Composting is an art and a science. It’s predictable but takes practice. It’s nature’s way of recycling high-quality matter to help nourish new life in a garden, lawn, or farm. As part of Kavod House’s Greening the House focus, we have recently started composting using a black Earth Machine bin located behind the house against the fence on the north side of the parking lot.

Here is a quick how-to on composting at Kavod House:

WHEN TO COMPOST?

• Events at Kavod House
• Living at Kavod House
• If you don’t live at Kavod, we encourage you to get your own compost bin  (ours fills up very quickly!). You can support your local shop and buy a compost bin for only $50 at the Boston Building Materials Co-op in Roxbury. http://www.bbmc.com/bbmc/prod_green.html

WHAT TO COMPOST?

!!!   YES   !!!

• plant cuttings
• fruit scaps
• vegetable scraps
• bread & grains
• coffee grounds
• tea bags
• egg shells
• old potting soil
• food-soiled paper (napkins, paper towels)

xxx   NO   xxx

• dairy products
• fats or oils
• fish scraps
• meat scraps
• grease
• charcoal ash
• non-organic materials

HOW TO MAINTAIN?

• Take out Tupperware when full or at least every three days
• Clean Tupperware every few weeks by putting in dishwasher
• For problems, see troubleshooting tips below.

TROUBLESHOOTING TIPS:

When the pile smells…

1. Mix pile using shovel to aerate
2. Add brown matter in small pieces such as dry leaves or torn-up paper bag

When the pile isn’t turning from plant matter to compost/isn’t getting smaller…

1. Mix pile using shovel to aerate and water when mixing the pile
2. Add green matter in small pieces such as greens or kitchen scraps