Compost questions

leighanneh

DH and I want to start composting but don't know where to start. Can you all recommend some good blogs or websites that will give us a good start?

TIA

pixieprincss

The book Composting by Liz Ball is the best thing I've read. I got it from the library. I talk a little about composting in my blog, but it is by no means a step-by-step (link in sig).

toadstool

We just started ours about a month and a half ago and I can see that it has started breaking down. It was way easier than I thought it would be. We have ours in a large plastic trash can with holes drilled all over it for air circulation. I keep the lid on it and secure it with a bungee cord. You can just google it and get lists of what to add and what not to add. Once you start you will see that it is super simple and will really reduce the amount of trash your household produces.

Lisa78

Ditto it being simpler than I thought. I had a million questions and concerns about exact ratios and my friend (who has been composing since she was a kid) said "Um. Yeah, stuff just rots." 

Very true! 

MadameFancyPants

Check out my blog!  I recently wrote a 3 part series on composting and starting a garden (the garden is in middle TN.)  I went step by step how I start and use my compost!

SuperGreen

We just throw equal parts greens (grass clippings, food scraps) and browns (leaves, shredded cardboard, paper bags) into our compost bin (got it for $25 off craigslist) and let it decompose.  We stir with each new addition, and add a little water every once and awhile.  The more attention you pay your pile the faster it will decompose, but it breaks down all on its own too.  We use the finished compost at the bottom of the bin for our raised beds and top dress the plants in our front yard.  Works great, and we've really reduced our contribution to the landfill.

Pescalita

I started a compost pile at my mom's house that was literally a pile of food scraps, with some grass clippings thrown on every once in awhile and leaves that fell off the tree above it. No bin, no turning, no attention to ratios, no watering, just a passive pile. It made gorgeous compost once we gave it enough time.

Alisha_A

I get overwhelmed by a lot of instructions! I liked the info in The Urban Homestead. It was pretty simple. I also keep mine in an old rubbermaid trash can with holes. I just don't put in anything that has meat or animal fats in it, and always keep the stuff I put in covered with 'browns' - leaves, etc.

cme25

Alisha_A:

I get overwhelmed by a lot of instructions! I liked the info in The Urban Homestead. It was pretty simple. I also keep mine in an old rubbermaid trash can with holes. I just don't put in anything that has meat or animal fats in it, and always keep the stuff I put in covered with 'browns' - leaves, etc.

Heh, this is me. Thanks for the suggestion of the book.

We've been collecting our veggie scraps, beer-brewing grain, and egg shells in a large Tupperware container outside our garage. It's basically all sort-of rotted and frozen together in big lumps right now though. The temperature is finally getting above freezing a little bit, so I'm getting excited to get some worms in there and start turning/mixing!

cme25

Alisha_A:

I get overwhelmed by a lot of instructions! I liked the info in The Urban Homestead. It was pretty simple. I also keep mine in an old rubbermaid trash can with holes. I just don't put in anything that has meat or animal fats in it, and always keep the stuff I put in covered with 'browns' - leaves, etc.

Heh, this is me. Thanks for the suggestion of the book.

We've been collecting our veggie scraps, beer-brewing grain, and egg shells in a large Tupperware container outside our garage. It's basically all sort-of rotted and frozen together in big lumps right now though. The temperature is finally getting above freezing a little bit, so I'm getting excited to get some worms in there and start turning/mixing!

leighanneh

Thank you so much ladies! I am excited to start composting!