My Composting Adventure Begins!

It began with a bin.

Isn't it cool?

My husband took me to Home Depot and purchased it for me (because he is awesome and he loves me) and then he even put in together for me. After watching him do this, I think I could have done it myself, but after spending the morning cleaning out my gardening space I was more than happy to let him complete this task!

The bin was large (120 gallon capacity) and empty.

I was a little bit intimidated by all this space.

I decided I needed to refer back to the composting video I found so helpful to get the "recipe" for my "garden lasagna":

I now have this screen-capture from the video saved on my iPhone for easy reference.

So I grabbed the bag of "brown" that my husband gathered from next to our shed. and added my first layer.

This was super easy (and fun)!

Then, I went around my backyard gathering some neglected flower pots and planters that had various annuals or failed growths in them, so I could use their soil. (I wrote a post about one poignant find in one of the pots on my other blog, Rivera Runs Through It, for a memoir meme.)

There was some pretty rich soil in those pots.

Finally, it was time for the GREENS - my kitchen scraps!! I ran into the house to gather my container and two gallon zip-lock bags full of collections. Then, I decided it was the perfect time to do a thorough excavation of my refrigerator. Here is what I came up with:

There's lots of stuff, but I could help but think about the stuff that didn't make it because I had thrown it away by mistake!

Finally, it was time to complete the "lasagna" to help keep the odor contained. Another layer of soil.

And another layer of brown. However, the bag of browns from next to the shed was not enough!! Luckily, I have a magnolia tree in the front of my house that grows like a weed and needs major trimming from time to time.

This branch actually broke off from the weight of the snow this winter and I saved it.

I did not even use half of the magnolia branch, so it will come in handy next week when I come back to add more to my compost!

Final layer for now and SO MUCH MORE SPACE to go!

I closed up the lid and got the hose to "water" the compost. I'm not sure if I added enough water, that is something I will have to watch. But otherwise I feel like I am well on my way to a mini garden cook.

It is funny how being excited about composting affects so many aspects of my life.

• I want to be more organized when I go through my mail so I can shred the non-glossy mail for more "brown" materials.
• I am thinking about my meals in terms of what kind of compost contributions they make. This really has me thinking about whether or creating a "Compost Diet" (eating only things that produce "green" compost waste is the one way to think about healthy, responsible eating.... maybe/maybe not??)
• I want to dust mop my entire house and brush my dogs like crazy because that, too, according to certain sources is more "brown" materials.

For more information about the bin I purchased, here is a link to the company's website:
E-Composter by GardenViews