Composting Basics

I wrote this for a school I helped get into composting. Most of it is borrowed from other handouts I've made, but I think this version finally covers how to operate your bin. May it serve you well!

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Welcome to your compost bin! It’s a great place full of lots of activity, so enjoy it! It will give you fertilizer, worms, and freedom from the landfill!

To get started, you’ll want a collection bin for indoors. A two gallon bucket fits nicely under a sink and is small enough that it won’t have time to get stinky before it needs emptying.  You’ll also need a cover material tote. This will be outdoors and will house some sort of airy material, such as straw, leaves, moss, shredded paper, sawdust, or weeds. Having cover material is crucial to your composting success, so always have some on hand.

The process of composting is simple. Place your compostable scraps into your bucket. When the bucket is full, empty it into your bin and cover it with the cover material.  With the next addition, pull back the cover material already on top of your pile, dump your bucket, and re-cover. The cover material acts as a biofilter--it will filter out the smell so flies, rodents, dogs, and bears won’t be attracted to your pile.  Pieces of cardboard serve as a nice liner for your bin to keep all material in. 1/4 inch wire mesh is also a good liner.  Cover material along the sides is a good idea if you tend to have food poking out. If you have pest problems, chances are you’re not using enough cover material.

A variety of materials will make the best pile. In composting language, you have browns and greens. Very loosely, if it's dry it's a brown and if it has moisture it's a green. (More accurately, browns are mostly carbon and greens are mostly nitrogen.)  Usually, cover materials work out to be the browns of the pile. Browns provide carbon, add air space, and manage moisture, so don’t forget to add them if your cover material is fresh green weeds. 

Sort for the Bucket & Bin 

What to put in:
Moldy food
Fruits and vegetables
Breads and grains
Egg shells
Dairy

Coffee grounds

Liquids
House plant leaves
Garden debris
Small pieces of paper (not glossy)
Used tissue
Finger nail clippings & hair
Dog fur
Dryer lint
Dust pan & vacuum contents
BioPlastics (labeled compostable) 

What NOT to put in:
Meat scraps/bones
Fish
Fruit/vegetable stickers
Plastic
Metal
Glass
Anything that’s toxic    

Composting is a natural process. Microorganisms will appear and multiply in your bin and break the material down. If you’ve set up the right conditions, there will be billions of microbes working and they will create heat. Hot composting is great because it is fast and it kills pathogens and weed seeds. Cold composting works, but is slow, doesn’t kill weed seeds, and may create a slug problem.

If you are hot composting, the material will quickly heat up to 150 degrees F. It will hover there for a while, then slowly decrease. Once cooled, macro-organisms will appear to further decompose the pile. (This is when fungi and worms will appear.) You can either let the pile sit or turn it to restart the heating process.

When the bin looks full, keep filling it! It will magically take more material since the pile is constantly decomposing and shrinking. When it stops accepting additions use the second side of the bin. Once the second side is truly full, the first side should be done and ready for use.

Using compost is easy. Simply mix it in the top few inches of your soil. It’s good for potted plants, raised beds, and anything you want to have a boost. For creating a new bed, simply mix it with some sand.

If a problem occurs, do some trouble shooting. Composting isn’t supposed to stink, have flies, attract bears, or be difficult!

Pile is Stinky

• too much nitrogen (food scraps or animal manure) Add carbon, i.e. straw, leaves, shredded paper, sawdust, wood chips. 

• not enough biofilter. Add more material to top/sides of pile.

• pile is too wet -  If it's wetter than a wrung out sponge it's too wet and will compact into an anaerobic stink! Add more carbonaceous materials. 

• not enough air - jam a piece of rebar into the pile and wiggle back and forth to make an air hole through the pile. Make several holes. Next time add more bulky things like fern stalks or straw.

Pile is not heating up 

• not the right mixture of greens vs browns. Add greens (food scraps or live plant material)

• pile is too dry - add some water to the pile

• not enough material added at once. Add 10+ gallons at a time for a kick start. You can back off once it heats up.

Pile too hot (>160 F)

• too much nitrogen and microbial action . Split pile in two to avoid killing microbes. Add more carbon.

Basics to keep in mind:

• Acknowledge that a compost pile is alive. It needs nutrients, fiber, air, water, and protection.
• Put  a mix of traditional greens and browns in the pile. Divert stuff from the landfill or find stuff in the wild. Manure adds microbes.
• Add lots of material at once. Get scraps from neighbors--the more the merrier.
• Give the pile air. Layer bulky things in the mix to add pore space. Feel free to  turn it.
• Monitor moisture. Add  water as the heat evaporates some; add dry material if the pile is soggy.
• Have a big, covered pile. This protects the pile from the rain and makes it self-insulating from the cold.
• Have a biofilter. Put several inches of dry material on top of the pile to filter our smells and keep critters at bay.
• Have a composting thermometer (~$25). It lets you know what is going on so you know what to do. If it's not heating up, check the above list. If it's too hot split the pile in two and either cut back on greens or add more browns. 

It looks like a lot to think about, but once you are actually composting with your own hands you will find that it‘s a snap!  Composting can be as easy or hard as you make it. Don't worry about what you NEED to do--just experiment! You can read about lots of things NOT to do or ALWAYS to do, but it comes down to this: No one is the boss of composting! Every situation is different: different climate, different resources, different schedules, different set-ups.....Be creative, get to work, and see what you can turn into soil!

Have fun, and let me know if you need a hand!

Ideas for Child Involvement:

• Make signs for the bin - general “Our Compost” or one for each side, e.g. “Aging,”  “Add here,” etc.
• Empty the bucket into the bin and cover it with cover material
• Collect browns for cover material with their families and bring to school
• Offer to rake neighbor’s leaves as a community service & way to get browns
• Shred used paper for cover material
• Keep track of weight and volume in composting log - weigh full bucket on a scale and estimate gallons.
• Keep track of bin temperature in composting log - can make line graphs of temp vs. time to see the curve
• Start seedlings in trays on the surface of the bin - compare to seedlings started in areas of differing temperatures
• Attach window boxes to side of bin and plant something to eat
• Dig for worms in the finished compost
• Use the finished compost on classroom plants
• Observe finished compost under a magnifying glass
• Analyze the stages of compost - Adults can prep three jars with perforated lids:
• 1. food scraps layered between browns,  
  
•  2. material breaking down,
•  3. finished compost. (I can give you some)
• They can look at and smell the jars to note their similarities and differences. Be sure to remind them that all jars started with the same thing inside--the stuff  in jar #1!

• Read composting books
• Make a book on how your school composts using photos or drawings.
• Tell, draw, or write compost-related stories. I.e. The worm who at my banana peels, The day the cheese disappeared
• Share their knowledge--Invite families and neighbors to see the system
• Talk about garbage - What really makes something garbage? Categorize objects into where they belong if you don‘t need something -
•     -recycle center
•     -salvation army, freecycle, a friend
•     -compost bin
•     -art project
•     -landfill
• Grow a garden!

• help apply the finished compost in the yard.
• grow window boxes of herbs, veggies, or flowers in the classroom
• plant spring veggie starts for children to take home