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Joy of Medina County Magazine | September 2020
HOME AND GARDEN: DIG IT!
Trash into Garden Treasure by Michelle Riley There is something to be said about a compost pile. It is not only rewarding and satisfying to one’s soul, it also is a conscientious way to give back to the Earth, which provides many resources, including minerals, food, water, natural purification, energy, and more, the list is long. How much of the country’s landfill space is taken by food and yard waste may be surprising. In 2017, 15.2 percent of solid waste was food and 13.1 percent was yard trimmings, according to a United States Environmental Protection Agency report that can be found at https://bit.ly/2XZWdYf . Using natural processes to turn household food waste and yard waste into garden gold creates a free enriching soil additive, lessens your landfill footprint and feeds plants, helping them to create new food. Start composting by picking a space for the pile. The pile will need to be a minimum of 3 feet by 3 feet and a maximum of 5 feet by 5 feet. A compost pile that is too small may not heat well, which is important for the complete breaking down of the waste. Too large a pile and it may become soggy and hard to turn. Keep in mind the more sunlight the pile receives, the quicker it will compost. The first layer should be twigs and straw a few inches deep on the bare ground. Layer the compost material by photo by Annie Spratt interspersing moist materials such as vegetable scraps, tea bags, loose tea leaves, coffee, coffee filters, and more with dry materials such as leaves, straw, wood ashes (added in thin layers to avoid clumping and make sure there are no live coals hiding in the ashes), chopped corn stalks, twigs, chipped branches, and more. The ideal ratio is three to four parts dry to one part moist. With this in mind, make the dry layers deeper than the moist layers. If the compost develops a bad smell, add more dry materials. If it does not seem to be composting, add more moist materials. Turn the pile every two to four weeks to hasten the process. If you decide to not turn it at all? You are still composting! Editor’s note: Do not add dog or cat waste to a compost pile that will be used around food-producing plants. For information and guidelines for composting dog waste, refer to the United States Department of Agriculture study “Composting Dog Waste,” which can be found at https://bit.ly/2PRRTWI Michelle Riley is a local horticulturist, landscape designer, and consultant. She is the founder of the gardening subscription service, https://theplantmall.com/; MichelleRileyHorticulturist.com; and NeOhioGarden.com. She also is the president of All About You Signature Landscape Design, Inc. Riley can be contacted at info@MichelleRileyHorticulturist.com or by calling 234-678-8266.
“I have no idea what I’m going to do tomorrow,” Lawrence said. “How exciting!” said Teddy Roosevelt. …from the movie “Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb.”
