Composting

I went to the library today to do a tiny bit of research on dishwashers, and I somehow came home with an armful of gardening books. Funny how that happens. The one I read today was on composting.

Composting is an essential part of any green lifestyle. There are types of composting to fit every living environment, whether you live in suburbia, the countryside, or even the city. Even when living under the rule of the all-powerful "homeowners association," you can and should compost!

In the suburbs, you have three really excellent choices in composting.

1. You can have a self-contained, outdoor "hot" compost bin. The closest of the suburban systems to what most people visualize when you mention "compost," these are prefabricated plastic or wooden containment systems that make storing, organizing, and creating compost easy. Don't worry, this is NOT the rural-appropriate chicken wire and mulching fork system of old (although you can still compost like that if you'd like!) With these HOA-appropriate systems, you don't have to break a sweat. Here's our composter for a visual aid.

2. You can have a small indoor compost container. The Japanese have perfected many options in this arena. Tiny enough to keep under your sink, these plastic bins require only kitchen scraps and regular additions of a prepackaged activator. Odorless and easy. Appropriate for even the smallest apartment! Click here for an example.

3. You can practice vermiculture. Homemade or store-bought containers host special composting worms that do all the work for you. All you have to add, again, are kitchen scraps. These systems can be used either outdoors or indoors and are odorless. In the deep South, however, you may be limited to using them indoors or in very shady spots outside, since the worms aren't very happy at temperatures over 77 degrees f. Here's an example.

So, put away your excuses, you CAN compost no matter where or how you live. But why should you?

Food waste thrown in the garbage ends up in landfills where, due to the anaerobic conditions, it cannot decompose correctly. Instead of joining the "circle of life," it releases harmful amounts of methane into the atmosphere, which contributes dramatically to global warming. It doesn't matter if you plan to use the compost produced or not; keeping your food scraps out of the landfill reduces your carbon footprint and is a vital step toward sustainable living that every household can and should make.

[The composting book I read today: Compost, by Clare Foster (Cassell Illustrated).]