Does any one here compost? I was cleaning up dinner and noticed the scraps leftover and thought, I should compost!!! I haven't "googled" it yet, just want to know from my hsing pros. Any thoughts or advice???
I went to start mine and then got an inspection notice from my HOA saying I couldn't do it. Sure enough in my CC&R's its says NO COMPOSTING!!! I do know that you CAN NOT put animal products in the compost. No meat, fat ( milk, butter, steak trimmings, etc) or poop. You need brown layers ( grass clippings, leaves, newspapers) and waste layers ( coffee grounds ,which are VERY good for roses too, egg shells, vegetable trimmings, fruit peels, etc). Here are a few good websites: What you can and can't put in, also links to websites on how to bulid your own composter: http://www.thegreenestdollar.com/2009/02/how-to-start-composting/ YouTube has some videos of how to compost. What to put in , how to layer, when to turn, all that good stuff! Sometimes it helps to "see" how to do it. Also this is a great place to see how to bulid your own composter ( I did the one out of wood pallets, dh gets them for free and most businesses will give them out for free also): http://www.instructables.com/tag/?q...pe:forumTopic=on&type:forumTopic=on&sort=none
If you don't have the money to buy a "composter" or the skill/time to build one, a simple pile of the materials will suffice, as long as you turn it once a while (we use a pitchfork or a shovel). It may take longer to get the nice compost you want, but is certainly little effort. I agree with you about the waste. Any extra peelings, etc our chickens and mice don't get go out into the compost bin. Between that and recycling, we have next to no trash to pick up and get a "senior citizen's discount" from the trash company since we have so little. Good luck with it! Carol
These are all really good responses. We have been composting for years. I'd say we fill a gallon container a day from the kitchen - from our family of 4. In addition to no meat or animal products (eggshells are good to use though), don't put seeds in or you'll have little sprouts growing all over where you don't necessarily want them. Tomatoes are one example I can think of right off hand that can be "nuisance growers". You can also put in coffee grounds. We use unbleached filters, so we put those in too. Some people put shredded paper in theirs, but we don't. Best wishes!
We do! If you don't do the right ratio it starts to stink. It normally means you need to add more grass clippings, leaves, etc. Other then that- it is simple!
Here are a bunch more articles about composting: http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/search.php?q=compost&submit=Search+articles You CAN put meat & animal products in your compost, but only under very special circumstances - ie, you need to make sure your compost gets hot enough to burn off the bacteria or you let it ferment (Google "bokashi"). If you want to compost, but you aren't allowed to have a pile, you can dig a hole in the garden, dump your kitchen scraps in, cover it up again, and ignore it. The next time you scrap container is full, dig a new hole. It breaks down nicely in the soil and helps your plants right away. You just can't use it for top-dressing like finished compost unless you want to attract all of the raccoons and possums for miles around.
Now, about the seeds! My understanding is that if you do it properly, it will get hot enough to kill any seeds. And you will have to weed less (!!!). Also, I cut an article out of the paper recently. It says that rabbit droppings are OK, and some others (can't remember what!), but no dog or cat poop. Also, the smaller you break things up, the better. Like no sticks; they should be chipped first. ('ve been trying to research it, because I want to start one!)
I have a metal compost bin and it gets hot enough to kill any seeds that I put inside, which is often. I do not put meats in it though. Even if it gets hot enough, the idea disgusts me for some reason.LOL
We're going to start composting. I usually eat an animal product-free diet (otherwise known as vegan when a person sticks to it completely, which I don't), and I rarely eat processed foods (other than canned veggies), so I have lots of stuff to go in a compost pile. Dh started reading Mother Earth News a while back, and now he wants to plant a garden and raise chickens (fortunately for me, we can't raise chickens because of our homeowner's association). Our soil really needs work, though. It used to be farmland, but the developer completely stripped the topsoil from it. I think dh's going to plant in raised beds this year.
Thank you all for the comments and responses. We have decided that it is going to be enough for us to start the garden and get the soil ready, so the composting will have to be put on hold for awhile.
