Composting: Dispose of Your Waste the Right Way

Most of us have the same thought process when it comes to what we consider to be trash vs not trash -

That apple core? Trash.

Those coffee grounds? Trash.

The egg shells from your breakfast? Definitely trash.

But what if I was to tell you that there's a better way to dispose of this green waste/matter that benefits both you and the planet?

Composting - but what is it exactly? Composting is the process of adding various green and brown materials to soil to create workable soil or mulch. This workable soul is proven to work wonders in both the gardening and farming communities - but can be just as useful to people like you and me.

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Compost Your Way

Now when me and my partner here at Reducecarbonorg first started our research on how to start a compost bin it did seem like quite a daunting task. A whole tub filled with multiple pounds of soil and plant/waste/brown materials seemed like quite a bit for where we were at the time running our organization out of - a small apartment with a porch that had no access to grass.

We decided to instead use an old large planting pot that seemed just right for our porch - and that's the best part about compositing, you can do it your own way.

We believe here at our organization that as long as you're making an effort to do your part - no matter how small (yes google composting in a jar!), it makes a huge difference for our planet. Below we'll list the basic steps of how to start your very own compost bin on a budget.

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How To Compost: Gathering

𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟏: Grab a container (covered or uncovered is fine). You'll want to choose the size of this container based upon your space and where you'll be keeping your compost bin. For example in smaller spaces you can use various sized flower pots and in larger spaces you can use tubs. New or used are both adequate options.

𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟐: Gather all of your materials - we did this first because it made the overall set up a much quicker process. We gathered most of these materials simply from our daily meals and going on a walk around our local neighborhood park with a pale. (It's important to gather materials from outside that are already dead or have fallen to the ground).

• 𝐆𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐬

This includes organic scraps from left over fruits/vegetables as well as different plant matter.

(Green material examples: banana peels, apple cores, grass clippings, dead flowers, green leaves, vegetable trimmings, coffee grounds/filter and weeds from your yard).

• 𝐆𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐁𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐬

Similar to green materials you'll be able to collect all of these items either from your home or right outside of your back door! Gather slightly more brown materials in comparison to green materials, similar to a 2:3 ratio green:brown.

(Examples of brown materials: dead leaves, dead branches, fallen tree bark, shredded newspaper, pine needles, egg cartons/shells, cardboard, and toilet paper rolls).

𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟑: Now just grab your soil and we're ready to get to business.

𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐓𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐁𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠:

• Break all of your materials down as small as possible.

• Pulverized eggs/egg shells add calcium to your compost bin.

• No meat scraps!

• Don't place food waste as top layer due to pests.

• Your soil layers should have the moisture level similar to a wrung out sponge - moist compost is the best compost because the moisture expedites the process of the materials being broken down.

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How To Compost: Layering

𝐋𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫 𝟏: For your bottom layer you'll gather your small sticks/branches/twigs for drainage purposes.

(Tip: You'll have around 1-3 layers of twigs layered lattice style which we found to be most effective for us with draining water).

𝐋𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫 𝟐: Beginning with your second layer you'll gather your brown materials and lay them upon the sticks. As a reminder the amount varies depending on pot size but nonetheless the ratio would be 2:3 green:brown, meaning each brown layer would be slightly thicker than each green layer.

𝐋𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫 𝟑: Next you'll add your green materials atop the latter. As mentioned above this layer will be slightly thinner than the last.

𝐋𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫 𝟒: Your next layer will be the soil layer. You'll want to layer around an inch of soil, enough to completely cover all of the green materials below. We added a small amount of water to this layer to make it moist. Moist compost is good compost.

𝐋𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝟓-𝟔: Similar to the previous steps 2-3 you'll then layer your brown materials and then your slightly thinner layer of green materials atop that.

𝐋𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫 𝟕: Adding in a twist before the next soil layer you'll add in your food waste/compostable materials. (We use mainly banana peels, apple cores, overripe veggies/fruits, etc.). We've found it very useful to add this extra little layer in :)!

𝐋𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫 𝟖: Lastly, you'll add in another soil layer deep enough to completely cover the beneath layer to avoid bugs/rodents. You'll then add more water until the soil is moist to the touch(not damp).

(Reminder: You'll want the soil to have the moisture level of a wrung out sponge - not too wet, not too dry).

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And voila! You're done making your very own compost bin. Thank you so much for tuning in and don't forget to read next week's blog 𝘔𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘉𝘪𝘯 101: 𝘈 𝘉𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳'𝘴 𝘎𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘛𝘰 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 to learn how to maintain your compost bin and make it work as efficiently as possible.