Start composting!

Last year, I was able to receive a compost bin through our county’s division of health and environment. They were trying to get businesses to be more “green.” I heard about the program when I attended an event about the future landscape of our county’s waste. It was very informative. If your county offers such a thing, I highly recommend you attend.

The program provided an outdoor two-tumbler compost bin and an indoor kitchen collection bin. Now, I put all the scraps from our meals and the daycare’s meals into the indoor collection bin and take it out to the outdoor composter when it is full. I use one side of the tumbler until it is full and then switch to the other side while it is turning into compost. So far, I have had one load of compost that is finished. It has been a great learning experience for the daycare kiddos and has been a great waste saver!

According to the EPA, 20% of our landfill waste is food. (npr.org) That is a big portion that could be eliminated if we started composting it. Just think how much better our plants would grow too! Not to mention how many trash bags you could eliminate. They are not cheap either!

There are many different types of compost bins. I have tried the indoor Bokashi™ type without much luck. I have also tried the composter that looks like an upside down trash can. It did work, but I found it was hard to get the finished product out of the bottom. The one I was just given is perfect, as the kiddos and I can put stuff in the doors and spin it to get it mixed up. I started using it in the fall, and so in the colder weather, I do think it takes longer to compost, but I am anxious to see the results in the spring and summer. If you have room in your backyard, you can also make your own compost bin using wood or palettes. Just make sure you stir it up often.

I just saw a news story about a city near me that is doing a curbside composting trial. Now, that is amazing! If you missed this story, you can watch it here: https://www.kshb.com/news/local-news/prairie-village-considers-curbside-compost-glass-pickup-pilot-program

I hope the trial is a success and more cities start picking up this service. It is definitely beneficial for all those involved, especially the planet.

I hope you consider composting in one way or another in the future. Feel free to comment with any successes you have had or any questions.