who, what, where of composting!

why compost? is it actually easy? aka why you should care about this!

1. Things in landfills do not degrade at an normal rate. According to bpiworld.org, "Landfill excavations have uncovered newspapers that are still readable after almost 40 years, ten year-old carrots that are brown on the outside and bright orange on the inside, and 20 year-old steaks with meat still on the bones." Ew.

2. North Carolina dirt isn't dirt. It's clay. And it's awful for trying to grow anything. You already paid for the ingredients, so use them.

3. For the two of us, we do not create enough trash to use a regular trash bag without having everything stink before it's half full. So we now compost and recycle almost everything, and have about two or three grocery bags of trash a week. So now we only roll the trash can out to the road every other week.

4. YOU CAN DO THIS ANYWHERE. It does not stink, when done right and I'll tell you how. So no pests to worry about. No, you don't have to buy worms to do this either. So yes, suburbia-you can do this too!! Minus the HOA.

how the heck do you start? the container

At the end of last year, I'd talked about composting enough to my husband that he finally sketched up a plan of how to build the container. We had some random wood pieces at the new house, and we just used what we had. I wish I had a tutorial or something to share, but honestly it was just the equivalent of throwing some boards in a kind of ordered fashion.

BUT: you can start with nothing. You can throw all your compost into a pile. You can dig a hole and use that. You don't need a container. If you have a rubbermaid bin, start with that. Cut out the bottom, so that it is open to the dirt. There are some insanely expensive containers, but honestly you would be wasting money. There are a few things your container/nothing needs to have:

• Slots/holes for air flow
• Open bottom so microorganisms and worms can enter
• Consider covering if you are concerned about critters (raccoons, etc.). They are smart animals, so slapping a board on top might not be the best top. You see our has inserts so it won't easily slide.
• If it is covered, consider having holes for water flow as you may need water to help decompose. 
• Location, location, location. Not too far to walk and dump your scraps each week/however often. Not too far from your garden. Not too far from a hose/water source if you need it. I put ours 20 feet from the garden, and kind of hid it on the other side of the garage so we don't have to stare at it. It's also close to the hose. 
• You will be rotating/mixing up this mixture. Don't make your container too big, or too hard to access. 
• Eventually, you will want two containers. One to add to, and one that's ready to use. 

These are awesome plans from Cornell: 

Wooden Box Bin, Wood and Wire Three-Bin Turning Unit, Cinder Block Bin, Cinder Block Turning Unit, Wire Mesh Bin, Snow Fence Bin, Garbage Can Composter, Worm Composting Bin, Compost Mound, Compost Pockets

now what goes into it? the 'ingredients'

This is the most intimidating part, I think. I spent forever trying to figure out how to do this. I would read about ratios, balancing different scenarios, testing....until I finally read: Kendra at a New Life on a Homestead's article. I had read it before, since I like to read blogs from first to last post, but it didn't really resonate the first time.
The second time, it was like I wrote the dang article myself.
So here I am going to describe the lasagna method of composting. For us, it is ideal.

FIRST
The bottom layer should be sticks. Not logs, but medium sized sticks to twigs and/or mulch. It will give the bottom of the pile air.

here's what we were collecting, but added more than what's pictured!

SECOND
Some soil.

THIRD
Add your greens, such as:

• Raw/uncooked fruit and veggies
• coffee grounds
• tea bags
• nut shells
• egg shells
• grass clippings
• dried, aged cow/horse/goat/chicken manure
• fireplace/wood ashes (not coal!)

the greens! 

FOURTH
Add your browns, such as:

• dirt/bark/mulch/top soil
• shredded paper/cardboard (not glossy paper)
• dead leaves
• hay or straw
• dryer lint
• wool rags or used leather (new leather will take ages)
• pet fur, human hair
• dead, non diseased houseplants
• untreated saw dust

dirt!

FIFTH

Continue on with the process: brown, soil, green, soil.

browns

TIPS (aka the sixth step)
Turn the pile once every so often (once a month to once every three) to help decompose. And it will depress any seeds growing from the ingredients.
Spray with water if it is too dry, but don't soak it. Water helps decomposition.
Do your best to change up your greens and browns.

NEVER COMPOST: 
Feces from animals that consume meat. (no dog or human feces) 

Meats/bones

Dairy products

Coal/charcoal

Anything with pesticides

Alcohol, oil, grease

A good rule: if you don't know, find out. It's better to hold onto something and research, than throw it in and hope for the best.

Any other tips or comments, let us know!