Composting question?

[smokeybeard]

So I work in a restaurant and we cut a lot of leafy greens (romane, iceberg, basil) and other veggies. None of this is organic, but it is quality product. Could I compost this for my garden (and to help cut down on food waste) or no? Like other chemicals getting into my compost? Any info on this would be appreciated.

 

[Coloradoclear]

It makes excellent compost.

 

[bearded.beaver]

I'd use it in a heart beat. But with all that GREEN material you'll need BROWN carbon rich material. Straw. Fall leaves. Etc.

 

[smokeybeard]

I'd use it in a heart beat. But with all that GREEN material you'll need BROWN carbon rich material. Straw. Fall leaves. Etc.

That is fine, I live around a heavily wooded area, I can get all sorts of leaves. (Legit mulched about 3-400 lbs of leaves this year on my property, they stayed where they were mulched to encourage grass growth and feed for next year).

I mean, as a store we get rid of quite a bit of green leafy stuff so I can supply everything else. What about tomatoes, onions, green peppers, white mushrooms, carrot peels and celery stalks? Good to compost as well, even if they have been sprayed in the past, we wash everything we cut up. We also have a sister store, maybe I could get the cuttings/ends from them as well. I mean, I am talking probably easy, 40-50 pounds of good compost material, a week, per store, easy.

 

[ShLUbY]

you could also start a worm bin. it'll chew through those scraps like no ones business once the thing gets rockin

edit: maybe a few bins haha.

 

[youraveragehorticulturist]

With that much fresh veggies, your compost pile will be full of worms.

Start with a big layer of leaves for "bedding" for the worms. Then veggie scraps. Then another thick layer of leaves. It will be like a worm high rise condo in there.

If you are really into composting you can mess around with leaves and grass clippings and veggie scaps in different ratios. Or compost piles on the ground, or bins. Trying to end up with leaf mold or compost or worm castings.

 

[smokeybeard]

Thanks for all the input everyone. Much appreciated. I think I'll look into making worm bins.

 

[MustangStudFarm]

Thanks for all the input everyone. Much appreciated. I think I'll look into making worm bins.

If you have the room, don't go small! You just need to cut some leaves with a lawnmower and it's a plus if you could get some grass with them, but it's winter. If you have a big enough bin, you can add onions, potato skins, and citrus peels unlike the small bins. Anyways, I don't think that my bin has good air circulation but bokashi bran worked well in it. I'm just saying that you could have a huge worm bin for cheaper than than a "Worm Factory 360". If your in the woods like I am, then you don't even have to add worms because they will show up on their own. I made sure to make a "worm ladder" between my individual sections of the worm bin, just leave a way for them to get in the bin. I gave my neighbor a 1/4oz for the pallets. Just a compost pile would work, I always have worms(super reds) in my compost pile.

 

[MustangStudFarm]

I have one of these compost bins and they are bigger than they look and cheap, 216gallon for $35.

https://www.amazon.com/d/Outdoor-Compost-Bins/Geobin-SYNCHKG043886-Compost-Bin-GEOBIN/B0085O6NXQ/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1545032755&sr=8-16&keywords=compost+bin

 

[sensi8739]

Onions make sure you cut them up really well before throwing into your pile. They will start growing more onions if you don't chop them up adequately. Worms also avoid onions, if you are vermicomposting or something.

Add leaves and water it all down pretty well. You want to be able to take a handful, squeeze it and it feels nice and damp, but not to where you are wringing water out like a sponge. If you have a small pile, cover it up with a tarp to help keep the moisture in, but if the pile is big enough you don't really have to bother. The center of the pile will heat up over a while to 130-140 and then slowly start to cool. Ideally you want to flip it when it starts to cool. If you don't have a thermometer to check, just flip every so often, give it a good mix and create a new center to cook. If you are doing it in winter, it'll take about through mid-spring before finishing up. If you do it in the summer, you might get finished within a few weeks.

Good luck and thanks for helping save some wastes.

 

[bearded.beaver]

You could try adding some bokashi infused bran to a pile.
Also adding some kelp meal, oyster shell flour, crab meal, pretty much any powder could help in the long run especially one that takes a long time to break down. Powdered egg shells.