How to Make Your Own Compost from Kitchen Waste

Composting is one of the easiest and 'greenest' ways of waste management to yield nutrient-full soil for a garden. Instead of dumping kitchen waste in the trash, you will be able to turn that waste into valuable compost that will enrich your plants and reduce your environmental footprint. This takes one through a step-to-step process in the making of one's own compost from kitchen waste and gives helpful tips on how to succeed.

What is Composting?

Composting is a natural organic process of decomposition and recycling organic materials into a valuable, rich, dark compost product. In the world of most gardeners, compost is called "black gold," in the sense that it enriches the structure of the soil, improves water retention, while giving plants a boost of such wanted nutrients. The process itself consists of the degradation of organic material by microorganisms into a steady, usable form.

Composting greatly reduces the volume of waste taken to landfills, where food and organic material combine and create methane, a very potent greenhouse gas. If composting is done at home, not only would it be able to reduce one's carbon footprint, it would also help in keeping the planet healthy in its process.

Benefits of Composting

Composting decreases total waste, as a form of kitchen scraps and yard waste do not enter into the landfill, thus reducing the overall amount of waste a person generates.

Reward Your Soil: Compost increases the uptake of water and nutrients in the plants, thus improving soil structure.

Economize: You save some bucks because compost will save you from store-bought fertilizers.

Sustainably Supportive: Composting avoids the use of chemical fertilizers and strikes an ecological balance.

All You Need to Get Started to Compost

Composting isn't as tough as one may imagine, and starting a compost pile at home is really pretty simple. You do not have to invest in fancy equipment or have a large back yard-just a few basic materials and some patience. You will need the following:

Compost bin or pile: You can buy a compost bin or make your own. If space is ample, you can simply have a basic compost pile outdoors in your yard. Other options, in case of limited space, include worm bins and bokashi systems for indoor composting.

Kitchen waste: It involves the gathering of vegetable and fruit scraps, coffee grounds, eggshells, and all other compostable kitchen wastes.

Yard waste: Leaves, grass clippings, and small branches from your garden are also acceptable.

Water: Compost needs water; therefore it is necessary that the compost pile be kept moist but not soggy.

Composting Kitchen Waste: A Step-by-Step Guide

1. Choose a Way to Compost

Composting comes in so many styles, so choose what's most compatible with your space and personal style. Composting in the backyard means building a compost pile or keeping a compost bin; for houses that have gardens or yards, it really works very well.

Vermicomposting: Vermicomposting is the use of worms with the purpose of being capable of decomposing food waste. This would work great indoors; thus, apartments or houses that have a small space outdoors could put this into use.

Composting Bokashi: The term bokashi literally means fermentation. It is a type of fermentation that speeds up the decomposition process in food waste. The best thing about bokashi composting is that it works for people who want to compost meat and dairy waste, which should otherwise not be placed in the normal compost bin.

2. Collect Your Materials

You start by collecting the food wastes that are peels and skins of fruits and vegetables, coffee grounds, eggshells, and tea bags. Do not add meat, dairy products, oily foods, and bones since they attract pests and will always need more days to break down completely. Add other yard wastes like leaves, grass clippings, and small twigs to the pile.

A balanced general rule would be to have both "green" and "brown" constituents in your compost. The "green" constituents are rich in nitrogen, such as materials like kitchen waste and fresh grass clippings. The "brown" constituents are richer in carbon, such as materials like dry leaves, straw, and cardboard. A general rule of thumb is to have a 3-to-1 ratio of brown to green materials.

3. Layering

Place a layer of brown materials in the bottom of the compost bin or pile. You want this to aerate it, though you don't want compost to compact. Now, follow this with a layer of green materials, adding another layer of brown materials. Continue these layers as more compostable materials are collected.

Large materials can be shredded or chopped down, which will hasten the composting process. As the size reduces their surface areas increase and microbes have a wider area to work on, hence the breaking down of such materials occurs much faster.

4. Maintain Your Compost Heap

Composting is pretty low maintenance; however, there is a couple of key things you want to pay attention to in order to make sure your setup goes well. First of all, the compost pile should be moist but not soggy-thinking about the consistency of a wrung-out sponge. If it is too dry, then add water. If it is too wet, then you are going to want to add more brown stuff to it like dry leaves or shredded paper.

Aeration: Compost requires oxygen for the decomposition of organic materials. In a couple of weeks, make sure to turn the compost pile using a pitchfork or shovel and allow air to flow through. It will also spread heat around the pile that basically helps in speedy decomposition.

Temperature: One of the ways to tell if a compost pile is breaking down is it heats up as the materials decompose. The internal temperature of your compost pile should be between 120°F to 160°F. You can monitor the temperature with a compost thermometer, though this is optional. If your pile is not heating up, try adding green materials or turn it more often.

5. Harvest Your Compost

Again, this may take anywhere from a few months to a year depending on the method chosen and conditions at the compost pile. At completion, the finished compost will be dark and crumbly with an earthy smell.

Harvest your compost by sifting through the pile and removing any large undecomposed material. Place them back into your compost pile to finish decomposing. You can now use this finished compost in your garden, add it to potting soil, or apply it to the lawn to improve soil.

Keys to Successful Composting

Avoiding Pests: Meat, dairy, and oily foods should not be added to your compost piles to avoid attracting pests such as rodents and flies. If you are into an outdoor composting bin, then using a tightly closed top usually cuts down pest issues.

Chop It Up: Large pieces of kitchen waste get shredded down to assist in the decomposing process.

balancing the greens and browns: A compost pile is kept healthy by the balance between nitrogen-heavy green materials and carbon-heavy brown materials in the breakdown process.

Use a Compost Thermometer: Knowing what temperature your compost pile is will let you know how things are coming along and if anything should change.

Patient: it is a natural process and hence some time-consuming. It would promise less with some regular maintenance yet little patience would go a long way in yielding rich compost, fertile enough for a garden.

Common Composting Problems and Solutions

Odours - If your compost pile is giving off an odour, it is too wet, or too full of green material. Add some brown materials to absorb the excess moisture. Turn the pile for more aeration.

Too slow of Breakdown: If nothing appears to be breaking down, it may simply be too dry or it may need more oxygen. Add some water and aerate the pile by turning it.

Pests: If you find pests in your compost, they are probably there because of some kind of food that is attracting them. Foods to avoid in composting are meat, dairy, and oily foods. You also need to make certain your compost bin is tightly closed.

Conclusion

Composting is an easy inexpensive way to reuse today's kitchen waste and turn it into tomorrow's gardening gold; yet, unfortunately, it happens so rarely. All it requires is a little effort and your food scraps and yard waste will turn into nutrient-rich compost, which your plants will love. No matter how small your apartment or how big your backyard, there is a specific compost method for your needs. Compost today and begin a little magic in the process of taking your waste and turning it into something so great for your garden and the planet.