Composting in the New Year

Last year, Caroline moved into an apartment complex in New York City — a major change from her life growing up in rural Maine. Amid the noisy and bustling city, Caroline missed her family’s land, on which an abundant vegetable garden grew every year. Caroline remembers summers as a little girl, waking up first thing in the morning, and running out to the garden, picking peas and cherry tomatoes off the vine.

Next to the garden, Caroline’s family stored a large compost container, where the family put all of their food scraps and yard waste. Every spring, Caroline helped her father shovel the compost onto the garden, nourishing the soil before planting new seeds that would become nutrient-rich vegetables. 

Though Caroline loved the city, she felt disconnected from the earth during her first year, and her energy became more depleted. Then, this past holiday season, Caroline hosted a big dinner party. She cooked several of her family’s favorite dishes and had far too much leftover food. Caroline ate as much as she could but knew she’d be wasting some. 

Finally, it was time for Caroline to research “how to compost in a big city?”

Why is composting important?

Food waste is not just Caroline’s problem. Nearly 30% of waste in landfills is from food products and yard waste, according to Medical News Today, in the 2020 article What are the Benefits of Composting? Thankfully, when organic material is put into compost bins, there are a number of important outcomes. 

The Compost Council of Canada outlines in the report Recruiting Soil to Combat Climate Change that composting benefits humans, animals, and the biodiversity of the earth. 

Compost creates healthier soil, which is vitally important to mitigating climate change, while improving food production, and clean air and water. And with decreased waste in landfills, there is less greenhouse gas methane in the air. 

Composting is a great source of natural fertilizer for gardens and crops. Using compost reduces the need for chemical fertilizers, and promotes healthier crops with higher yields. Soil is restored in forests and wetlands with compost, which adds nutrients back to the earth. Healthy soil also retains levels of moisture better, which reduces the need to water.

Learn how to compost

Wondering where to start? There are a number of helpful beginner’s guides for composting, including Healthline’s How to Start Composting at Home and a plethora of YouTube videos on the subject.  

If you live in a place where you can compost, and add it directly to a garden, here are a few tips to get started:

• Choose a container large enough to turn the soil that either has holes in the bottom already or drill holes in the bottom to allow for oxygen & airflow. 
• Find a dry, shady place, ideally by a water source, for the compost container, perhaps by a garden. 
• Compost is made up of green matter (fruit and veggie scraps, egg shells, bread, etc.) and brown matter (wood chips, cardboard, flower clippings, etc.) Start with 3 parts brown matter, and 1-part green matter with water, layering each to the bin. 
• Turn the pile with a shovel once a week or so, depending on where the compost bin is located.
• The compost will be ready to use when it looks like soil, is deep brown, and is dry and crumbly. Sprinkle on plants, and in a garden or yard for enriched nutritional value!

City composting: where to start 

Across Canada and the United States, in small towns and big cities, there are many innovative ways individuals can compost. Toronto, for example, has a green bin system that allows residents to compost, while the city waste system picks up the bins. The program collects the organic material, then processes it into high-quality compost, as well as natural gas. 

But not all governments prioritize composting. So, several small compost companies operate in cities like New York City, and Chicago. This 2021 Timeout article 5 easy ways to compost in Chicago highlights the ways residents can compost. In some options, individual residents are provided buckets to store organic material, which are picked up on a regular basis. In other cities, composting organizations place large bins in alleys that residents can fill when they need to empty their organic matter.

Composting improves health/wellness 

Composting requires mindfulness, intention, some physical labor, and in some cases, learning new skills. Living more slowly and intentionally, with a focus on nature, is a great way to decrease stress, and live a more fulfilled and happy life. Composting can be a great solo activity, and it can be a wonderful skill to pass along to family and friends. A whole household can contribute to creating a better environment for their unit, and for their whole community. 

In addition to the healthy habit-forming aspects of composting, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions creates a better overall environment for all living beings. And plants grown in soil with compost, rather than fertilizers and pesticides, have a significant impact on human health as well. Compost that is created close to where your garden or plants are grown is the most ideal. This mimics a healthy natural cycle of rejuvenation and is great for the environment, and for human wellness. 

After the holidays, Caroline found a great small compost program and has been putting her food scraps into a bucket that is picked up twice per month. Her trash smells better, and she feels connected to her family again, back in Maine. Best of all, Caroline learned that her compost program offers their patrons fully turned compost in the spring! So even though she can’t have a big garden like her family, Caroline plans to buy tomato and basil plants in the spring, place them on her balcony, and sprinkle the nutritious compost she helped to create in their soil. And when her plants yield, she’ll use recipes from her mother, and make the foods she loved most from her childhood.