27 replies to this topic

[Ecodisaster]

I love this topic, thank you for starting it.
Composting is a great thing to do, it teaches you a big lesson in life.
I remember when I first started doing it, it felt very natural.
Those rules against composting are a pain, you should fight that till the end. It is your property. There is more bacteria in the sewers and they still do it.

[DizeeDee]

I had my things in storage some time ago & the storage had a dirt floor & leaky roof. Most of my stuff was on pallets but some of my boxes were placed directly on the dirt & I had a box of clothing burst & begin to decompose. Being in the northwest where there is always plenty of moisture, there was a lot of action going on between the layers of cloth & some seriously rich soil was at the bottom of the pile. It got me thinking about composting & I was wondering if clothing is a good thing to throw into a compost pile? It seemed me that some types of material were very easily decomposed & could barely be identified as cloth. So, if a t-shirt is ready for the rubbish, can it be thrown into the compost pile?

[Shortpoet-GTD]

DizeeDee, on 23 November 2011 - 06:17 PM, said:

I had my things in storage some time ago & the storage had a dirt floor & leaky roof. Most of my stuff was on pallets but some of my boxes were placed directly on the dirt & I had a box of clothing burst & begin to decompose. Being in the northwest where there is always plenty of moisture, there was a lot of action going on between the layers of cloth & some seriously rich soil was at the bottom of the pile. It got me thinking about composting & I was wondering if clothing is a good thing to throw into a compost pile? It seemed me that some types of material were very easily decomposed & could barely be identified as cloth. So, if a t-shirt is ready for the rubbish, can it be thrown into the compost pile?

If it's cotton, sure. But synthetics won't. Maybe help it along by tearing it to shreds. (Just imagine your
favorite villain (exxon, congress, bp) while you're tearing it apart, it will relieve your built up frustrations.
A "two-fer."

[kathie_san]

It's quite difficult to compost if you live in an apartment building with no space to put your compost pit. We do back in the country though where you can dig out a hole to put in fruits and vegetable peels, leftover food and the like. It's a good organic fertilizer.

[Shortpoet-GTD]

kathie_san, on 13 December 2011 - 08:59 AM, said:

It's quite difficult to compost if you live in an apartment building with no space to put your compost pit. We do back in the country though where you can dig out a hole to put in fruits and vegetable peels, leftover food and the like. It's a good organic fertilizer.

Check with local restraurants in your area, if they save scraps for compost collection, they might let you
add your goodies in.

[SheforACT]

Compost is an important soil amendment made of decomposed plant matter including food scraps. With the right recipe, your compost heap will not omit bad odors, will lighten the load (and cost) of your trash, and will greatly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from landfills.

[Shortpoet-GTD]

Green Thumb, on 23 November 2011 - 12:55 AM, said:

Speaking of burning, some of the old people in our place already recourse to burying. They would dig a ground where they will put the twigs, branches and leaves that they sweep every morning and when it’s filled they would cover it again with soil. It also serves as a garbage post sometimes. I’m just not sure if all of what they put in there are edible for the land. Then when it’s filled they would dig another. Effortless composting in their terms, I must say, if all that they put in there degrades to join the land mass.

Not real crazy about the categorization of "old" That implies stupid.

[Shortpoet-GTD]

SheforACT, on 21 December 2016 - 10:33 PM, said:

Compost is an important soil amendment made of decomposed plant matter including food scraps. With the right recipe, your compost heap will not omit bad odors, will lighten the load (and cost) of your trash, and will greatly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from landfills.

Thanks for all your recent input; it is much appreciated.

For newbies-
Fresh food scraps (nothing that has been cooked-attracts rats)
Leaves, grass, various other clippings (but easy on too many twigs/branches. They take to long to compost)
You'll need some for aeration.

Shrimp shells oyster shells, clam shells.
No grease; bones, meat, cooked (oops-repeat)
Shredded paper (cover so it won't blow away) Or newspapers torn up.

If starting from scratch; add a good humus soil to get things cooking. Some moisture but not wet.
Depending on area; it needs sun but with climate change and hotter summers, be mindful of sun. Too
much is bad.
Keep a small container in kitchen for veggie scraps & add to pile as needed.
(Tumblers are great in winter prone area's)

Fence off area if you have dogs/cats. You don't want feces in your pile.
Turn it sometimes or get a tumbler & watch the magic.