My Home Composter » How to Make Compost

Home Composting Class Update

Home Composter — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 14:57:46 +0000

I attended a Home Composting Class put on by the U. of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences through our county’s Extension Service. I was happy to discover that I was familiar with most of the material covered since I started composting at home about one month ago. I had tried to do my research and am glad to know that you can actually find a great deal of factual information on the Internet.

This is similar to the bin I received in my Home Composting Class

I did get a few of my questions answered and really enjoyed seeing the different types of composters that they had on site. It was also very impressive to see the amount of nutrient-rich humus (created from compost) that they had generated at their small office. In the kitchen, they kept a compost bucket that employees used for coffee grounds and fruit and veggie scraps. I don’t know how big their outdoor space actually is, but their gardeners contribute lawn and garden waste. As a result, they have six or eight very large compost bins filled with humus. They also have several compost bins that are “in progress”.

If you haven’t started composting yet, this is a great way to get started. They even provided the compost bin included in the $15 price of the class. They say that the price is only to cover the compost bin, so if you don’t need one, it might be worth asking if you can come to class for free.

Even if you’ve already been composting for awhile, you will probably learn something and it is nice to meet others who share your interest in composting.

I’ll continue to share specific things that I learned in class in upcoming posts.

Home Composting Class Update post from: My Home Composter where you can learn how to make compost, read about pros and cons of various compost containers and discuss experiences in home composting.

Related Home Composter entries:<

Home Composting Class I signed up for a Home Composting class put on...
Composphere Compost Tumbler review This is just an unofficial Composphere Compost Tumbler review. I...
Naturemill Home Composter Back on My Radar Josh Dorfman just recommended the Naturemill Home Composter on...
Worm Bin Composting Worm bin composting is much easier than I expected… at...
A Beginner’s Questions about Home Composting The early stages of anything are usually the most difficult. ...

Home Composting Class

Home Composter — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 01:20:42 +0000

I signed up for a Home Composting class put on by the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences through our county’s Extension Service. So far I have mainly researched composting and interacted with other home composters on the Internet, so I’m looking forward to meeting others in my area who are also interested in home composting and also to learning in person from an expert. It’s $15 for the 2 hour workshop and includes a compost bin to take home. I wonder if I’ll have room for it. It would be fun to try another method of composting.
photo credit: Ajay Tallam.

Home Composting Class post from: My Home Composter where you can learn how to make compost, read about pros and cons of various compost containers and discuss experiences in home composting.

Related Home Composter entries:<

Home Composting Class Update I attended a Home Composting Class put on by the...
What is Composting? My plan was to start composting at home, perhaps because...
A Look at the Envirocycle Backyard Compost Tumbler One of the composters that I got to see during...
Compost Aerator The only gadget that I learned about at the home...
Compost Bucket I mentioned that in the Home Composting Workshop that...

How Do I Know When the Compost is Ready

Home Composter — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 03:27:13 +0000

How do I know when the compost is ready? Since I haven’t gotten to the point of adding another tray to my Worm Factory 360, I had not yet considered if I would know that it was done. I think mainly the worms will leave the tray once there is no food left and there is food on the next tray up, but I guess it’s possible that the tray could be full and not fully composted. So a tip I read on Real Simple is to put the compost into a baggy and smell it before you seal it. Put it in a drawer for a few days and then open it and smell it again. It should smell the same as when you put it in. If it smells worse, then it could probably use more composting. Great tip and very cool to see one of my favorite magazines with a couple of articles on Home Composting.

How Do I Know When the Compost is Ready post from: My Home Composter where you can learn how to make compost, read about pros and cons of various compost containers and discuss experiences in home composting.

Related Home Composter entries:<

The Worms are Moving Into the New Worm Tray I can see that at least a few worms are...
A Test for the Worm Tray Up to this point, I’ve only added small amounts every...
Learning From My Worm Bins This week, I’ve been learning from my worm bins. Maybe...
Worm Factory 360 – Time for Another Tray? As the worm tray in my Worm Factory 360 has...
What is Composting? My plan was to start composting at home, perhaps because...

Composting Tips, Tutorials and Tools

Home Composter — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 13:19:10 +0000

Florida’s Online Composting Center is a terrific resource for composting tips, tutorials and tools. There is a comprehensive list of items you can and cannot compost at http://www.compostinfo.com/tutorial/CanICompostIt.htm. Besides listing yes and no for each item, it explains how it will affect the compost. I also like the Virtual Composter interactive tool that lets you virtually add ingredients to a compost bin to see how it affects it and gives advice on what you can do to get the balance right.

Composting Tips, Tutorials and Tools post from: My Home Composter where you can learn how to make compost, read about pros and cons of various compost containers and discuss experiences in home composting.

Related Home Composter entries:<

What is Composting? My plan was to start composting at home, perhaps because...
Home Composting Class Update I attended a Home Composting Class put on by the...
A Beginner’s Questions about Home Composting The early stages of anything are usually the most difficult. ...
Kitchen Composting Containers Since I have temporarily put buying the Naturemill automatic composter...
Home Composting Class I signed up for a Home Composting class put on...

What is Composting?

Home Composter — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 12:07:43 +0000

My plan was to start composting at home, perhaps because it just feels wrong to throw food and garden waste into a plastic bag and then into a dumpster. So I went straight to researching compost containers, so that I could buy one right away and get started. What I learned quickly by reading product reviews is that there is both science and art involved in making compost and mistakes can lead to “icky” results. So what is composting, how does it work and what will I need to do to be successful?… Although I couldn’t imagine reading a long, tedious book about composting, I did read some book reviews to see if there was something that might give me the education I needed before getting any further along on my journey. I found Ken Thompson’s book Compost, the natural way to make food for your garden and am getting just the type of information I wanted. It’s a quick read, with specifics on how composting works and what you need to know to get the right balance of ingredients. He gives pros and cons on different types of compost containers and even offers instructions for making your own. The book also addresses all the ways that compost can be used. I’ll reserve my final recommendation until I’m finished reading, but so far so good.

What is Composting? post from: My Home Composter where you can learn how to make compost, read about pros and cons of various compost containers and discuss experiences in home composting.

Related Home Composter entries:<

Composter Reviews You can learn a lot from reading composter reviews. I...
Indoor Compost Containers I’m sure there are many like me who want to...
Composting Tips, Tutorials and Tools Florida’s Online Composting Center is a terrific resource for composting...
Home Composter News on October 24, 2009 *Home composting* roadshow rolls into Rushden October 24, 2009...
Fruit Flies in the Worm Factory 360 There were more fruit flies in my Worm Factory 360...

I Won’t Be Using a Compost Pile

Home Composter — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 13:09:19 +0000

I can easily say that I’ve ruled out using a compost pile or heap as my method of composting. Although I don’t know if I can be called an urban composter, I live in a small townhouse and have very limited space inside and if I’m going to put anything outside, it had better be almost imperceptible to my neighbors. I maintain enough plants that I could probably hide something small, as long as it doesn’t get smelly.

Even if I lived in an area where I could have a compost heap, the idea of snakes, rats and other critters getting into it, would be more than enough to keep me from going that route.

photo credit: myrtle_avenue_brooklyn

I Won’t Be Using a Compost Pile post from: My Home Composter where you can learn how to make compost, read about pros and cons of various compost containers and discuss experiences in home composting.

Related Home Composter entries:<

Indoor Compost Containers I’m sure there are many like me who want to...
Me with a Worm Composting Container The last type of home composter that I would...
Build Your Own Worm Compost Bin For Less $ If you don’t want to spend much on composting, you...
Home Composting Class I signed up for a Home Composting class put on...
Replace Trash Stickers with a Home Composter As I am learning more about composting and looking for...