Lesson Fifty-One: Composting
Welcome back to another term of Climate Change Sunday School! I missed all of you amazing eco smartie-pants 💚!!
We’re kicking things off this term with a lesson on composting! Throughout this lesson we’re going to answer 4 simple questions:
What is compost?
Why should we compost?
How do you compost?
What can you compost?
Let’s dive in!
WHAT IS COMPOST?
Simply put, it is decayed organic matter.
What is organic matter? It can be a lot of things. We usually think of items like banana peels and eggshells, but it can be twigs, tea leaves, coffee grounds, grass, and more.
When you mix a bunch of these items together, and maintain certain conditions, they breakdown naturally into a nutrient-rich fertilizer.
WHY SHOULD WE COMPOST?
🌱 Garden Benefits: The nutrient rich compost is a phenomenal boost for any garden! It also acts as a fertilizer so it removes the need for chemicals.
🌎 Environmental Benefits: Composting keeps food waste out of the landfill. When food trash goes to the dump and sits there, it emits methane. Similarly, compost provides carbon sequestration (aka it traps carbon in the dirt).
Source: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
HOW DO YOU COMPOST?
There are three ways to compost:
Municipal Programs: Toronto and other large city-centres offer a green bin specifically for compost collection.
Yard Waste: When you fill up those yard waste bags, it gets turned to compost! Toronto diverts approximately 90,000 tons of yard waste from the landfill each year.
At-Home Composting: You can compost at home following the easy below steps:
Step One: Designate a section in your garden for your compost heap. It’s easier for beginners to put it in a tub because:
it keeps out critters
the temp gets higher in the sun (ideally should sit at around 50-70 degrees C).
Step Two: As you collect your items, aim for a mix of nitrogen-rich “green” material, and carbon heavy “brown” material (2:1 ratio) - see below for examples of “green” and “brown” material.
Step Three: Every other week turn the compost pile over with a shovel to let it aerate. Add water to keep it moist.
As a note, this process can take anywhere from 6 weeks to a few months.
WHAT CAN YOU COMPOST?
BROWN MATERIAL: Tends to be dry and beigeish
Sawdust
Newspaper clippings
Dry leaves and grass
Trimmings from dead plants
Wood branches
Pine needles
GREEN MATERIAL: Tends to be wet and colourful
Fruit Scraps
Vegetable Peels
Egg shells
Coffee Grounds
Tea Leaves
Fresh cut grass
Fresh leaves
NOTE ON COMPOSTING MEAT AND DAIRY:
At-Home Composting: Not recommended! Decomposing meats can produce anaerobic bacteria, which interferes with the composting process and cause problems with odours and acidity. Plus it super attracts pests!
Municipal Composting: Most municipalities accept dairy and meat in their green-bin program. The composting process is more elaborate and they can control variables much better (eg acidity).
Source: Sierra Club
And BAM! Just like that, we’re done!
The main takeaway is that we need to divert as much as we can AWAY from landfills. Composting is a great alternative.
Look into your municipal waste program and see if your city/town offers composting. If not, try your own compost pile. There are SO many awesome resources out there to help you play around with it until you find something that works for YOU!
