Waste Management
Composting is really easy! Some common misconceptions of home composting are that it’s too complicated, it’ll smell funny, and that it’s messy. These are all true if you do it the wrong way but done the right way, you have so much to gain. Composting food and garden waste reduce the amount of refuse in landfill sites. It also results in organic food for your plants that cost you nothing. The average household produces around 60kg of wet waste per month, which is made up of grass cuttings, leaves, veggie and food scraps. It’s a pity to waste it, so why not start your own compost heap and do your bit for the environment and your garden?
The Easy Bird business follows a basic environmental ethos of reducing, reusing and recycling. We’re not green heroes or activists but where possible we have sought out options that contribute in a positive way towards the environment. An example of this is our chosen food packaging. 99% of our food packaging is either fully biodegradable or recyclable.
The Easy Bird kitchen has invested into a small herb and salad garden on a piece of land nearby. Here we grow seasonal ingredients to use in our menu. This space has also allowed us to minimize our kitchen waste by composting, which in turn is completing the circle of ‘farm-to-fork’.
In a few upcoming posts, we will show you how the Easy Bird kitchen has benefited and how you can benefit from your own composting. We will include pictures, links and infographics which will provide loads of tips & tricks. This will allow you to get the most from your “black gold”. Let’s start with the basics:
3 Types of composting for homes
Before you start piling on, recognize that there are a few different types, which all have different rules. Understanding these rules is key to being successful.
Hot and Cold Composting
Cold composting is as simple as collecting garden waste or taking out the organic materials in your trash (such as fruit and vegetable peels, coffee grounds and filters, and eggshells) and then gather them in a pile or bin. Over the course of a year or so, the material will decompose.
Hot composting is for the more serious gardener but a faster process—you’ll get compost in one to three months during warm weather. Four ingredients are required for fast-cooking hot compost: nitrogen, carbon, air, and water. Together, these items feed microorganisms, which speed up the process of decay.
Vermicomposting
Vermicompost is made via worm composting. When worms eat your food scraps, they release castings, which are rich in nitrogen. You can’t use just any old worms for this, however–you need redworms (also called “red wigglers”). These worms can be purchased inexpensively online or at your local garden supplier.
Bokashi composting
This is an anaerobic process that relies on inoculated bran to ferment kitchen waste. One can also include meat and dairy to the bin. This then turns into a safe soil builder and nutrient-rich tea for your plants.
We will explore these different types of composting in more detail in upcoming posts.
