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COMPOSTING IS AS OLD AS DIRT….. but can YOU do it??
Have you ever wondered what is involved in starting back yard composting? Town resident, Joan Kantor, opened her yard to us for a look and provides a lesson that makes it seem easy as well as valuable.
 What is compost?
It’s a heap of garbage—but very special garbage—that when decomposed, turns into black gold for gardens. Plant matter and food scraps go into the compost. It all gets decomposed by soil-dwelling worms, bugs, bacteria and fungi. As the compost heats up in the decomposing cycle, the organic matter breaks down…even most weeds are killed. The result is nutrient rich soil to use in gardens.
How do you compost?
There’s nothing to it. We simply collect our cooking scraps in a separate container in the kitchen, and then take that out to the compost. Actually, that’s my girls’ job…one of their chores. They dig a small hole in the compost heap, empty the scraps into it and cover it over.
All the lawn clippings, garden scraps and fallen leaves go into the compost, too.
Every once in a while I turn the compost with a pitch fork so the material on top can get buried in the lower, warmer area and decompose faster. The resulting black soil on the bottom gets moved to the top for use in the garden.
What goes into the compost?
It’s easier to tell you what doesn’t get composted: No sugars, no fats, no proteins. Sugars, fats & proteins take considerably longer to decompose, inviting unwanted pests.
So we compost:
- All fruit & vegetable scraps
- Egg shells (but not egg)
- Coffee grinds and its unbleached filter
- Tea bags (I remove the paper tag, but I don’t mind the tiny staple)
- Dead flowers
- Corn cobs, watermelon rinds and other such dinner scraps, but not w/ sauces or dressings that have oil (fat)
As for yard material, grass clippings, small branches, raked leaves and weeds go in the compost.
Why did you decide to compost?
Well, I heard it was easy. And there are so many benefits:
- It makes this gorgeous, black humusy soil that is wonderfully rich in nutrients for flower beds and vegetable gardens. Because the decomposition process kills most weeds, the compost soil is virtually weed-free.
- We reduce our total garbage by pulling out the kitchen scraps for the compost.
- We eliminate kitchen odors that may occur in the summer because the overripe fruit and vegetables aren’t rotting in the big trash bin in the kitchen, nor in the big garbage can that goes out to the street. They’re decomposing—surprisingly odor-free!—in the compost.
Where is a good spot for a compost?
A 4’ x 4’ area would be the minimum space needed. Any area that is not too visible—it is after all a dirt heap—should be a fine place for a compost. If the property is quite large, the compost should not be so far away that you mind carrying kitchen scraps to it.
The compost can be contained in one of the many receptacles on the market, or left in a pile. For a small area, a container will keep the material from spreading out and losing necessary heat.
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