 | If you are an apartment dweller, and are fortunate enough to have a small balcony, you too can have rich, organic compost for your houseplants, and what you grow out on the patio.
Many people who live in condos or similar housing, enjoy the freshness of tomatoes and peppers, which grow well in tubs on the patio outside your own door. In order to make sure they are getting all the richness of natural fertilizers, you can also place a compost container out there, providing of course, that your building policy allows it, and you are careful not to cause any odor or dripping problems for neighbors.
There are composting bins that can be bought commercially, which are ideal for this. The containers come on a bracket or stand, which allows them to be given a 180 degree turn to help stir the contents, something that is necessary to keep your “working” material aerated.
If you can’t find one of these, than a kitchen-sized plastic or vinyl garbage can with a good fitting lid will do. You’ll need to put holes in the bottom, up the sides, and around the lid to allow oxygen inside. Use bricks or wood blocks to set the pail up off the surface of the patio, and place a pan of some sort underneath, to catch any moisture that runs out of the pail. Keeping this emptied and washed, can greatly reduce any odors.
Start your composting bin with some natural material such as a three-inch layer of dirt, dried leaves, or finished compost. Then you’ll be able to deposit your household organic wastes, right in the bin. This includes everything from crushed eggshells to tea bags, coffee grounds, and vegetable peelings. Do not add dairy products or meat, as the decomposition process involves bacteria that are likely to cause unpleasant smells.
For every layer of “wet” material from your kitchen, mix in an equal amount of dry material like dried leaves, or even shredded paper from the office. This helps to keep the pile from becoming anerobic, and clumping together so that oxygen can’t get at the material to break it down. You can always grab a bag of leaves from friends or family when you’re visiting, or pick some up when out for a drive. Remember to turn your compost periodically to break up clumps and expose it to the air.
Compost also needs heat to “work”, which your bin may not get, depending on whether the sun falls on it or not. Placing the container next to the wall of the building can help, as the building itself retains the heat of the day, and will reflect even meager sun, back on the container. In four to six months, you’ll have the same rich, organic compost that your friends with homes produce.
If you don’t happen to have a patio, you can still compost your kitchen waste through vermiculture, or worm composting. A heavy-duty vinyl tub of any size, with ¼” holes in the top and bottom and set on blocks with a drain tray, can be partly filled with the appropriate bedding material to house the “red wiggler” worms that eat their body weight in waste every day. Good bedding includes straw, hay, or shredded leaves, with a little soil mixed in. The most important aspect is to make sure the bedding is kept at the moisture level of a very damp sponge, but not so drenched it leaks constantly.
Once established, (you can get the worms at a fishing or pet supply store) you can start adding your organic kitchen waste to the bin, using a garden fork to run it into the bedding. It won’t take long for the worms to eat their way through what you’re providing, and when they start multiplying, you’ll have more of them working for you! This provides freshly composted material in 2-3 months, and can be a distinct advantage in the wintertime, when outdoor piles and bins are frozen.
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