As always, I throughly enjoyed your post. I also always feel compelled to comment even though I don’t have to.
Mother like daughter. I, too, had an open container. Loved it but my other half, not so much. I came across one of those jumbo sized plastic coffee containers, lidded with an indentation for fingers allowing easy pick up. The problem now that it is lidded is that the food scraps begin breaking down so when you open it the smell is not good and the slime at the bottom made it hard to completely empty. (newspaper at the bottom cured that). Complaints about the smell from my other half when we open it to fill make me just roll my eyes and keep composting. P.S. We also have a stainless steel bucket under the sink for things my worms won’t like in their confined area. That goes out to our city’s compost can. P.S. Love you!!! (and your compost)
LOL let me have a quick conversation with "your other half".... his attitude is one of the biggest obstacles I have to getting people to compost AND getting them to do it in a way that MAKES SENSE to avoid the very issues he's freaked out about and then creates by trying to avoid them
Hahahaha. Thanks but nope. This works fine for me. A middle ground. Plus, I have a secret laugh and that eye roll every time the complaint is made. The half-cup full side is I have a partner that composts. Grateful for that.
I also use a stainless steel bucket I think from Kilner. I like that it’s small so I have to empty it a lot, so I go to my compost a lot.
I was wondering about coffee. I too am a titanic drinker but at some point absorbed that I shouldn’t put too many grounds in my compost. I’m now not sure where I got this idea from, but is it ok to add a lot? I should say I compost in a 2 bucket system on a balcony and it doesn’t get hot.
Anyway, thank you again for a fantastic newsletter. I started composting thanks to you and I honestly cannot imagine living any other way now.
I am really honored to hear that I inspired you to start composting - that is really special. :)
Re: coffee grounds in your compost, my guess is that you read somewhere that coffee grounds are very acidic and might impact your pile's pH ? It is true that if your pile is 90% coffee grounds and 10% other stuff, you might have issues with that. But I have a feeling you aren't drinking *that* much coffee. As long as your ratio is staying solid (you are balancing the high-nitrogen coffee with enough high-carbon stuff) and you're keeping things aerated, I think you're good.
But you could always buy simple pH strips and check your pH to make sure your pile is staying consistent with the best pH for whatever your compost needs are! It's cheap and super easy (and also fun! I think). Hehe. Let me know if you end up testing the pH.
We use small-ish recycled containers with lids. They stack if I don't get out to the mound often enough! Unfortunately, in our climate we get fruit flies (I think the eggs are on the bananas) so I like a lid.
Fruit flies are definitely an issue where I live, too - but I don't eat that much fruit! So it doesn't end up being a huge concern for me. If I was a fruit lover, I bet the open bowl would not work so well for me, haha. I think your solution is great. :)
My Subpods are in raised beds outside in the spring, summer and fall, but in the winter (Maine winters can be brutal) we bring them in to the sunroom, where I bundle them up, and we run the pellet stove for a few hours each day to keep them from freezing. They have thrived so far!
We got a simple little stainless steel bucket with a carbon filter in the lid and it sits happily next to the sink. I tuck a paper towel in the bottom so nothing sticks when I dump it.
Process vs product! WOW, that could be a topic for so many issues.
I used to use an open bowl which worked just fine! And I loved it when I saw the variety of stuff in there each week! But for whatever reason I convinced myself I needed a bucket with a lid. Of course it works too but I don’t loving cleaning it out like I did with the bowl.
Totally! It's so funny - the ease of cleaning the bowl is such a huge factor. Because it's so easy, I do it often, and then the bowl stays really clean and functional. But when I had a closed bucket with one of those charcoal filter lids, it was tricky to clean and I never did - so I ended up with this like... slimy mess in there that smelled, lol
I use whatever container is handy while I am cooking, and then put it in the bowl of an old food processor. I keep it cold then pulse it and feed it to my worms. They’re happy and it’s easy as pie.
I lOVE this - processing in an old food processor is also a little *chef's kiss* note of genius. Such a great way to break down your food scraps in advance of composting them!
I also love to watch my food scraps accumulate in my glass jar that sits on the counter. That's true love right there!
It totally is ! Glad I'm not alone in loving it so much :)
As always, I throughly enjoyed your post. I also always feel compelled to comment even though I don’t have to.
Mother like daughter. I, too, had an open container. Loved it but my other half, not so much. I came across one of those jumbo sized plastic coffee containers, lidded with an indentation for fingers allowing easy pick up. The problem now that it is lidded is that the food scraps begin breaking down so when you open it the smell is not good and the slime at the bottom made it hard to completely empty. (newspaper at the bottom cured that). Complaints about the smell from my other half when we open it to fill make me just roll my eyes and keep composting. P.S. We also have a stainless steel bucket under the sink for things my worms won’t like in their confined area. That goes out to our city’s compost can. P.S. Love you!!! (and your compost)
LOL let me have a quick conversation with "your other half".... his attitude is one of the biggest obstacles I have to getting people to compost AND getting them to do it in a way that MAKES SENSE to avoid the very issues he's freaked out about and then creates by trying to avoid them
Hahahaha. Thanks but nope. This works fine for me. A middle ground. Plus, I have a secret laugh and that eye roll every time the complaint is made. The half-cup full side is I have a partner that composts. Grateful for that.
I also use a stainless steel bucket I think from Kilner. I like that it’s small so I have to empty it a lot, so I go to my compost a lot.
I was wondering about coffee. I too am a titanic drinker but at some point absorbed that I shouldn’t put too many grounds in my compost. I’m now not sure where I got this idea from, but is it ok to add a lot? I should say I compost in a 2 bucket system on a balcony and it doesn’t get hot.
Anyway, thank you again for a fantastic newsletter. I started composting thanks to you and I honestly cannot imagine living any other way now.
I am really honored to hear that I inspired you to start composting - that is really special. :)
Re: coffee grounds in your compost, my guess is that you read somewhere that coffee grounds are very acidic and might impact your pile's pH ? It is true that if your pile is 90% coffee grounds and 10% other stuff, you might have issues with that. But I have a feeling you aren't drinking *that* much coffee. As long as your ratio is staying solid (you are balancing the high-nitrogen coffee with enough high-carbon stuff) and you're keeping things aerated, I think you're good.
But you could always buy simple pH strips and check your pH to make sure your pile is staying consistent with the best pH for whatever your compost needs are! It's cheap and super easy (and also fun! I think). Hehe. Let me know if you end up testing the pH.
We use small-ish recycled containers with lids. They stack if I don't get out to the mound often enough! Unfortunately, in our climate we get fruit flies (I think the eggs are on the bananas) so I like a lid.
Fruit flies are definitely an issue where I live, too - but I don't eat that much fruit! So it doesn't end up being a huge concern for me. If I was a fruit lover, I bet the open bowl would not work so well for me, haha. I think your solution is great. :)
My Subpods are in raised beds outside in the spring, summer and fall, but in the winter (Maine winters can be brutal) we bring them in to the sunroom, where I bundle them up, and we run the pellet stove for a few hours each day to keep them from freezing. They have thrived so far!
I love that! Oh man, that's so cool :)
We got a simple little stainless steel bucket with a carbon filter in the lid and it sits happily next to the sink. I tuck a paper towel in the bottom so nothing sticks when I dump it.
Love it! Paper towel at the bottom is really smart, too <3
Process vs product! WOW, that could be a topic for so many issues.
I used to use an open bowl which worked just fine! And I loved it when I saw the variety of stuff in there each week! But for whatever reason I convinced myself I needed a bucket with a lid. Of course it works too but I don’t loving cleaning it out like I did with the bowl.
Totally! It's so funny - the ease of cleaning the bowl is such a huge factor. Because it's so easy, I do it often, and then the bowl stays really clean and functional. But when I had a closed bucket with one of those charcoal filter lids, it was tricky to clean and I never did - so I ended up with this like... slimy mess in there that smelled, lol
I use whatever container is handy while I am cooking, and then put it in the bowl of an old food processor. I keep it cold then pulse it and feed it to my worms. They’re happy and it’s easy as pie.
I lOVE this - processing in an old food processor is also a little *chef's kiss* note of genius. Such a great way to break down your food scraps in advance of composting them!
Do you keep your worm bin indoors?
In the spring/summer/fall they’re in bins in raised beds my husband built. In winter, we bring the beds into the sunroom where I bundle the So