Composting dish cloths

This dish cloth has seen its last days.
Rather than trash it, I cut it up and put it in the compost as it’s 100% cotton.

Composting in the office

My husband lovingly brings me home gifts multiple times a week.

They consist of compost he collects from the office, his used tea bags, mainly coffee grounds he takes from the machine and out of the trash can.

I’ve never felt more loved.

Green things we did while sort of homeless #4

We collected the compost and froze it in the freezer.

Compost gold mine!

So, there is this huge pile of sticks and leaves in the back yard. I have no idea how long it’s been there. Years? It’s right along the edge of the woods. While Mr. Wonderful mowed the grass, I broke up sticks so we could create a fire and placed the leaves in the diaper compost. Lo and behold, look what we found!

How else does one do yard work when the baby won’t nap?

Composting diapers? You bet!

Humm…diapers that compost. Diapers that will disappear over a short period of time and leave nothing behind. Zero waste. I’ve found very few packages that make the claim their diapers are in fact, compostable. Most green-washed diapers claim “biodegradable and better for the environment.” How so?

Biodegradable does not mean compostable. Biodegradable means the plastic and diaper pieces break down into tiny bits of plastic and stay around forever. Hell, they probably end up in the plastic soup in the sea. Plastic soup you say? Google the Great Pacific Patch and see what you learn.

This is what I’ve discovered and learned in my short time as a mama (trying to tread environmentally lightly) while dealing with diapers. I’m sure I have much more to learn. This is also what the compostable diaper packages fail to stress…

Hmm, really? Because this packaging looks more like potato chip packaging that cannot be recycled. But composted? I sent this one in to Terracycle instead.

Feeding the compost

Just a few pictures of our hungry compost and what we fed her at the last house….
As the compost bin fills at the new house, I’ll post those too.
How is your compost looking these days?

Steamy decomposition.

What does your compost look like?

I never knew much about composting until I got married. Since then, I’ve discovered them everywhere. Do any of these look like yours?

Hair cuts = compost

My husband cuts his own hair and it always goes in the compost. So, I decided to muster up the courage to ask the hairdresser if I could keep mine as well, to a surprising response…

Adding paper to the compost

We branched out from composting food scraps and organic matter. We started adding paper to the compost  about a year ago. My hubby thought if we shredded the heck out of it, it might compost faster. He was right!

Cross-cut shredded paper, almost pulp.

Composting with worms

This easy video from Patti Moreno, The Garden Girl is the simplest video I’ve found so far. The vermi compost she explains here is perfect for those who live in the city or in an apartment and can’t keep a bin or have a huge pile outside, but want their own compost soil. It’s also great for frequent military moves, if you’re only going to be in a place for a few months to a year. This is how to make it:

Related articles

• Organic Waste in Brussels: Composting and other Alternatives (tebiki.be)
• Airport to use worms for compost (upi.com)
• Which Composting Method is Best for You? Infographic Helps You Decide (treehugger.com)
• 8 Ways to Compost and Which One You Should Try (Slideshow) (treehugger.com)
• The Science of Composting (permaculturepower.wordpress.com)
• Composting- the Different Types (reubenshome.wordpress.com)
• 8 Steps to Worm Composting (urbanfig.wordpress.com)