Composting???

[Momto2Boyz]

I would really like to start a small compost pile this year.

I have been researching online, how to compost, etc. (My parents have always done it, so I watched them growing up...I just never paid attention to the mechanics of it).

I'm interested in advice from those who have them. I've seen that you should only put certain types of foods in there, so you don't attract animals. But I also know there are foods you should leave out if you plan to use it in the garden, as well.

Any advice would be well recieved from me! Thanks!

[Bethany]

I have a compost tumbler and I love it. Anything that comes from live material can go in except for animal waste, human waste, bones and dairy and meat. In other words, this stuff can go it: paper towels, newspaper that is shredded, toilet paper rolls, all veg/fruit scraps, tea bags, coffee grounds and coffee filters. You can put in leaves, small twigs, grass clippings, dead flowers, plants, etc. Just make sure to turn it occasionally and let it have air to get at it. Some people use chicken wire. You can also drill holes into a trash barrel.

[Daisysmom]

Hi Sarah,

I am so excited for the spring and getting out to do some gardening! I was just researching this as well on the net. I didn't realize you can put in lint from your dryer as well as hair from your brushes. Kind of gross but interesting. I have a compost bin and the general rule is no meat products and also no oils. I'm not hard core but I try and compost any vegetable peels and veggies left over that we don't eat. They say not to put in things such as tomato plants or other vine type plants as those may carry disease or will replant themselves in try to sprout as opposed to breaking down.

Good luck. You can use a trash barrel with a cover. Just drill holes for circulation of air and make sure you rotate/turn the pile. Moisture is key to the process as well. Place it where you want it because if you start it and then want to move it, it can get pretty heavy.

[Peaches]

Our first compost bin was a trash can with holes drilled in it. Then we found out that our local water provider would sell us an ENORMOUS compost bin for £10, so we bought two. We throw in everything except meat and bones, but otherwise anything organic goes in it. We started our first compost bin 2 years ago, and it took around a year before we could use any of the compost we made. But now we've got three bins on the go to feed our plants. We also have a kitchen composter that uses bokashi, and we can throw everything in there, even meat and bones.

Call your local water supplier or council. If they are trying to go green they might have a deal on composters.

[Ceashels]

I use the trash bin with holes cut in the side and the bottom cut out. I have never successfully gotten a "hot" composte I do howerver mangage to keep a cold composte growing.

I use eggshells, veggie bits and peels (cooked and uncooked) coffee and tea grounds along with the filters, shredded newspaper, cardboard, egg cartons and dry leaves, grass clippings during the summer. Jack O Lanterns made it in this year as well.

My in-laws have a composte tumbler they don't use and I am hoping to bring it home with me this weekend. I would love to have something easier to turn than digging with the shovel.

[gardenlady]

Hi! I have a small area on the edge of my yard in an out of the way place. I just throw all my old vegetable scraps, peelings, coffee grounds, and grass clippings in there. I turn it occasionally, but not very often. It takes longer to breakdown into useable compost, but I find it to be much less work. I have 2 piles going so far.

[kittykatstrong]

my mom has a composte pile and since I live in a townhome I bring all of my composting to her. I did see Martha have a composte under her sink but it is easier for me this way http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...AGGNQVNN61.DTL

[imforpeace]

I keep a plastic tub with a lid {old ice cream tub} in the mud room. I add peelings, egg shells, bread, anything left on plates after eating-but meat etc. Never add meat to the pile. When the tub is full, I dump it into the compost pile. You can also add egg cartons and torn newspaper or shredded paper. Just remember to keep it moist in the warm months and turn it regularly.

I used the trash can with holes drilled into it, but I ended up with "compost tea" on my shoes when I turned the can. Woo hoo, funny story!{and smelly}
Now, I have a pile in the garden under a tarp. I'm hoping to get a compost bin this spring to keep the mice and snakes out. Nothing like lifting the tarp and finding critters you weren't expecting. {another funny story}

Good luck to you!

[toile]

I have a wooded acre lot and can hide my compost pretty easily from view.
I used several free wood pallets from hubbies work.
We made a 3 sectioned bin.

At first I was very good and composted everything possible.
At one point in th summer it began to smell. I think animals were drawn to it maybe?
I then slowed down and only put in leaves and grass clippings.
A first we composted veggies/fruit/junk mail stuff like that....

Home Depot staff told me a trash can with a tight lid is great and can be rolled around for turning.

[Ceashels]

WOOHOO!!!

My MIL had a composter that she couldn't use due to lack of sunlight in her yard. She is a phenomenal gardner. Anyway, it fit in the back of our car and all I need to do now is set it up in our backyard!!! I can't wait for this cold/windspell to end so I can start loading it.

[redmaples]

We will usually have several composts going.
Last summer it was a big pile in the hedgerow at the edge of
the property. It borders on a large field so its not bothering any
neighbors. the basic pricnciple is to layer appropriate veg scraps
with leaves, grass clippings or straw. The lazy method is not
precise; additions to the pile are made at conenvience more than
to a specific science. I don't often turn, but may move stuff around to layer the pile.
At present, I have a few homemade chicken wire bins on the garden site.
This is to keep animals (especially dogs) out of it. I collect up scraps in
a 5 gallon bucket with a lid & empty into the bin, usually alternating w/ a layer of leaves or straw from the chicken houses. the pile is a big frozen cube right now.
It shrinks down considerably with every thaw/warm spell we have.
Come spring I will empty the bins, spreading the mucky piles into strips
between rows, mulch with layers of wet newspapers & straw (& later grass clippings to heat it up more). No one but the chickens & I will know what is under the nice straw covered row.
This method works great in a no -til garden. Some of the areas I will be planting this spring are former compost sites that will be loaded w/ earthworms & a nice hummus like soil.

[perSue]

i thought i'd add to this (since i mentioned it in a diff post)...

where we live (condos), we're not permitted to compost.
so, instead, i'll save old scraps of food in a container inside only for a couple days, so it doesnt start to smell.
then, i'll puree all these left over scraps & put in my garden.

since it's already pureed, it'll feed the soil faster, and no one will really know what it is that i'm putting in the ground. if asked, it's "plant food, of course!"

anyway, it helped my flowers immensely last year, and I plan on doing it again this year.

just a small idea I thought i'd share for anyone else who may be in a similar situation as I am (ie, not allowed to compost).

[mombottoo]

We used to have a mega composting site when I was a girl (my dad was a fanatic veggie gardener). Ours was made out of cinder blocks and he kept a plywood cover over it. We would go out and mix it every couple of days or so and before you knew it we had whatever he was looking for! I remember that we put all vegetable waste and coffee grounds in the pit.

But, the thing I remember most was using a pitchfork to kill the rats the darn thing attracted! Needless to say I don't compost.

[MVS0122]

I just ordered a bokashi composting kit this weekend; I'm anxious to try it out! I'm also hoping to make my own bokashi and cut down on the expense of ordering it online.