We have had a compost bin for years, but it needed some repairs and I thought we could do better with a little more information.
So I ordered a bunch of books from the library and tried to read them. The kid's books were easy to read but didn't give me any new information. The adult books varied from easy to long but I still don't know what to do about the winter. (Stuff doesn't compost when it's freezing outside.). We'll worry about that later.
One thing I have learned over the years is that most projects happen when you learn a little bit then just try it. You try it for a while, learn a little bit more, try it a little differently, fail a little bit, succeed a little bit, learn a little more, tweak, try again. Pretty much everything I know how to do is the result of that formula right there.
There appear to be about a thousand different ways to build a compost bin. Many available commercially. Many different styles to build. They all have holes to allow air circulation and most are open on the bottom to encourage the little buggies to come hang out.We used cedar fencing to build a three bin system. One bin is where we put all those fruit and vegetable scraps and yard waste. The center bin is full of leaves that can be layered with the fresh stuff. The last bin is full of last year's half composted compost. The idea of having the separate bins is that you have compost when you need it without having to sort out the not quite done bits. If all goes well we will empty out last year's bin over the summer and switch to adding things there while this year's bin finishes up next spring.
Things a compost bin needs: air, water, green stuff and brown stuff, worms and bugs.
Air: The bin should not be air tight and the compost should get stirred up regularly to allow oxygen into the mix. The more often you stir it the faster it turns to compost and the less it stinks. Oxygen is our friend.
Water: The compost should be damp, not wet. If you live in a wet climate you'll need to protect from too much water, if you live in a dry climate you will need to water it occasionally.
Green Stuff: That's the fruit and veggie scraps from the kitchen, lawn clippings, garden waste, etc.
Brown Stuff: Dry leaves, mulch, etc.
Worms and Bugs: Millions of microscopic bacteria, fungi, earthworms, and lots of other bugs. You don't have to go find these guys. The compost is like a big old "Diner" sign. If you build it they will come.
So all you have to do is layer the green stuff and the brown stuff, make sure it stays the right amount wet and stir it regularly. Once or twice a week seams like the consensus. But apparently you can never stir it and still get compost. (That's what we've been doing so far.) It just takes a lot longer.
Next Big Problem: With the compost bin behind the garage the chances that anyone (even me) will run out there every evening to empty the day's scraps becomes very small. So we added an intermediary step. Not always a good idea but, we decided, worth trying.The big bucket will live just outside the kitchen door. It has a lid to keep out the critters and holes to let the air in and the juice out. It will get emptied as part of the weekly lawn mowing. (We are very optimistic.)
Here's the plan: We have a small bucket on the kitchen counter. When you eat an apple you drop the core in the little bucket. (See how optimistic we are?)
Every day someone (we are thinking positive here and imagine that it could be anyone living here) empties the little bucket into the big green bucket with a lid.
When someone (still thinking positive here) mows the lawn they will use the pitch fork to stir the compost, empty the grass clippings and the green bucket into the compost bin, throw a layer of dry leaves on top and voila it all happily composts until next time.
So here's hoping we learned a little and will have a little better compost experience than we have in the past. (And still thinking positive that we will do a good job getting those scraps off the counter, into the compost and stirred occasionally.)
Books I read for this project:
Kids Books:
Way to Grow! Gardening: Composting by Rebecca Pettiford
Published by Pogo, 2016 (Early Elementary)
Really Rotten Truth About Composting by Jodie Mangor
Published by Rourke (Late Elementary)
Books for Grown Ups:
Basic Composting by Eric Ebeling and friends
Published by Stackpole Books, 2003 (Short, with lots of pictures)
Compost City: Practical Composting Know-how for Small-space Living by Rebecca Louie
Published by Roost Books, 2015 (Long, with lots of information and a dry sense of humor.)
And a moment of real...
Remember this picture of my cute little compost bucket on my nice clean countertop?
Well, if you zoom out just a little this is what you see. Just didn't want anyone to feel bad.
