Can I put Moldy Food in my Compost?

It's fuzzy, it's squishy, and it may be green. Mold finds its way onto our produce, bread, and other food items that have been left for a little bit too long. We work hard to keep our compost piles from having bad smells or attracting pests, so the mold looks a little questionable when we are hovering over our food scrap collection. 

Well, you can let out a sigh of relief, and drop the moldy produce right on in. 

Mold is a fungal growth, ultimately consisting of spores that allow the mold to continue to grow. Things like "mold" and "fungus" sound like an illness waiting to happen, but they are simply ways for organic material to breakdown. It's not all bad; take mushrooms for example. A mushroom is a fungus, but we still eat it. All this to say, I'm not advocating for snacking on your moldy bread, but the mold itself isn't necessarily harmful. In fact, a moldy item will not hurt your compost at all! Because your compost pile is breaking down the organic material being thrown into it, the mold just gets you one step ahead in the decomposition process. 

That moldy food scrap is going to add value and nutrients to your compost, but the best practice is to use that item for its intended purpose before it starts to decompose in your kitchen. Lots of resources went into growing that food, whether it came from a field and was shipped across the country to your grocery store, or if it was grown in your own backyard. Prevent food waste at home by properly storing your food, shopping with a list so you aren't buying more than you will use, and sharing your food with others when needed before it has a chance to go bad. 

Blogger: Sam Plante  

There's a Potato in my Compost!

There's a potato in my compost! 

Well, I put it there, but I didn't expect it to sprout up and become a baby potato plant before my eyes. But here we are. I was a lazy composter a few weeks ago, and when I found some squishy potatoes in the back of my pantry, I threw them in. 

So now what? Is this baby plant going to affect my compost? Can I transplant it for some baby potatoes in my garden? Let's talk about it. 

Potatoes grow underground, as they are a root vegetable. Given this, it makes sense that they didn't mind my dark compost pot. After asking around, it's not an uncommon occurrence. I also learned that ultimately, growing potatoes won't hurt my compost. In fact, a plant growing in your compost is often a sign that your compost is either finished or getting very close to finished (which I believe was the case for me). If this doesn't seem to be the case for you, it could also mean that your compost isn't getting hot enough, and it needs to be turned. 

Now, regarding the fate of that potato plant; it is not going to find a new home in my garden. Growing in the compost bin, where mold is a common sight, the potato could have come in contact with rotting food, bacteria, or fungus that could make you sick. So, I chopped it up and returned the organics material to my compost. Sorry, baby potato plant!

What have you found growing in your compost?

Blogger: Sam Plante  

Do I REALLY Have to Aerate My Compost?

  Inevitably when I am at a party, someone will introduce me as the "compost lady" or sometimes the "compost queen" if they really like me. And I always end up spending the next half hour talking about backyard composting. Good thing that is one of my favorite discussion topics. 

         Them: "Do I really have to turn the compost?" 

         Me: "No. You can be a lazy composter. But you will also have to be a                 patient composter."

Let's take a quick, compost terminology definition time out. 

• 
  Aerating your compost adds oxygen to your pile. You can passively aerate your pile by adding sticks or straw underneath the food scraps or pvc pipe with holes placed vertically to encourage air flow. You can also actively aerate your pile by turning. 
• Turning your compost is a form of aeration. You are physically moving the compost from one place to the other. Sometimes this is moving a pile with a pitch fork. Sometimes it is sticking your turning tool into the pile and "stirring" it up. Turning has the added benefit of moving materials from the outside to the inside of the pile where it is more likely to decompose. 

Back to the party. Whenever I am asked about turning or aerating your compost, I ask a question in return: "How quickly do you want finishing compost?" If you are patient and don't mind waiting more than a year, then you can technically just let your compost sit and go through "cold composting."

Now, if your compost starts to smell like ammonia or sulfur, and you or your neighbors find it offensive, you should probably take a few minutes to aerate the pile. Just stick something pointy into the pile and poke it a bunch. 

Really, it is that easy. 

No need to turn/ aerate more than once per week for most composters. Once per month is usually sufficient. 

How often do you turn your compost? Let us know in the comments below.

Blogger: Michelle Balz

Using Your Finished Compost

 After months of composting, you've completed your harvest and now have a big, beautiful pile of crumbly, brown compost. Congratulations! Um, now what? 

Garden Beds Love Compost 

The most common and popular way to use compost is on garden beds. But how much should you use? If you are mulching it onto a raised garden bed, you should aim to put only about a half inch layer or less across the top, to not saturate your plants with nutrients. If your garden bed is not raised, you can go a little thicker (one or two inches) with it as it's going to be distributed deeper into the soil and likely into some of its surroundings as well. You can add more compost monthly, especially to compost-loving plants like tomatoes, corn, and squash. Your garden beds would also love a thick application at the end of the growing season, giving them all winter to absorb the nutrients and be prepared for spring once again.   

No Garden? No Problem! 

If you have a grass lawn, you can spread compost on top. It will work its way into the soil and around the grass so long as it is applied in a thin layer and not heavily enough to cover the grass entirely. This extra cover will help add nutrients to your soil in a natural way that should over time create a beautiful, healthy lawn. You could also put compost down on bald spots and work some grass seed in, speeding up their growth and establishment.  

What if You Don't Have a Yard? 

You can always apply compost to houseplants, but much like with raised garden beds, you'll want to only give your plants a thin layer. Since there is even less soil in a potted plant, you only need to give it a sprinkle. You can add more if you are repotting your plants to help them adjust. You could even create your own potting mix using your compost (2 parts), peat moss (1 part), and perlite (1 part). 

If you don't have a green thumb but have a green mentality, use your compost to make seed bombs- a fun project that also could incorporate native plants and help pollinators! There are plenty of options for finished compost out there; or you can always share your hard-earned compost with a friend. Maybe it'll inspire them to start their own compost system! 

Blogger: Sam Plante

Frequently Asked Questions of a Composter

It's been a great year for the compost seminars! We loved getting to know those who attended, and I'll never complain about having the opportunity to talk compost with folks who are interested. What can be better than a room full of composters? Not a lot! It's always inspiring to hear about everyone's personal goals, challenges, and motivations when starting up a compost pile. 

We know many could not make it to these events (we had a slew of some really rainy and windy days!), so I wanted to sum up some of our most commonly asked questions, in hopes that it may be helpful to some of you! 

Do I have to add worms to my compost? 

No. While some worms are likely to get in your compost pile to help with decomposition, you do not need to specifically purchase worms to add to your compost. Vermicomposting is a specific practice where you use worms to break down organic material, but it is not an essential element of composting. Vermicomposting is a type of composting, but not all composting has to be vermicomposting (think of rectangles and squares here). You will want some form of decomposer to have access to your compost pile to speed the process along. If your pile is directly on the ground in a lawn or on soil, you're already all set! If you have a tumbler, or your compost is on pavement, you will need to add a few scoops of natural soil to your compost to incorporate some microbes. 

Where is the best place to put my compost bin? 

Compost bins aren’t picky- so ultimately you can put them wherever works best for you! We do have a couple “best practices” of where NOT to put your compost bin, that may help you narrow it down. First, don’t put your bin right next to a live tree or an untreated fence. The compost pile is breaking down organic material, and it could decompose your fence or your tree if it really starts cooking. Next, keep your pile away from clutter and keep it somewhere you will likely visit often. If there is a lot of clutter around or if it’s too out of the way for you to visit, you may find some pests will want to make a home out of your compost. This is easily avoided by visiting often, and not giving easy hiding places. It shouldn’t matter if the compost is in the sun or the shade, either will be just fine!

How do I plan for enough browns? 

In the seminars, we talk about how you should always cover your “greens” (nitrogen-rich material) with “browns” (carbon-rich material). It’s not usually difficult to source the greens, as it can be any plant material and many food scraps. Browns are items such as leaves, paper towels, woodchips, cardboard, or straw. They are easy to come by in the fall because dried leaves are plentiful. What about the rest of the year? You can make a leaf bin in the fall to collect and store leaves to use on your compost all year round. At our office, we collect paper towels in a specific bin and use them on our compost when needed as well. It’s all about planning and storage. When in doubt, ask a neighbor; most of the time, they are happy to part ways with their extra leaves.

Do you have any unanswered questions about starting a compost pile in Hamilton County? Let us know! We'd be happy to help! 

Bloggers: Sam Plante and Elise Roalef

Composting in Terracotta

 Telling one and telling all- I've started a new-to-me compost system in my yard to tell you all about (and I can't stop talking about it)! Enter, composting in terracotta pots.

Terracotta composting is quite truly what the name implies, creating compost within stacked terracotta pots. These pots have drilled aeration holes, and all but the lowest pot have the bottoms removed, with netting installed to allow for airflow. 

This hand-me-down composter came from coworker of mine, and from another coworker before that. It's seen its share of spaces between the three of us; because it's so convenient. The method was created in India, and the principles can apply in this climate. 

The concept resembles that of more standard compost methods. You put your browns as a base, and layer in your greens. Once your top pot is full, you'll give it a mix to aerate and then move the pot down your tower, placing an empty pot on top. You will continue this process, and in 2-3 months, should have finished compost in your bottom pot. This system works well for me, as my household only consists of two people, and we produce minimal food scraps. 

There are some key differences between this method and more typical backyard composting that I should highlight. 

Use cocopeat as your brown. 

Cocopeat is traditionally used as the brown, or carbon source. It is much finer than autumn leaves or wood chips, and provides better coverage of the greens. You can add leaves to this system, but you'll want to toss in some cocopeat as well to ensure it stays dry. Cocopeat is also inexpensive and easy to come by. If you do not have access or would like an alternative, sawdust shares many of the same properties, so could also be used. 

The system should be drier. 

The terracotta pots are covered, and because they are aerated naturally, your compost will be drier. This is OKAY. As mentioned above, the cocopeat is a really dry material, and it helps to ensure that there are no smells, as this system was ultimately created for small spaces such as porches and patios. The pots also should be kept away from direct rain, unlike most backyard composters.

You may want to add microorganisms.

It's totally optional, but the process may be a little slower if left to it's own devices. The terracotta pots keep the compost from direct contact with the natural organisms in the soil. The food scraps will contain organisms that will eventually be able to break down your compost, it just might take some time. You can buy compost starter that contains microbes from a local home department store or online.

For more information, or for a DIY on how to make your own terracotta pot system, you can visit this Sustainable America blog post. Or, if you want to compare to more typical compost methods, you can visit our blog on How to Build a Layered Compost Pile. 

As this is a brand-new system for me, it'll take a while before I have a finished compost product. Rest assured; I'll keep you posted.

Posted by: Sam Plante

Backyard Composting Seminars are Back!

I know many of you are regular composters, and some have been doing it for decades, but if you know of folks who are interested in getting started or hoping to get some new tips for backyard composting, please spread the word about Hamilton County's free Backyard Composting Seminars! This April and May, there will be six in-person options through the County and one virtual option. We will discuss the benefits of composting, what methods can be used, how to start, what to compost, how to maintain your compost, how to troubleshoot, AND how to use the compost at home (phew!). Of course, there will be plenty of time for questions! 

Check out the Seminar Schedule: 

Date	Location	Time (PM)	Address
4/2/2024	Colerain Twp. Trustee Chambers	6:30	4200 Springdale Rd. Cincinnati, OH  45251
4/9/2024	Deer Park Library	6:30	3970 E Galbraith Rd, Cincinnati, OH  45236
4/23/2024	Virtual Zoom Webinar	12:00 (noon)	Zoom link provided
4/25/2024	Springfield Twp. ArtsConnect Building A	6:30	9158 Winton Rd, Cincinnati, Ohio  45231 (Building A)
4/30/2024	Hamilton County Educational Service Center	6:30	11083 Hamilton Ave, Cincinnati, OH  45231
5/9/2024	North College Hill Senior Center	6:30	1586 Goodman Ave, Cincinnati, Ohio  45224
5/21/2024	Civic Garden Center	6:30	2715 Reading Rd, Cincinnati, OH  45206

To register for a seminar or share with a friend, click this link. 

Happy Spring and Happy Composting! 

Guest Blogger: Elise Roalef