Green tip of the day

Today's tip is composting!

We have no yard area, and definitely not enough space for a compost pile, so I have a worm composter. It was simple to make myself from a couple of old plastic storage bins and cement blocks. When I get pictures working again I'll post pictures of it, I just made another bin but it's not filled yet. My worms are reproducing fast enough that I can divide them to make 2 bins and come closer to being able to put all of our produce scraps in there! My total cost to get the worm bin up and running was about $30, $25 for a pound of redworms (I've seen them as cheap as $14, but I chose to go with a supplier close to home who charges more), and $5 for tubs (which were actually free since I had them laying around anyway, or you may be able to get them free on Craigslist, FreeCycle or at a yard sale) and a cinderblock.

Worms are easy to use, just bury scraps in there and add bedding and water as needed. For bedding, I use shredded newspaper, toilet paper rolls and brown cardboard boxes or packing material. I also add ground egg shells for good calcium content, grit and acid level control. They can eat a surprising amount of cardboard, leaves and veggie scraps! At the end I'll have wonderful free fertilizer for my potted plants, reduced our garbage output and made a better world :) If everyone had a small worm bin on the patio imagine how many tons of banana peels and cardboard tubes would be put back into use instead of using more energy to be recycled or going straight into a "locked in time" landfill!