How to Start Balcony Composting in 15 Minutes or Less

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdVU7HVFMrU Balcony composting is a great way to reduce waste to the landfill while having fun making some great soil for next to no cost.  For those that don't compost because they're grossed out by worms or don't have the time or space- this method may be the one for you. All you need is two 5 gallon buckets or similar containers and a drill with a 1/8" bit.  Drill holes in the sides and bottom of the top bucket, and then place it into the bottom bucket.  The bottom bucket functions as your leachate collection tray. Now add a layer of shredded cardboard/shredded leaves/straw in the bottom, followed by a layer of food scraps.  Take note to avoid adding meat, dairy (crushed eggshells are fine), fish, pet waste or…

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What Composting System is Right for You? (video)

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eU4rK-aKoSM What composting system is right for you?  There's 4 main methods for composting: dig a hole, compost bin, worms, compost tumbler.  They all have their pros and cons, so here we go: Dig a hole - $0 +Cheap +No maintenance -Risk of animals/pests digging it up -Hard to obtain any compost -Might annoy neighbors Compost Bin - $25+ +Cheap, easy to do it yourself for free +Can handle large volumes +Can thoroughly process any and all organic materials -Unsightly?  (It's worth it though, trust me) Worms - $30/lb, $100+ +Works year round +Worm castings are a great soil amendment +Fun for educational purposes -They need attention to ensure they're happy -Somewhat expensive to start Compost Tumbler - $175+ +Secure from pests/animals +Turning the compost is easy (although not necessary)…

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When is Your Compost Ready to Use? (video)

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0Hf_IcS_5U When is your compost ready to use? Some questions to ask yourself include: How does it look? Can you recognize any of the material? How does it smell? Is the material warm? Here I have a few different samples of compost...vermicompost, tumbler compost, commercial compost, and trench compost. What do you think of these samples?  I feel like my tumbler compost and vermicastings could both go even longer before using them, but that they're still OK if I were to use them now.  In fact, I'm going to use these samples for my next "Clash of The Composts!" experiment coming soon... stay tuned!

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