Composting whats all the Stink about?

Composting is the process by which organic material biodegrades via the use of microorganisms. If your thinking what I did originally your thinking, 'great rotten food.' I must admit I hated the idea of composting because I thought it would be a waste of time and precious smelling sensors. This turns out not to be the case at all. I recently began a composting bin and so can you. Literature that I found stated that by composting you could reduce you waste garbage by 40- 60%.



What do you need?

A small sealable container-- we reused a Maxwell House coffee container with a screw-on lid.
A larger open container- we used an old garbage can and drilled hundreds of holes into it.
A desire to help your society.

Composting is all about getting the right mix of browns and greens. Browns are high in carbon and greens are high in nitrogen. What causes compost piles to stink is rotting and an excess release of nitrogen. To achieve the right ratio of carbon to nitrogen you should be at an approximate ratio of 25:1. the easy way to figure this out is if it stinks add more browns or carbons to your compost bin.

What is compostable?

Browns- Leaves, wood, fruit scrapes, leaves, newspapers, cardboard (without a shiny surface), pine needles.
Greens- Food scraps, vegetable waste, garden waste, grass clippings, hedge trimmings, weeds and one of the best greens is coffee grounds (worms absolutely love them and the worms increase the speed of decomposition.)
Things to avoid- meats, bones, fats, fish, dairy, pet droppings, any green matter treated with pesticides.

How to start:

Start with your brown waste and add in your green waste keeping your ratios. Green waste should be cut up into smaller pieces and added a lump at a time as compared to daily. Watering your compost aids in the decomposition process but remember if it starts to smell you have to much nitrogen and need to add more brown matter.

Composting is the ultimate green circle of life.
You start out taking garbage and make it into nutrient rich soil -->
nutrient rich soil that is used to grow plants-->
grow plants that reduces carbon dioxide gases and provide organic vegetables-->
then the plant and garden waste can be used to add back into the compost bin.

Gardening, To be or not to be... Green?

It's truly a personal choice. I'm not 'super granola' and I'm not one of those people that force my perspective down your throat. I feel as though everyone can choose to make changes in their activities that result in changes in the environment. One thing that I have started doing in the past few years is gardening.


What does gardening do to help the environment?

First of all gardening can be detrimental to the environment. Soil releases CO2 and when homeowners till soil it causes more CO2 to be released, thereby increasing our carbon footprint. The increase of CO2 leads to an increase of global temperatures (that is if you believe that and that's a topic for a different day). A second potentially harmful effect of tilling is the breakup of VAM (vesicular-arbuscular-mycorrhizae). VAM is the good bacteria of fungi that form symbiotic relationships with plants and provide them with nutrients and electrolytes. Both of these potentially harmful effects can be neutralized by mulching. A third harm to your soil is the depletion of nitrogen from the soil. I must admit I am a tiller, but make sure to rectify the potential harm.

Composting

This year my wife and a I started a compost pile (more about this in a future post). Composting can consist of organic matter, manure or homemade compost. As with everything in life it must be done moderation and a little compost goes a long way. Compost will add nitrogen back in the soil.

Mulching

Although mulching your flower beds makes everything look good it serves a purpose. As it breaks down mulch adds compost and nutrients back to the soil. Secondly, mulch aids in trapping water that later supplies hydration to the garden and requires less use of drinking water. Another environmentally friendly way to water your garden is rain catches or rain barrels.

Organic

The great thing about homegrown fruits and vegetables is you control what goes into them. Pesticide help to control pest and insects, but at what risk to consumer. Some bugs like lady bugs and parasitic wasps are beneficial bugs and eat harmful insects. If insects become a problem organic pesticides maybe the answer or you can accept that some of your crop will be lost. Lost crop is not necessarily a bad thing. The lost veggies can be composted and just reintroduced into the soil. Crop rotation is another important factor in organic gardening.

Plant Growth

The introduction of new plants into the environment assist in the photosynthesis and plant respiration. Plants take in CO2, H2O and sunlight and give off glucose which the plant uses as food and the byproduct.... Oxygen.

I couldn't see you but I saw your ( carbon) footprints in the sand

Hey there, how you doing? And by the way, what's your carbon footprint? Or better yet, what is this so called carbon footprint?

The Carbon Footprint:

A carbon footprint is a measure of the effect you have on the climate in terms of the amount of greenhouse gases you produce. These are measured in units of carbon dioxide, typically in tons. Many of your daily activities generate carbon emissions which have an impact on the health of the overall environment.

Data varies greatly when attempting to determine the average tons of CO2 per household. The Best estimates suggested that the worldwide average for a house of 5 was 28 tons of CO2 per year as compared to the United States average of 135 tons per year.

Carbon footprint calculators are a dime a dozen. I found this one that I liked a lot:
footprint network

My household release of greenhouse gases was between 32-45 tons of CO2 per year. This is well less than the US average but still more than worldwide average.

Carbon footprints take into account multiple factors which include your diet, energy consumption, recycling, transportation, etc.

Green in the environment

In this section I will post about the changes you can make outside the house.


Recycling at the curbside- what do towns take, what days are recycling picked up.
Recycling in your backyard- Composting 101 and how to recycle your “wet” garbage, gardening and how the vegetables are not only potentially organic but aid in increasing the oxygenation of the atmosphere.
Reducing harmful toxins- utilizing environmentally friendly cleaning supplies inside the house as well as outside.
Recycling electronics- Cellphones, laptops etc can be recycled, where can they be dropped off and the consequences of throwing them in the trash. Recycling old appliances and ensuring capture of gaseous fumes.

Green around the house

In this section I will post about the inside changes you can make and how they will make a difference.

Energy efficiency- Energy star appliance and the cost savings, CFL bulbs, water conservation, thermostatic control
Home improvements- energy star windows, improving insulation, reusing wood and building materials when possible, solar power

It is all about me!

I am 31 years old. Growing up I was a typical boy. I played sports, liked video games and read comics. I am the oldest of four brothers and because I was in charge (a lot) it gave me a nurturing attitude. I am married to my high school sweetheart who I've been married to going on nine years and have known for more than half my life. She's my best friend. In March of 2004 we expanded our family and now five years later I have 3 beautiful, smart, and vivacious little girls.

In grammar school I learned about recycling and brought home a few handouts. We started recycling, checking numbers and symbols on the cans and bottles to see what was OK to recycle. Somewhere along the way I lost that passion that I had to do my part and help out society. By the time I was a young adult I went from a helping kid to a hooligan that launched his soda bottle out the window of his car.

Over the last few years that coincide with the beginning of my family expansion my wife has begun bringing home organic food. I was very skeptical at first to say the least, but as time went on I started to realize the potential benefit. This started a chain reaction. If I can eat a little healthier, or with less preservatives, maybe I can doing other things a little healthier if not for myself maybe my children, my neighborhood, or even my planet.