Wellness Journalism: Got Worms?

Top-notch Top soil: Why Composting Works

One of our major environmental issues is that landfills everywhere are running out of room, and the EPA estimates that roughly 25% of the garbage in the U.S. is made up of yard trimmings and food scraps. That's over 60 million tons each year! This material does not break down when tossed in with the regular garbage. Instead of adding to the trash heap, try composting.

From apple cores to egg shells, composting is a great way to turn food waste into nutrient-rich soil. Organic compost loosens clay soils and retains water, suppresses plant disease and pests, and produces higher yields of healthier fruits, vegetables, and flowers.

Live in an apartment? Worm composting, also known as Vermiculture, is a fun and easy method for year-round food scrap handling. Worm compost is made in a container filled with moistened bedding (often shredded newspaper, leaves, and a handful of sand or soil) and red wrigglers (also known as branding or manure worms). Simply add your food waste into the bin and the worms will munch away—eventually converting the entire contents into rich compost!

If you plan to make a traditional compost pile outdoors, consider the following:

4 Tips for Making Better Compost

1. Get the Right Balance of Compost Materials Getting the right mixture of brown (carbon) materials to green (nitrogenous) materials is essential. Excess carbon will result in a pile that takes a long time to decompose, (a rhyme to help you remember: “too much brown, won’t break down”), while too much nitrogen will make it stink. To optimize your mound, keep a ratio of 30 parts carbon to 1 part nitrogen.

2. Turn the Compost Regularly Add fresh air to your mix by stirring the pile about every two weeks. The bacteria that are working to break down the compost need to breathe! This can be made simple with a compost tumbler.

3. Shred Material Shredding or chopping your compost, especially the dry carbon materials, will help speed things along. It increases the surface area that the compost microbes have to work on and provides a more even distribution of air and moisture.

4. Add a Secret Ingredient Toss in an activator such as alfalfa meal to provide much needed nitrogen and protein, and greatly expedite the compost process. You can find alfalfa meal in garden centers and online retailers. The results are remarkable! Other secret ingredients that help compost piles include fresh manure, bone meal, blood meal, comfrey, or even high-protein dry dog food.