Dear PoP – Compost Dropoff?
27 January 2010 2:30 PM | By Prince Of Petworth in Dear PoP
“Dear PoP,
I see these little compost containers in places like Greater Goods on U Street that are designed to hold kitchen scraps in a convenient, non-smelly way until you’re able to drop off the contents at a local compost pile.
I’d really like to buy one of these and reduce the amount of garbage I generate, but I’m not sure where I could drop the scraps. I live on 16th near Dupont.
Any recommendations?”
I thought the purpose of compost was that it is supposed to degrade where it is, no? Anyone have a compost pile? What do you do with the scraps?
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27 January 2010 2:35 PM | Ross Said:
Generally one would put them back into the ground — if you have compost I would gladly take it in my garden!
27 January 2010 2:53 PM | melting Said:
Out of the region, but somewhat relevant…..
There will be a tour of the new Peninsula Composting Facility in Wilmington, Delaware, on Tuesday, February 9, at 10: 00 a.m. This is a new facility that accepts food and other organics for composting with a GORE Cover System to control moisture and odor. Nelson Widdell has mentioned this facility at some of our meetings. The owners have expressed some interest in locating a similar facility in the Washington-Baltimore corridor if they can find the land. Here is a link to the facility Web site http://www.peninsulacompostcompany.com/index.html and http://www.peninsulacompostcompany.com/solution/WORC.html.
Tour attendees will need to transport themselves to the facility located at
Wilmington Organic Recycling Center (WORC)
612 Christiana Ave
Wilmington, DE 19801
Phone: 302-COMPOST
FYI – There is also a Feb. 10 “Compost Matters” conference, a one-day event on the status of composting in the Delaware Valley in Philadelphia, sponsored by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance and the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. Find out more at http://www.pennsylvaniahorticulturalsociety.org/home/greensource.html.
Seems we could get some food oil/grease small scale collcetion biodiesel production going in DC too!
27 January 2010 2:55 PM | ah Said:
Pile ‘em up with leaves, turn occasionally and then put on the garden in spring when planting.
Composting with just vegetable scraps is likely to lead primarily to muck, unless you apply them directly to the soil (which isn’t too bad, if you don’t mind looking at the banana peel until it decomposes fully).
27 January 2010 3:27 PM | lordscarlet Said:
There are products out there that will compost it quite nicely. We use a product called “bokashi.”
27 January 2010 3:30 PM | lordscarlet Said:
Oh, and many people have no yard. There are bins you can use to compost indoors. The “Compost tea” that runs off is great for indoor plants, but the compost left over has nowhere to go if you have no yard.
27 January 2010 3:18 PM | quincycyclist Said:
The writer is talking about one of these I assume:
http://www.amazon.com/RSVP-Endurance-Gallon-Small-Compost/dp/B002Q7CSN2
Usually you would just keep them there until it fills up and then dump it in the compost outside. I’m not sure if there are any neighborhoods with communal compost piles though…
You could get one of the big plastic bins and put it in your backyard, then use that soil on a garden or give it away.
27 January 2010 4:08 PM | Brandon Said:
Quincycyclist is right, that’s the type of product I want to buy. I see lots of commenters are recommending things like vermaculture, bokashi, etc. However, what I’d like to do is fill one of these small containers with my kitchen scraps and then drop them into a large, communal composting bin. Since DC doesn’t have a municipal composting program like San Francisco where the city picks up compost with your garbage and recycling, I was hoping some neighborhood groups, community gardens, etc. might have a drop-off site. I once emailed the administrator of the Temple Garden, located behind the Masonic Temple on 15th street, and she said they were looking into composting but had fears about rodents. There has to be an easy way to do this. Thanks for all the feedback and to PoP for posting my question.
27 January 2010 3:32 PM | James Said:
As a composting resident in a Petworth apartment, I must recommend vermiculture – or worm farming. I have two bins that I keep under my dining room table. The worms exponentially increase the rate of decomposition. I recommend using two bins – one with holes that allows the water to run off – and another that catches the water. I then use the water as plant-food. Anyway, this is the way to go. If you want to drop off compost, I believe the foodbank of greater DC also receives composting buckets of scraps.
27 January 2010 3:38 PM | Victoria Said:
Sorry – are you saying you have two bins of worms eating garbage under your dining room table?
27 January 2010 4:07 PM | James Said:
That is correct. After about six months, I take the ripe compost and mix it with dirt from outside and repot my plants with it. The worms are also great for the root system – eating all the decaying matter.
28 January 2010 1:25 PM | H street resident Said:
worms are the bomb.com. My mom has a whole community that spends the spring/summer/fall outdoors (in their box) and the winter in the (heated) basement. Their output is incredible. I would do it, but I’ve got a great compost bin out back that is like a machine–churning out the good stuff…
27 January 2010 3:54 PM | Drewlove Said:
James, I have a bin for scraps under my table too, it’s called a dog.
27 January 2010 4:01 PM | AnneJuliet Said:
i have had this type of system before too in apartments. no smell and beautiful compost for the community garden plot up the street! highly recommended.
27 January 2010 3:54 PM | Chris Said:
Worms are an excellent way to compost in an apartment. If you have a plastic bin that is well ventilated, there should be NO SMELL! I made a bin myself and then bought the worms online. Once your bin is full you can toss the compost outside or, even better, use it to fertilize your house plants. This video was great in showing me how to construct my bin.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbjX2tt-oQw&feature=player_embedded
I also bought my worms at http://www.unclejim.com/
27 January 2010 4:22 PM | James Said:
My compost is very similar, except I don’t use a pan to collect the water, but inset another bin that’s the same size.
27 January 2010 4:23 PM | Victoria Said:
Jesus – that video makes it seem easier to raise unicorns! And I am highly motivated. I actually have been researching compost options for a couple of years now – but with a small row-house yard – rats and feral cats – and no grass or leaves for the ideal mix and endless conflicting advice on websites – it just gets nuts!
I’m really starting to long for Miracle Gro.
27 January 2010 7:43 PM | StubsDC Said:
you can use shredded newspaper for the dry stuff
27 January 2010 4:24 PM | SDJ Said:
Buying worms online? Just go to any bait and tackle shop. You’ll find them in the fridge.
27 January 2010 7:24 PM | pluscachange Said:
You actually need special worms: red wigglers! Though they can sometimes be bought at bait shops, you need to be careful because regular old worms won’t eat the scraps and reproduce, etc.
27 January 2010 7:38 PM | Victoria Said:
So what do regular old worms do? Dine at Chez Panisse and use fertility clinics?
27 January 2010 7:41 PM | StubsDC Said:
We have a tiny Petworth yard and we compost. We bought a plastic four sided compost bin – no bottom, so it mixes with the dirt below, and then a latched lid. It was about 30 bucks at Lowes. We have tons of feral cats in our alley, but have never had any problems with them trying to get into our compost. We’ve been composting for about a year and don’t have a ton, but its amazing the health of the flowers right around the composter!
27 January 2010 7:42 PM | StubsDC Said:
We have a tiny Petworth yard and we compost. We bought a plastic four sided compost bin – no bottom, so it mixes with the dirt below, and then a latched lid. It was about 30 bucks at Lowes. We have tons of feral cats in our alley, but have never had any problems with them trying to get into our compost. We’ve been composting for about a year and don’t have a ton, but its amazing the health of the flowers right around the composter!
We sometimes swipe fall leaves from the neighbors to mix in – the right mix is 2 parts dry to one part wet (or something like that). And you have to turn it fairly regularly.
27 January 2010 11:08 PM | MPinDC Said:
I use a 30 gallon trashcan – drill holes all around with a paddle bit, put it up on concrete blocks and stick a pan underneath to catch the compost tea. The lid (also with holes) keeps cats and rats out.
I mix food scraps with leaves and shredded paper and end up with great compost and compost tea.
DC Urban Gardeners has great resources on composting http://www.dc-urban-gardener-news.com/
28 January 2010 1:41 PM | ec Said:
Whole Foods takes organic waste for composting, for those who want to get involved in reducing food waste, recycling it into nutrient-rich composted soil, and thereby relieving the need for chemical inputs in agriculture, without having to create the compost yourself.
If there are any other places that collect individual organic waste for composting, I would Love to know!
28 January 2010 1:44 PM | Brandon Said:
Really!? That would be perfect, I live right down the street from the Logan Whole Foods. Where is the collection area?
29 January 2010 3:33 PM | Kate S Said:
I had no idea Whole Foods did that – tell me more!
I e-mailed PoP a while back with the same question about community composting, so I’m encouraged to see that someone else out there has the same bad feelings I do when I push banana peels and eggshells and garlic skins down the garbage disposal.
29 January 2010 3:38 PM | ah Said:
You should, because that’s terrible for the sewer system and your home’s plumbing. Better in a landfill. Best in compost, of course.
29 January 2010 5:10 PM | ec Said:
There are two compost bins by the exits at the P Street Whole Foods. I don’t know why Whole Foods doesn’t publicize this more; spread the word!