6.22.2011

Composting - 2 1/2 months later!

We started composting back in late April (more on that here and here). Several people have asked for an update on how it's going so here's the post. Honestly, the biggest issue was finding a place for our compost tumbler. We picked it up at Costco back in May for about $100 (thanks to my friend with a membership).  I ultimately decided to keep it in the driveway next to our trash cans. Trash cans are already not pretty pretty or the cleanest so adding the compost tumbler to the same area really wasn't a big deal.

 Inside the compost looks like this. It really doesn't smell but there are a lot of little flies in there.
So far, it has been really easy once we started getting in the habit. It really does not smell bad - definitely not as bad as our trash can filled with diapers!  We are mostly composting kitchen food waste and some yard waste - grass clippings and plant trimmings - all "green."  We have thrown in some shredded paper and some sawdust for added "brown" stuff to balance out the carbon/nitrogen mix.  Although some people advised against composting fruit, we have composted fruit from the beginning and haven't noticed any extra smell. Our tumbler is rodent proof so the extra sugar should not be a problem. Fruit seems to break down quickly. In fact, everything seems to break down quickly! I am still experimenting with what needs to be chopped up. We do not put corn cobs in because we have heard they take forever to break down.

A friend recommended getting some compost accelerator (or starter) which seemed to get things going really quickly. I think we'll probably scoop everything that's in there now into a plastic box and let it finish in there. If we keep adding to the tumbler, it will never be "finished" and ready for use in the garden. If we take out what's in there later this week (it's supposed to be super hot here the next few days), I think we'll have a good shot at having some compost ready to use by later this summer.

We are still using our the World Market countertop compost holder. It sits nicely on the counter near the sink.
Definitely worth $14. When it's full or it starts to smell, time to take it out. Generally that coincides with either a full trash or recycling bin so it has not been a big deal at all.

Overall, I don't feel like we have greatly reduced our trash but I do think we run the garbage disposal less than we did before we composted. I definitely feel good about salvaging our food waste in a way that hopefully we'll be able to benefit from down the road.