Ideal Bite

Can yesterday's table scraps become your next meal?

02.02.2006

Submitted by idealbite on Thu, 02/02/2006 - 6:00pm.

The Bite:

Get a head start on next season’s garden bounty by converting your kitchen waste to nature’s fertilizer.

The Benefits:

The average household produces more than 200 lbs of kitchen waste every year. Keep biodegradable materials out of your trash and garbage disposal, and give local landfills and water treatment plants a break.
Compost recycles nutrients and organic matter, providing food for plants and the microorganisms that keep soil healthy. It also improves the water-retaining capacity of soil, so you can water less often.
Most of what passes through your kitchen is compostable, including: vegetable scraps, fruit peelings, bread and cereals, grains and pasta, coffee grounds and filters, tea bags, and even crushed eggshells. (Leave out animal-based and oily foods, which can cause odors and attract pests).

Personally Speaking:

Jen’s been making compost in her kitchen for a while now, and expects to have the healthiest soil in town. Once the ground thaws, that is.

Wanna Try:

Clean Air Gardening’s Indoor Kitchen Composter - Make finished compost directly in the pail using an anaerobic fermentation process. A built-in spigot releases moisture, eliminating odors ($70).
Gardener’s Supply Company Worm Bin Factory – Bin and the red wiggler worms can handle a pound of kitchen scraps each week ($105, plus $35.95 for worms).
Envirocycle Composter – Outdoor composting from Planet Natural lets you compost and tumble all kitchen and garden scraps ($163).
Eco-Products’ MaxAir Kitchen Composter – Collect kitchen scraps in this odor-free container under the sink. When it’s full, take out the biodegradable bag and toss the whole thing in your outdoor compost bin ($15).
Compost Guide – Everything you wanted to know about composting.