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From the Farm: Let's Talk Trash

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From the Farm: Let's Talk Trash

It is indeed true that one person’s trash is another person’s treasure. There is no place where this is more evident than on a farm. Particularly one that follows organic practices and no more so than from farmers who love the land so much that they reuse and recycle everything that they could and turn trash into black gold.

Black gold is the currency of farmers. No, not oil, but rather rich garden compost. Compost is the result of thoroughly broken down and decomposed vegetable matter. The trick is doing it so that it doesn’t become offensive to you or your neighbors. There are a number of options for creating black gold. In the process of creating the best food for our plants we help to mitigate the challenges at our landfills, as we send less stuff to the waste bin. And you don’t need fancy equipment, although some of the newer composters on the market are easier to handle and produce compost ready for use in a shorter time. Compost is also perfect for use where soil is of a poor quality. This creates instant enrichment.
Black plastic bin method of composting
Start with breakfast. Save all your egg shells after the pancakes and omelets are made, and as you prepare your lunch and dinner, save all of your vegetable peelings. You will be surprised at the volume that you will accumulate in a very short time. When you make juices, save the rinds and NEVER EVER add dairy, meat or meat by products to your compost. This will cause spoilage and ruin your compost. You can add farm animal manure. As a matter of fact I highly recommend adding manure to enrich the final product. Your plants will revel in the richness of the black gold that will be produced.
Do not add domesticated animal feces. And the reason is simple, farm animals eat vegetable matter. Your cats and dogs eat meats and synthetic foods. When you cut the grass or trim the leaves from trees, throw all that green stuff on your compost pile and allow it to decompose and create rich black gold over time. Just remember to turn the pile at least once a week so that air is added to help with the decomposition. The end result should be dry and crumbly.
Here are some options for creating compost.
Kitchen composters are very convenient for gathering waste at the point where it is first created in the home. Plus, they are compact enough to fit under kitchen cabinets.
The black plastic composters are convenient because they have a door that opens at the bottom which allows the removal of the finished compost from the base of the pile. This is also a good choice because the cover fits snugly thus keep out rodents, and other pests.
You can build a rectangular box-like structure to hold the vegetation you gather. Another choice that can be constructed is the circular composter. 3 to 4 stakes driven in the ground are surrounded with wire and fastened in place. Again, this type of composter is open at the top. The black plastic composter as well as the circular and rectangular box type must be stirred regularly in order to aid the breakdown of the vegetation. Water or wet vegetable matter should be added to the covered composter.
The commercially sold rotary composter is relatively easy to use and produces compost faster than the other models. The challenge for most farmers is the price.
Rotary composter
The one shown is owned by Mary Alexander, a farmer in Dorothea in St. Thomas. Mary adds dry clippings from the bush she cuts from around her farm as well as manure and tree trimmings and mixes this with vegetable waste from local restaurants. Regular turns of the rotary tumblers yields rich black compost in about 3 to 4 weeks rather than the 2 weeks as advertised.

Creating compost is a win-win for our community in particular and the environment in general. We help reduce what is carted to our landfills while increasing the richness of the soil around our plants. Let’s all go green!

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