ll soon leave off.
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Easy Composters You Can Build
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Compost: The natural way to make food for your garden
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Basic Composting: All the Skills and Tools You Need to Get Started (Stackpole Basics) (Basic How-to Guides)
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Mix greens and browns
Keep a small container somewhere handy in the kitchen, something like an old ice cream tub will do. Chuck your vegetable peelings in, and bits of fruit, teabags, toilet roll tubes, cereal boxes and eggshells - no egg credit here. You should NOT try to compost cooked food, meat or fish. It’ll just go rotten and stink, and it’ll attract vermin when you spread it on the garden.
Empty garden waste as well as kitchen waste into your compost bin. A 50/50 mix of greens and browns is best for good compost. Greens include things like vegetable leaves and grass cuttings; browns are things such as dead leaves and pruning from plants. If you have too many ‘greens’, it will turn out like sludge and be smelly. If you have too many dead leaves, it won’t activate. I sometimes throw a handful of soil in to help nature start its task of decomposition – but it'll generally ‘go’ even if you don’t.
A pleasant smell
It takes up to twelve months for your compost to be ready. Keep on adding greens and browns to top up your compost. Give it a turn over to aerate it every now and then if you can, but don’t worry if you can’t. Nature will still have its way.
Once your compost has become crumbly and dark, and gives off a pleasant, earthy smell, you'll know it’s ready to use.
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Norpro Ceramic Compost Keeper
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RSVP Compost Pail
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Norpro Grip EZ Stainless Steel Compost Keeper
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Gaiam Kitchen Compost Bucket - Large - Green (9.6 Quart)
Price: $20.00
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Use and enjoy
Your composting doesn't have to be an all singing and dancing affair - no need to take out equity release schemes for your composter. It can be simple - a homemade wire netting container does the job just as well - not so chic but who cares? It just needs a little more TLC than a commercial job - but if you're prepared to look after it - great.
When time is up, open the hatch at the bottom off the compost bin and dig out the compost - or if it's wire netting - just let rip. Don’t be bothered about a few twigs and bits of eggshell – this is perfectly okay.
Use it and enjoy! Your garden will certainly feel better for it… and so will you!
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Comments
When i get a house I am gonna compost.
Hi, LLWoodard and EcoAsh. Thanks for stopping by. I'm glad to hear you're in for composting, EcoAsh. It's a simple way to help the planet. As LLWoodard says, it becomes second nature.
LLWoodard says:
5 months ago
This is a worthwhile project in so many ways. I've been composting kitchen scraps for a few years now--it becomes second nature quickly.