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http://rootsnursery.com/how-to-compost-without-a-bin
How to Compost Without a Bin
The Winter Composting Project
Ive been working on this experiment. Instead of composting in a pile or a bin, Ive been throwing my garbage straight in the gardens. Sounds gross? I’ll tell you how and why I’ve been doing this.
This summer we converted an old compost bin into a new garden. It was kind of a smelly eyesore and placed right along the path where customers walk to get to the nursery. It had to go. But something kind of amazing happened before I decided what to do with that area. The seeds from last years tomatoes sprouted! and grew 10 times better than in the vegetable garden. So I let em GO, I didnt even stake them, just let nature do its thing.
This was my most exciting experience learning about good soil. Because everything I put in that garden grew faster than a chia pet on steroids. And the worms, oh the worms. you gotta see them.
Recently, we learned about Geoff Lawton. Sustainable permaculture? food forest? I dont have much experience with either, but these words give me a little jolt every time i hear them. And the information is just as exciting. In one of his permaculture videos, Geoff and his students practice what they call ‘chop and drop’. Its kinda like permission to be a lazy slob. Ive been freed! After you’ve pruned or harvested the plant, you chop up the plant debris, then drop it right below the plant you pruned it from. I am so DOWN for that idea.
But being free, its harder than you think!
We have this human NEED to CLEAN UP after ourselves. We like things neat and tidy, compartmentalized, in a category. But Nature doesnt do it that way, and frankly, nature doesnt appreciate it either. Nature litters all day long! Leaves and branches fall, animals poop and wind blows all that garbage around. Youd think nature would be a terrible neighbor. Yet it all comes out BEAUTIFULLY! All that stuff were tidying up, packing neatly in yard bags and paying for removal? It all makes incredibly rich organic soil. So keep your leaves, grass clippings, yard debris… and dump them back in your garden.
Kitchen waste can go straight in your garden too! I bet youre shaking youre head… ‘No way am i throwing garbage in my garden’. Did you see the worms yet??? ok ok, i’ll show you! This happened because I couldnt get under my tomato plant to clean out all the tomatoes that fell and rotted on the ground. What I didnt know was, what a drastic improvement rotten tomatoes could make!
So here’s the experiment Im working on.
THE ZERO GARBAGE Project.
The goal of this project is to reduce the volume sent to the landfill while creating the richest soil my garden has ever seen. Why should the landfill get the good stuff, right?
Every sliver of compostable kitchen scrap now goes straight into the garden. Ideally what’s left, should be recyclable. I’ll tell ya, I feel a little naughty, standing at my doorway in the middle of December, tossing a banana peel into the garden. But its for a CAUSE! And since no ones out there looking at the gardens, winter is the perfect time to start composting. Even though it wont do much decomposing in the winter months, I feel that it should all have enough time to decompose before the summer months come.
What goes in
vegetable scraps. Fruit. Herbs. Popcorn. Coffee and coffee filters. Tea bags. Napkins and Paper towels. Shredded Paper Newspaper and Cardboard. Stale bread and burnt toast. Dead flower arrangements. Pencil shavings and sawdust. Basically anything organic that breaks down. heres more of what goes in
Kitty Litter, dog business. I read that feces of carnivors might contain disease organisms. ewww. i dont want that anywere near my tomatoes.
Lime, coal, charcoal. These are said to change the pH of the compost past the point of usefulness.
Meat, fat, grease, oil, bones. This is a little controversial. Some people say yes, go for it. Other say that fat and grease dont break down. Not only do the not break down, they coat everything else so that doesnt break down either.
Dairy products like milk, butter, cheese, ice cream or yogurt. This one is iffy. It said the pungent odor attract pests, but can be hidden in the middle of a compost pile to mask it. For our purposes here, milk would just be gross so lets skip it.
Heres more of what stays out
COOL COMPOSTING TIP! When the mess becomes unbearable.
It really does look gross when too much garbage piles up, so I do cover it often. We have a pile of compost and a pile of woodchips. I’ll sprinkle light layers on top to cover the mess. This no only covers the mess, but it helps it break down faster! Ive read of people digging a hole or a trench, throwing scraps in, then covering lightly with the dirt from the hole.
I emplore you, I EMPOWER you to throw your garbage straight into the garden. It doesnt feel terribly right at first, but if what I think will happen happens, I imagine the rebellious attitude that will arise knowing what Im doing is the best way about it.
