Composting is a growing trend all over the world. It is eco friendly and beneficial for your garden. Food scraps sent to a landfill are often unable to break down. This results in a build up of methane gas. Finding a way to use your food scraps instead of throwing them away will make a huge impact on the environment. It is also a relatively easy process to implement into your daily routine. However, most people assume you need a large backyard in order to have a functioning compost pile. You would be surprised at how simple it can be to indoor compost. Here is a list of ways to have a successful indoor compost while living in a small apartment.
Worm Bin Method
Composting your food scraps takes time. Most people are afraid that having an indoor compost will begin to stink while waiting for the food to decompose. Keeping a worm bin for your indoor compost is a great way to speed up the decomposing process to eliminate odor. Worm bins are the most common form of indoor compost methods. You can purchase a worm bin online, or make your own. Just make sure that you are adding a healthy mix of brown and green materials. Brown materials are carbon based. These consist of paper, cardboard, or dry leaves. Green material is nitrogen based and is typically your food scraps. The worms can eat and break down most brown and green materials except meat, dairy, and citrus products. You can find worms at local pet stores, or bait shops. Keep your worm bin at room temperature and away from direct sunlight.
Bokashi Method
Another type of indoor compost that is gaining popularity is Bokashi. This composting method consists of throwing away your food scraps into a special bokashi style bucket. Then you add inoculated bran, and seal the bucket. You may also use sawdust, wheat, or dry leaves (although bran is the most popular). This creates an anaerobic process to breaking down the food scraps. Unlike traditional composting methods, which are aerobic, the Bokashi method allows you to compost all food scraps including meat and dairy. It speeds up the composting from a few weeks to only 10-12 days. Sealing your food scraps in a Bokashi bin essentially minimizes the smell of most indoor compost methods. It also speeds up the composting process so less space is required. You can find Bokashi buckets on amazon or at local garden centers.
Donate Your Food Scraps
The final way you can start an indoor compost pile is to simply collect the scraps without composting them. Composting takes time, typically 4-6 weeks, for the food to completely break down and be used in the garden. If you have a large backyard, this time issue is not a problem. You can accumulate a few weeks worth of kitchen scraps in one large compost pile. Indoor compost methods are different because you are limited on space. To solve this problem you can collect the scraps but donate them to somebody else to compost. Check with your neighbors, community gardens, and farmer market vendors for willing candidates who can regularly take a bin of kitchen scraps off your hands. While this method won’t directly benefit you or your garden, it will benefit the planet. Which is helpful for everyone.
In Conclusion
Composting is a great practice for every household to implement. Cutting back on the amount of food waste we send to the landfill will benefit not only us, but future generations. There are easy ways to compost even for those of us who live in apartments, or who don’t have access to a large backyard. These simple indoor compost methods are sure to be a success for you on your composting journey.
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