It often is impossible to completely clean these kinds of kid made messes.

When intentional messes come up, like picking up after Legos, or tinker toys–often pre-planning is the most efficient means of clearing a messy play area quickly. One method is the draw string circular tarp method: Which involves cutting a piece or tarp that lays in a flat large diameter as the play area. When the multifaceted toy(s) are no longer of interest, the parent teaches the child to draw the string up, and the entire play area is contained in the resulting draw string tarp bag.

This method won’t work with packing peanuts. They get scattered over lawns, earthen floors of wooden areas under tree forts, in abandoned storm shelters that are now kid forts.

If a gardener digs down far enough in a neighbourhood that has been built over a pre-existing trash heap: Discarding packing material and other things surface over time in the garden.

Before biodegradable alternatives started being offered: these light weight packing peanuts were the environmental bane of every shipping and freight yard in America.

They were an environmental disaster twisting freely in the spiraling wind. Like insects they were too light weight for any maintenance crew to catch or chase down.

In the past janitorial staff and grounds keepers would have to hope they blew away, or wait until the wind died down, and hope to sweep them all up before a new gust picked them up again.

These light weight cushions often get picked up by the wind, after shipping and moved for miles.

They get swept up into trash cans, only to be knocked or nudged free by foraging animals, and exposure to the wind.

This is why anyone who uses packing peanuts to ship materials should use biodegradable packing peanuts.

These are the kind that archaeologists won’t find two thousand years from now.

They will have long decayed into natural soil and nutrient deposits: Or, been blow to the river and consumed safely by aquatic life nearly two thousand years prior to that inquiring dig.

These biodegradable packing peanuts are not only good for shipping. They make great party confetti.

They are great for dumping off the roof of a church, Masque, temple, or meeting hall on top of the heads of fleeing newly-weds. In fact these biodegradable packing peanuts are safer for birds than rice.

So, let the biodegradable packing peanuts get shipped around, then tossed by children into the wind as additional cushion in raked leaf piles, and tossed down at weddings, food fights, and town square pillow fights. Then get picked up by the beaks of birds, and dropped in water ways across America. It won’t matter; because they are environmentally safe.

The clear thing to ask ones-self is why gardens are taken out with insects and disease, yet the same plants in a forest flourish?

The simple answer it that in the forest plant, and animal material have time to fully break down into colloidal goo (hummus), and heat brewed nutrient rich tea. This has been the case for millions of years.

Plants cant drink up nutrients from compost that hasn’t fully broken down into an absorbent pudding to liquid substance.

Most compost tea brewers use liquids that have formed on the stove top, or in the oven.

Even more people these days are pureeing leftovers from the juicer, top speed up the process of decay into hummus and the tea that is brewed from the heat of the rotting material.

Many gardeners save leftovers and freeze them in the refrigerator. When they have time this vegetation consisting of grape stems; left over choke material from an artichoke dinner; egg shells from fritters, quench, brunch omelets, and baking projects are tossed into a brew pot on the stove top to add in vitamin E.

Many people don’t have the time or energy to oversee pots of tea on the stove, or jars of tea kept from curious raccoons in the sun. Still more people are dissatisfied with the even slower process of waiting months for tea to build up in significant amounts in the bottom of a compost bin that is designed to let the compost tea drip free of the still decaying material.

For this reason many people are turning to compost tea brew kits like those sold by such companies as Bountea.

Other people go and buy it by the pitcher full from plant stores.

Having a home compost tea brew kit is the shortest root to compost tea that has been professionally balanced to offer vital nutrients in the form that is most drinkable by plants.

Still a savvy gardener can look up what is in the food that they personally each, and back burner brew dinner leftovers, stem cut away material and the like to create there own home recipe. But this had been done before and many people choose to just order a brew kit and add reinvention of the wheel to there full schedule.

Like the Soilsoup brewer kits that come with a bucket, some starter and all you need to make your own tea!

Compost Tea Brewers know that nature tries to kill off unhealthy plants. Plants that cant seem to absorb the right nutrients. Anemic plants need too much watering to survive. And still they are attacked successfully by disease and insects.

For example Nasturshum from the wild have noaphid problems. In the garden most people will burn them out do to aphid related issues. In a garden where colloidal hummus and compost tea brew are used, these plants are healthy on rain water alone, and can stay back massive aphid colonies in the surrounding yards. This is a fact in the gardens, floral spaces, forests and fields of American life.

If you have to send the trash in the collection truck to the land fill, you can do so with a clear conscience with Seventh Generation trash bags.

These bags are made from recycled plastic. That means that the bag is not going to break down much more than it has.

The manufacturer states that these bags are free of petrochemicals. In most cases that means that the product comes from a plant source. Often fruit fibers are used in creating various types of plastics.

Plastics made from fruit, bark, and vegetable fibers are easier for the elements to break down safely. They are also easier for smaller animals to consume.

Each Seventh Generation kitchen trash bag box contains 20 count boxes of 13 gallon bags.

These bags can be purchased online from Seventh Generation twelve boxes at a time. You can also search for other sizes and amounts including the 30 and 33 gallon variety.

The authors Barbara Pleasant and Deborah L. Martin teach the reader how to save on work by designing gardens that have the compost bin incorporated into it.

This thought process is a task management choice venturing away from the idea of hiding compost piles in back corner alcoves, and behind garage and other out buildings set too far away from the garden; cutting off easy access to compost use.

The authors outline which plants to have near what kinds of compost since these plants benefit the most by being near too the compost process.

This Six-Way composting system is outline page after page in full detail for the reader.

The book also teaches how to arrange the piles as close together as possible, while keeping the garden looking fresh, clean, and edible.

For those who need a refresher, the authors explain what types of house matter create what kind of compost, and compost infusers to make the compost pile create the right nutrients for its own health, and the health of your plants after the period of compost application.

The book details regular compost moisture management, and nitrate balance to make sure that the beneficial bacteria are as healthy as possible.

The authors remind those of use who are resource rich, that it is not necessary to buy a spendy item. And that home made in this case does not mean poor quality. The book reminds the reader of child like creativity that can get lost in the quick access commercial world.

They continue to review how to create what they refer too as gardeners gold. This is done through the adding of diverse biodegradable nutrient infusing material for composting.

The sixth process they review is actually a full circle round to the beginning of the process. This means that they review how to determine what the soil needs to support the plant life that will produce this years fruits, vegetables, flower edibles, and greens.

The Complete Compost Gardening Guide has awesome insights on ways of learning what the experts do, so that you don’t have to spend years, even decades recreating the proverbial wheel. Rather trade that in for getting it right the first time this year with this great book.

There is no need to throw them in the trash. But if you do throw them away, you will have confidence in knowing that they will not add to pollution in the environment.

If birds pick up a biodegradable fork, knife or spoon from the land fill, they can be eaten safely. If birds drop pieces of them in the water, or if they go overboard during a boating party, the vegetable based plastic will not harm fish.

You can purchase them individually in packages of 1000 and have enough for many years to come.

Biodegradable Utensils: Knives, forks and spoons:

This large count is ideal for large family get together, hospitals and cafeterias, large outdoor catered events, schools, art gallery open houses, rallies, conventions, stands, parties, and businesses.

Clear Biodegradable Cold Cups:

Biodegradable cold cups can be either clear or have a printed logo or message on them.

You can also purchase the Flat Lids For 12/16/20/24-Ounce Corn Cold Cups

These PLA cups are made from corn.

Unlike petroleum based cups they will easily biodegrade.

This greatly reduces the long and short term effects of these cold cups that are truly designed for not much more than one time use.

In the past, petroleum plastic cups would be designed for casual one time use. The affect on the environment was, (and is) anything but one time for petroleum based plastic cups.

The good news is with eco friendly cold cups all that can be avoided. And one time use truly means one time use.

This is also the case for the PLA based corn plastic lids and straws.

Not only for the occasion they are purchased for, but also for the environment. When these products break down it is the last time we have to hear or worry about them.

This plate was designed to be sturdy. It doesn’t let food leak through.

The plate also is designed for your one time use. Then it will degrade rapidly when left to the elements.

You can serve your family, housemates, and friends with the assurance that one time disposal doesn’t mean long term cost to the environment.

In fact you can put these plates in your compost. It will actually be beneficial.

The plate is made from sugar cane fiber. The plate will actually in rich the soil of your garden or flower bed.

Imagine after a meal not having to do dishes; save any pots and pans. All the glass ware, napkins, forks, serving spoons, knives, plates bowls, juice, beverage and coffee cups all go into a bag, along with the scraps, out the back door, tied up, and left to be mixed into the garden or compost. Find other utensils by Stalkmarket on Amazon.com!

If you live in a building, your scraps and left over biodegradable plates will degrade easier in a land fill.

Biodegradable plates made from sugar cane fibers are finger licking good from the serving to the grave.

Not all hot cups are bridgeable. But finding a line will keep anyone from having to do a lot of dishes after an outing, party, or potluck.

This kind of cup also reduces wasted space in landfills. This space can be reserved for more serious trash disposal needs.

Eco Hot Cups turns out to be a great find. They are 100% compostable. These cups will degrade in sixty days of less!

In your office cafeteria these biodegradable hot cups will greatly reduce the negative foot print that had been left on the environment by coffee cups and soup cups from offices alone.

This is also a great way to show employees that your company is about more than just monetary profit. And it demonstrates that your firm believes that the greater good is a means of profit as well. And that the environment is worth investing in yes?

This promotion of green space value will send a positive message about you, your firm, it’s workforce and client base.

Eco-Products Biodegradable Cups, World Design

Getting children and family friends used to reaching for 100% biodegradable hot cups while shopping online, at a dollar store, or at large is a great way to begin to reinforce sound familial care taker practices that will carry over into green space preservation for centuries to come.

Eco hot cups are ideal for the environmentally conscious coffee shop. The hot cups are stylish. The sizes fit the standards customers are used to buying in cozy coffee shops around the corner or down the street the world over. These cups range from 4 oz. taste tester to over indulgent (in a good way) 24 oz mais vente offering.

The Eco hot cups reflect interesting understated facts about how these cups and other efforts are saving green space across the country, and around the planet.

They come in green strip bottom with plain white cup body, and world art.

Eco-Products Green Striped Hot Biodegradable Cups

The base color for the world art variety changes with each size or serving portion increase. 4oz being heavily creamed coffee tone, through the dark coffee tones of rich dark brown. These browns increasingly become lighter in coffee bean reflective earth tones. The largest of these cups is a light blue base under the artistic global overlay.

Eco hot cups are that much more cozy to hold. They give the beverage feeling of warm comfort that reflects just a bit more; since the drinker knows the warm indulgence will reduce negativity more than was possible before.

Eco hot cups, eco hot cup lids, and eco grip sleeve jacket, insulators are tremendously reducing the impact of unnecessary pollution from comfort hot drink waste across America.

They are made by Eco Products which is a company based out of Boulder Colorado and they can be purchased at competitive prices on Amazon.com which helps support our efforts to review this product here, thank you!

1. The first stage is for garden waste and food waste mixing.
2. The second drop chamber is for content digestion.
3. The third is for maturing of the compost.

This type of composter is needed by anyone who wants to have a quicker, more efficient way to got from waste to humus.

The composter uses aeration to facilitate the process.

Heat, radiant heat (attracted by the black plastic) adds pressure to each bin. The heat sucks in air from the bottom.

The heat causes the air to rise, and then push through to the next level.

This then causes pressure that pushes the more dissolved bits to fall or pour into the next bin down: Or to sink to the bottom of the first upper bin, falling to the second bin when the hatch is slid open: From the second bin to the third by scraping it off the angled base of the second bin falling into the final stage third bin at the bottom.

This process is much quicker than regular composting since the aerobic process happens continuously. And the process of the compost falling causes the more compact material in the process to turn as it descends to the lowest bin.

Turning this bin yourself doesn’t have to be as often even though gravity does the rest of the work; turning the piles yourself still facilitates necessities in the composting process.

The great part is that the middle bin has a push-n-pull mechanism that makes this mixing process a sinch.

The Earthmaker aerobic composter is composting twice the amount of compostable material of other compost systems in the same amount of time across America. 120 gallons is big!

This term is a buzz term that has caught on from the study of below ground food web.

For the sake of study the below ground food web was defined separately from the observations of the above ground food web.

The soil food web is thus a term created from the study of the below ground food web.

This term is dualistically connected to below ground biofilters, or living filters in idea. However, the soil food web is a term derived from the study of how nutrition is moved around. Thatmeans that the process of information and application of it is slightly divergent from the two terms biofilter and living filter, although they relatively overlap in concept. The translation from one research perspective to the other is not exact.

Looking at this same phenomenon from the perspective of nutrients being broken down for composting and ultimately gardening, or the preservation of the environment, (for removal of ammonia in saltwater environments, the breakdown of substances by thermos bacteria into nitrates with the idea of for the benefit of one project or species study, rather than the overall view in general), is the relative or even super-relative difference between the terms soil [below ground] food web, biofilters, and living filters.

Arguably, the human stomach that isnt buried could be considered apart of the above ground food web, and a biofilter/ living filter. Its all a matter of where the subject starts and where it is going.

The soil food web talks about how nutrition is moved about in the soil.

The soil food web is a big part of the underground food web thought process, but it is only a section of the underground food web if the sub-straights were graphed on a pie chart.

At this point it is fitting to repeat that soil food web is made up of detritus, microbes, bacteria, and fungi. The most ample supply of nutrition is decaying plants and animals.
The greatest beneficiaries are the microbes, bacteria and fungi. Others are entomopathogenic nematodes, and their victims the nematodes.

It goes without assuming that if you are reading you most likely already know this.

This concept of observing the link between consumers, rather than how the byproduct reaches a particular relative state or location, has over ten thousand species, which include many types of micro-arthropods, as-well-asone billion bacteria in a gram of dirt. This fact has become common knowledge and is widely accepted.

These creatures exist in microscale environments. These vary diverse environments exist in-between soil particulate.

Over very short distances the distinction between degrees of pH, poor dimension and size variation, and moisture environments can differ immensely.

Food web diagrams best show the correlative nature of what research has been able to determine as the nutrient path through the soil food web to other under ground food webs; or crossing into the creatures of the above ground food web; its atmospheres and environments.

Much of all food webs are fueled by plant material or the photosynthesis of plants, photosynthetic bacteria, lichens, moss and algae.

Bacteria consume and process root extracts, and residue of plantae material.

Fungi utilize discarded plant fibers as-well-as humus colloids.

The soil food web is an interesting way to approach biofilters from a different end goal in the mind set of the soil food web study method.

They are most effective at 13°C (55°F). They can keep at it until the temperature reaches 20 below on the Celsius scale or zero on the Fahrenheit scale.

When researching these creatures it is important to know that some experts with useful information have formed a habit of taking a popular name for the type that do well at lower temperatures and blanketly calling all the creatures that aren’t dormant at those low temperature by the popular term.

To avoid what is surely a senior researchers pet peeve, here are the correctly defined terms:

1. Psychrotolerant and psychrotrophic is the name of a minority of organisms that live outside the rule the next two definitions set in stone. These bacteria have a different kind of physical existence. They can be referred to as mesophilic organisms.

2. Psychrotrophic bacteria are the truly cold loving bacteria whom exist at these low low temperatures.

3. The creatures that exist mainly at higher temperature but can manage to still be eeking out reproduction at low temperatures are called facultative psychrophiles and psychrophiles.

With language use the rule is always function over form. So what’s in vogue for this highly specific kind of research has to go through what linguists call “language maintenance”, shift, and death. If you gain anything from this article it will be the correct terminology so that the slang that could develop over time will make sense.

As winter sets in, it will be these bacteria hard at play like the dolphins and the bees referred to by Jacque Custo, turning the collected home refuse into useful compost. This is also reason to compost inside in the cool of the basement or garage.

Other types of activators are compost from a previous batch, alfalfa meal, bone meal, fish meal, manure, cottonseed meal, horn meal, hoof meal, and others.

The common thread between the various types of compost activator is that all boost nitrogen into the compost pile. This is the idea that you want to take from this.

Most commonly compost activator is urine, mixed with water, and liquid seaweed. People collect it rather than waste it in the sewage system.

This nitrogen rich form of waste from every part of the human body is vitamin and nutrient rich. The technical term for this activator is Household Compost Activator.

Most composters, who use this formula, collect and mix the activator in doors. Pour it into a watering canister. Then they take it to the compost pile to be applied in a civil manner.

Urine has been determined to be the best organic fertilizer by Dr. Barbara Daniels in California, USA. This cultivation technology developed for use in inner cities on porches, balconies, and ledges for people who cant get to, or afford to import fertilizer. Her finding are recorded on the Journey to Forever website.

Dr. Barbara Daniels coined a second name for what we call compost activator. Her politically correct name for urine is Liquid Organic Fertilizer, (LOF).

Her methods have proven to work in growing rich fruit baring plants in cramped neighborhoods in inner cities around the world.

Her study to find what was the best way to grow the most amount of food with the least amount of water came to the conclusion that what she called liquid organic fertilizer was the best method.

Adding this compost activator, or liquid organic fertilizer to plants causes them to have a growth spurt in their early stages. This LOF also makes the plants very resistant to insects according to Daniels.

Daniels adds, that the use of this LOF acted as a activator causing the pots to warm quickly and speed the composting process way up. The small planters were made warm by the activator, which help plants grow better in their early stages.

In the case of other compost activators:

If activators such as blood, or blood meal cause odor that covering the pile with four to five inches of soil doesnt abate add super phosphate.

Gardeners, individuals, and families that are looking to cut down food costs, labor, and plant pests can benefit from the variety of compost activators that are available from various resources.

Even adding more than on type of compost activator can affect varying results in your compost pile or plant bed.

And often the cheapest resource is the most natural way to control pest and put good food in the hands of the marginalized and well to do alike. The same method that keeps these good people from having to share their food with insect and other small pests.

Further reading:
Human Urine Safe, Productive Fertilizer – by Carolyn Colwell
Organic food production in the slums of Mexico City – by Rodrigo A. Medellín Erdmann

The keystone to this particular tumbler is the off-the-ground design that keeps rodents and other large-scale cold pile decomposers from getting in, and a gear driven drum that makes tumbling easy even with a full load.

Internal pins stimulate better mixing, keep fresh organic materials deep within the core, temperatures up to 150 F and speeding up breakdown time with a unique aerator/drainage system on the doorand screened vents on the end caps for maximum oxygenation and minimum compost loss, preventing leaching.

The Original Compost Tumbler invented by Australian Peter Whiteside has been manufactured in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, USA since 1979, while the Compact Compost Tumbler was first introduced in 1991, measuring an overall 43 x 42 x 33with the drum sitting 12 off the ground.

It is a standard green color, in order to fit in with the lawn and garden, it has a 90 gallon capacity (9.5 bushels), the stand and drum are made of tubular steel, rust-proof, galvanized metal, with recommended usage on average sized yards and vegetable gardens and a five year manufacturers warranty.

The Compact Compost Tumbler was an idea that is once again becoming hip, with more and more people taking to hot-pile composting their garden and lawn refuse, the search for greener lifestyles and becoming ecologically correct takes further hold of our patriotism, with pride and stewardship making self-reliance; earthfriendliness.

While most people understand a lot about weeding and even more about tilling, not too many people think about the prospect of never weeding, or simply avoiding tilling all together.

Sheet mulching however, can both make life easier and replenish soil without ever using chemical fertilizers, weed kill or tilling.

There really isnt much to sheet mulching, just think like a really big cold pile that is going to compost itself overtime, turning all the weeds, seed and other organic matter under it, into a nutrient rich soil base, that built itself onsite, usually over winter.

First of all, mow down, roll over, stamp down, cut with a scythe or machete, and pile on all the kitchen scraps, doggy/kitty wastes or yard debris you can, mixing all those nitrogens and carbons as they come, mother nature knows how to tend it on her own with microorganisms and worms.

Then, over that, layer it with something that takes a long time to decompose and compost, like thick corrugated cardboard, newspaper (about ten sheets thick or so) or any recycled paper mattingmade specifically for sheet mulching, making sure to overlap about six inches between sheets, to be absolutely certain that none of those unwanted weeds/seeds and whatnot ever comeback in your grow bed.

Thirdly, backfill on top of your sheet with whatever organic mulch you wish, straw animal bedding with fewer or no seeds is great because it readily allows moisture and oxygen to accumulate, while sawdust or woodchips can also be wonderful, as long as this layer keeps out any unwanted weeds/seeds from seeping through, because if a single spot is missed, they will come back in force.

Lastly, simply place the plants in this mulch with enough soil to keep them healthy until everything breaks down (usually about six months or so is plenty of time), unless of course instead of mulch, worm castings or potting soils have been used in its place, in which case no extra soil is necessary, and there is also the risk of other kinds of seeds existing in this soil; so make sure it is seedless.

What is left within the year after sheet mulching? A raw boost of organic power that will supply your plants with enough food to last them years, and if they are the kinds of plants that search deep for more nutrients, they actually start to mend devastated soils.

Sheet Mulching video using a recycled paper product called ecocover in New Zealand as a barrier to cover the hard layer:

Many of the products that industry has produced since the revolution of the 19^thcentury have come to damage our planet beyond anything ever even imagined, and the time has come for us to take on our role as stewards of the land in a self-reliant and sustainable fashion that produces some form of bioremediation.

Composting is something natural and part of the way mother nature intended for mammals to rid themselves of their own organic wastes, it is also part of the life and death cycle of all living things, including those things in bodies of water, not just on land.

What makes most people cringe at the idea of doing industrial composting is usually the odor management systems or atmospheric dispersion, and they really are challenges for any human settlements above the size of small village.

Which is an excellent reason to use modern engineering to solve issues like odor when referring to industrial sized composting, since it is a field developed to find solutions to practical challenges.

It isnt impossible to make an industrial sized compost heap refrain from smelling, just as it isnt impossible to keep a landfill from smelling, but practically speakinganyone who has actually been to a landfill knows the truth about the nature of decaying odors and how little the city seems to care.

The days of the landfill are counted as our culture grows and we realize the importance of energy conservation, but it will take the expertise of people with passion and insight into the practical ways of doing things that will make that future truly sustainable.

This 717-page hardcover, written by Roger Tim Haug, published by CRC in July of 1993, measures 10.1 x 7.2 x 1.8 and ships at 3.2 lbs.

Understanding process, analysis, kinetic principles, thermodynamics, chemicals, physical aspects and basic biology, all unified into an analytical approach with a brief history of composting systems and modern techniques.

Compost Engineering has something for students, researchers,scientists, plant operators, engineers and practitioners looking for a more sustainable civilization that is self-reliant and gives back to the earth.

Over five thousand years ago, the people of Crete, Santorini, Knossos and many other places in Ancient Greece, worshiped a goddess known to us today as Gaia, goddess of the Earth, who took on many forms throughout history, a history that reachesout through time through Gaiam.

The essential belief of the Earth as being directly connected to the existence of daily life is what kept the followers of Gaia united, and the company Gaiam (from slurring Gaia) holds true to that belief through all of its products and services in the modern age of electron-slinging consumption, by developing tools we need in order to assume our role as stewards of the planet.

If your family is small (two or three), then the regular bucket should be an excellent size for less frequent trips to the compost pile.

For larger families (five or more) then the tall bucket is recommended.

Emptying your Gaiam Compost Bucket once a week is good, but with a filter, every two weeks should be fine if you arent using newspaper, sawdust or some kind of carbon to eliminate the odors of decomposing organic materials.

Remember, some people have tougher noses than others, so respecting everyone with a filter or dry paper materials like sawdust or newspaper is a great way to improve quality of life, but obviously, the filter saves more room for more organic materials and extends the your down time from trips to the compost bin.

Available in the color green only, all Gaiam Compost Buckets come with a disposable filterfor aeration (placed in the lid), each filter lasts for three months, thus a single bucket should not use anymore than four filters a year for greater energy conservation.

Two different sizes are available, 5.5 qt and 9.6 qt. with the regular size measuring 7¾” x 8″ x 7½” and the larger (tall) size measuring 11¼” x 9″ x 9″.

A name that echoes through time the value of education, science, art, recreation and above all our precious environment, for a healthy lifestyle and a more sustainable economy. Compost buckets carry our modern day Atlantean civilization just one step closer to mending its ways and returning to its true purpose, in stewardship of Earth.

Plastic bottles for drinking water and aluminum cans are two of the largest contributors to landfills in the world and they are items that we consume constantly as a civilization.

In the US alone, 130 billion beverage containers make their way to the landfills per year, and our country is one of the major recyclers and environmentally aware nations of the modern world, who would expect that kind of pollution from us?

Just having an EcoPod at home or in the office is like saying, hey, look, we are environmentally aware, are you? Anything that becomes trendy enough to become the latest fashion, will certainly change the world we live in forever, and EcoPods creators are looking to take advantage of this latest cultural trend to go green and sustainable right now, with a product that looks cool and doesboth people and the environment; a favor.

Two compartments under the upper lid area, offer space to hold other recycled materials, such as paper or glass, maximizing the containers total storage area and making better use of existing curbside recycling systems.

EcoPod will save time, space, money and CO2 emissions as the cans and bottles come compacting in and people notice your effort to make a difference in the world for a more sustainable way of life that focuses on stewarding the earth and taking responsibility for our role in creation on this planet.

BMW designworks, a company dedicated to sustainable development, helped put the EcoPod together, a compacting recycling system for the home and office, that is not only kool looking, but a global idea for that allows us to think global, while acting local.

Raising worms, raising them in your garden, in your vermicomposting bin on the thirty-sixth floor of a downtown high-rise or even as a business are all becoming popular trends in recent years, and with the market deciding that the time is ripe for such a topic, certain books that actually make the difference begin to stand out over time, The Worm Book is one of these.

The duo Nancarrow and Taylor really know their stuff, and they approached worm keeping from an easy to grasp, all-around most relevantpoint of view almost a decade ago, and their insight blended with passion, still makes sense today, offering a quick access to the dos and donts of this fine art in a thin manual that is easy to read.

This 152-page paperback written by Loren Nancorrow and Janet Hogan Taylor (authors of Dead Snails Leave No Trails), was first published for all ages by Ten Speed Press in March of 1998, measuring 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.5, it ships at only 8 ounces.

The Worm Book: The Complete Guide to Worms in Your Garden shows how to use worms, gives detailed insight into anatomy, building worm bins, composting, better foods, raising worms and even making the garden worm-friendly; this is the perfect text-book for classroom projects in vermiculture.

In the 20^th Century, we learned so many ways to increase the quality of foods, by destroying pests with chemicals and pesticides, but yet these methods can be so detrimental to our environment as well as our own health; there are more profound ways to deal with healthy supply and healthy demand of agriculture, if only we look to natures stomach, worms.

Instead of tilling, why not let Mother Nature do the tilling? Treated properly, worm populations can do all the tilling the soil needs, helping roots expand and increasing yields dramatically throughout the season.

By simply providing food sources near the surface of the field regularly, the field is transformed into a giant vermicomposting operation, where the worms live in their natural habitat, till soil, produce quality worm castings right where the plants need them and help increase yields more than expensive fertilizers can.

Compost tea is an excellent alternative to pesticides and will not harm the worms or people, but will make bugs look to other places to feed.

Provide them with a place to escape the intense conditions above ground, yet a healthy food supply near the roots where their castings will do the most good, always in the same place, and you will be sure to create a worm-friendly crop that needs no-tilling.

This 112-page paperback, written by David Ernst, published by Lessiter in June of 1995, measuring 9 x 5.7 x 0.7, ships at only 7.2 ounces.

The Farmers Earthworm Handbook is a manual to help people make their crops more profitable by using earthworms to till and fertilize soil so that roots cangrow deeper, stronger and create some of the most dramatic yields ever.

Our civilization needs to change, and what better way to start than with the future of our planet, children? Teaching children three basic words between the ages of 9 and 12, Reduce, Reuse and Recycle could make the difference between actually having a planet tomorrow or utterly destroying human culture from our own ignorance and lack of understanding.

We have created a machine that needs to use the knowledge it has achieved in the last 200 years to replenish and repair the damage we have caused the Earth and its life-forms through a technological crusade that now threatens us all with disasters like climate change, water shortage and energy shortage.

This 144-page paperback was intended for children around the ages of 9-12, written by Earthworks Group and published by Earthworks Press March of 1994, with black and white illustrations, measuring 8.2 x 5.3 x 0.5 and shipping at 0.8 ounces.

50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Recycle covers the three Rs Reducing, Reusing and Recycling for kids learning about sustainability and what they can do themselves to Save the Planet, starting today, starting right at home, where it counts most.

NoteNiks Software brings you Eco-Pack Games, this one specifically focused on teaching kids between ages 5 and 10 about recycling in well known places like the beach, park, city and school. Notice: Out of stock checkout this recycling DVD set!

Children are meant to play, they love to play, and what better way to teach them about sustainability and the future, than through the wonderful world of games?

Knowing what goes in the trash and what can be recycled is a thing that needs to be taught while our children are small, and NoteNiks software takes that seriously, with Eco-Pack Recycling.

Endangered animals clean energy and composting make up the other titles in this series, as well as two other related games from NN, Healthy Eating and Exercise and Respect Our Earth Games; they even have a game on astronomy and one for the food service.

Each Eco-Pack Game comes with two games focused on specific lessons, at a price that is accessible to the average child-loving parent.

This recycling game for ages 5-10 comes with a curriculum for parents and teachers, certificates that can be printed/easily edited, enhanced sound control and game wide scoring.

Educators and concerned parents looking for a way to guarantee a more self-reliant and sustainable world for the next generation, will find NoteNiks Eco-Pack Games such as Recycling, fun, entertaining and educational from ages 5-10.

Fun:
Game to play online.

BioBag Kitchen Bags tall kitchen size are good for lining the traditional garbage can, and still do the same job as the food wastesize developed for the MACP but on a larger scale, more commonly used in raking up leaves in the back yard, at barbecues or even for commercial restaurants that already have a composting program going and are looking for a more economical solution than the constant cleaning that comes with nasty food waste barrels.

BioBag Kitchen Bags have a use and use again motto, because they work great as food grade quality refrigerator storage vegetable bags as well as compost pail liners, impeding leakage, but yet still allowing heat and moisture to escape from within.

This breathing quality allows food to stay fresh even longer than with traditional petroleum plastics, plus they can be used again in the compost pail for food wastes, then tied up and plopped into the compost pile for quick, efficient and tidy results that meet peoples standards for being ecologically friendly as well as hygienic.

Like all biodegradable bags, BioBag Kitchen Bags have a shelf life and need to be kept in dry places away from intense heat, nor should they go into a landfill, as it can slow their decomposition process up to as long as two years in some cases where as in the compost pile or just outside in the weather, they will degrade more rapidly.

BioBag Kitchen Bags come in two sizes, tall kitchen and food waste, the food waste size is for lining sink-side compost pails such as the Max Air, while the tall kitchen size is great for commercial use in lining any traditional sized trash bin.

BioBag Kitchen Bags allow for a sharp and intelligent way to deal with CO2 emission offsetting right at home or at your place of work, without giving up the creature comforts we have all come to appreciate and enjoy, doing wellfor the planet by doing well to ourselves.

Work smarter, not harder; that is what a recycling bin cart is for, doing the hardest part of the home or office paper recycling job, by giving you an efficient space saving tool that keeps durable boxes made just for this one chore in a well organized fashion that is both nice to look at and says something about taking care of the environment.

Hauling cardboard boxes to the curb has always been a difficult task, because after a time, those boxes tend to breakdown from all the lugging, dropping, lifting and so on, putting them on a cart can make things easier, but itis still messy; a recycling bin cart, that uses durable recycling bins however, is the right tool, for the right job.

This height-adjustable cart can have two or three tiers, is made of a rust-resistant tubular steel frame, mounts on a wheeled base that roles around smoothly without any stress, measures 62 x 19 x 17 ½, weighs 9 lbs and will hold a total of 90 lbs or 30 lbs per bin.

This recycling bin cart makes life more organized, eliminating the use of old cardboard boxes in favor of recycling boxes that are durable and easy to handle, made specifically for storing and transporting large quantities of waste paper from the home or office to the curb, effortlessly.

Color distinction is interesting for those delving into the trend of recycling, allowing bright colors like blue, to stand out as a place for recyclables.

The We Recycle symbol has already become universal, and accepted around the world, making it even harder for someone to make the mistake of throwing the wrong material into the recycling box.

Blue may yet become the standard for paper recycling boxes along with other main colors for tins or plastics and they can be used as a storage containers as well as a recycling bins.

At present, with the world of Web 2.0 and the word online becoming common everywhere, the use of computers has skyrocketed, taking with it, an overuse of precious wood to produce and abundance of paper; paper that can be recycled.

Commercial sized bulk ink adaptations for home printers have transformed the average user into an almost commercial consumer of paper, not to mention offices and Xerox machines that have always worked with large amounts of waste paper.

Having a blue recycling box in your home or office is a way to show others what is possible with just a small initiative, keeping things better organized, and helping to save the planet at the same time.

This blue recycling bin fore curbside programs, has built-in handles, was designed to stack or nest, for use with high-volumes of recycled paper products, measuring at 20 x 15 3/8 x 13½, holding 12 ½ gal and shipping at 3.4 lb.

This blue recycling bin is a box to keep things organized, it comes with the We Recycle symbol on the side, and will take loads of waste paper to and from the curb, it is easily stacked or nested, allowing you to think global, and act local, for a cleaner, healthier tomorrow, where trees, people and the environment, are all living in harmony together.

Most recycle bins are constantly being opened and closed, the Touchless has an automatic open/close function that does all the opening and closing for you as long as you have a hand within six inches of the sensor it stays open, once you remove your hand, it closes on its own after three seconds.

Keeping the kitchen free of sticky stuff is very important for hygienic reasons, but trash and recycle bins are always filling up with leftover sauces, oils and anything else that we need to constantly keep clean, so most people opt to keep them away from the kitchen, where we most need them!

Here is a kitchen recycling bin that offers the best of both worlds; neat, clean and tidy recycling that makes sense for the environment as well as our needs.

This recycling bin has two separate inner buckets for either organics in one or recyclables in the other, 30 liters each and capable of using regular 8 or 13 gallon trash bags in each, it runs off of four long living D batteries up to one year if used wisely (sold separately), it has wheels for easy movement as well as two buttons for manual opening/closing and an on/off switch, measuring 23.23 x 14.76 x 24.61, with a one-year limited warranty.

The Touchless is a kitchen recycling bin made specifically to keep your kitchen cleaner and yet still do the job recycling containers need to get done, keeping the messy stuff inside the bin and dirty fingers away.

When we think about the planet, and making sure that our children are going to have a better, brighter, more desirable tomorrow, we think of Mother Nature, the city, but most especially, we are reminded of trash, and waste, about where it goes, and maybe even why more people are not taking the forefront initiative to do a little bit of recycling where it counts most, at home.

Paper bags, plasticsacks, tin cans, disposable kitchen wear, two liter bottles and more, the list of products that we use and abuse, going through our kitchens is almost endless, but we can do something, we can start by providing a space that makes a difference, readily available to all the family members, color coded, dry, clean, nifty and verticalized to make better use of space, with stackable recycle bins.

Storage Trends 18 Gallon/72 Quart stacking Suncast recycle bin, for indoor/outdoor use, measures 18 1/4 wide x 24 3/8 deep x 17 high and ships at 20 pounds.

Stackable Recycle Bins are the perfect thing to save space in the kitchen, in the trash can, and just a little bit more of the planet, because they do the job we need to have done today, but with one foot set on the future we leave to our childrens children tomorrow.

Cleanliness and hygiene are part of what marks us as civilization, but some of the more hygienic practices we have inherited from ancient times are not as environmentally friendly as they could be, one of which includes how we take care of our kitchen scraps.

The consumer society that we have all grown up in is only now realizing what actually happens to our trash, and with products the help separate organics from non-organics, like MACP, consumers are beginning to take on a new role, that of stewards of Earth.

MACP keeps kitchen refuse separate from the non-organic trash by offering a first-step link to the compost bin that is both neat and tidy, something that compost pails have never been in the past, always leaving us with a nasty, smelly mess to clean up.

Good airflow is important to keep the slop that always ends up making its way into the bin, dry, thereby reducing mold, rot and those unpleasant odors drastically.

Small and cute, MACP is also sturdy and durable, making good use of recycled plastics for the long haul, taking up very little space on the kitchen counter, yet still able to hold large quantities of banana peals, eggs shells, coffee grounds…etc. with biodegradable plastic bags like those made by Bio-Bag.

MACP has aeration around and under the bag, a collection gutter to catch spillage, grooves at the bottom to maximize ventilation, flush wall-mounting slot, six-year guarantee if used normally, convenient carrying handle and will provide a weight reduction of up to 20% over a five day period while under the kitchen counter.

Max Air Compost Pail (MACP) helps keep kitchen scraps in their place and highly ventilated and was developed to be used along with biodegradable plastic bags, that keep the whole organic part of composting both tidy and environmentally friendly; helping our planet work towards a better tomorrow for the children of our childrens children, starting with you.

There isnt much to the concepts of living out in the country, but there is a whole lot that country living can teach those that find themselves trapped below the spiraling concrete and plexiglass of urban landscapes that seem to go on and on; composting is a lesson worth learning.

Nick Noyes offers a straightforward method for dealing with our kitchen refuse, garden debris and other organic waste, in a humane and ecologically correct manner that Mother Nature will thank us for.

Step by step, you too can learn to build your very own composter for country or city living, with new or used materials, and just a few basic carpenter skills that read as easily as a cookie recipe.

Single bin, double bin, triple or even quadruple, your needs can be met in this all encompassing book that not only teaches you how to build your veryown composter with what you have on hand, but also how to make the best use of our natural resources, right at home, to produce a simple and powerful garden amendment.

This 32-page paperback published by Storey Publishing, LLC in January of 1995, measurs 8.1 x 5.3 x 0.2, and ships at 1.6 ounces, bringing you the personal freedom and independence from polluting landfills; helping you make a difference today.

Build a composter on your own, by following the simple to understand directions in Easy Composters You Can Build by Nick Noyes, an author that brings the wisdom of country living into your library and hopefully into mainstream knowledge as well, making the future, just that much brighter.

Compost, the natural way to make food for your garden was written by Ken Thompson, a senior lecturer at the University of Sheffield, England, columnist for organic gardening magazines, plant ecologist and author of An Ear to the Ground: Gardens Science for Ordinary Mortals.

You will get to know exactly what to do to get good compost, how and why, even the scientific aspect is all easily grasped with concepts like Carbon:Nitrogen ratios, the role of water content, grass or kitchen waste, fungus, bacteria, worms and especially microorganisms.

Honestly written by a man who knows what the future is all about, low-impact techniques that help our civilization work in harmony with Mother Nature this is a tome of knowledge made specifically for the first time composter, looking to understand this ancient art, as a whole, in search of a more sustainable future, one home at a time…

This 192-page hardcover by DK Publishing, released in February of 2007 measures 7.7 x 6.1 x 1 inches and ships at 1.2 pounds.

Composting from home to home, learning just a little more about how our planet works, why and what the ecological values are behind doing-it-yourself is basically what makes Compost, the natural way to make food for your garden such an amazing book, so much in fact that it has even been marketed as The gardener’s essential compost and recycling bible.

This book brings the expertise and life experiences of successful organic farmer CEO Malcolm Beck as well as the remarks of Acres USA publishings Charles Walters (specialist in sustainable farms), to your home library with all the information you need to make your very own compost; making the world we live in, a better tomorrow.

What happens inside compost? How does it do what it does? What are the best kinds of blends of C:N ratios and how can you decide when the time is right to take advantage of your very own black gold?

Malcom Beck puts all his decades of organic farming knowledge and commercially successful composting business secrets into one single volume that shows us what a passionate person can do if they really put their mind to it.

Years of experimenting with a variety of soil compositions went into The Secret Life of Compost, and this 150-page composting treasure comes in paperback or hardcover, published by Acres USA in January of 1997, with the paperback measuring 8.9 x 6x 0.5 and shipping at 10.4 ounces; a valuable edition to any organic gardeners book collection.

Knowing how to compost, and how to compost in such a way that gardeners not only seek you out, end up forcing you into selling your compost pile, just to keep some yourself, it is the truest test of a real pioneer, a test that Malcom Beck has passed with flying colors, and that he now passes on to those of us looking to develop our own sustainable farms; through The Secret Life of Compost.

Conserving water, recycling waste, especially human fecal material, is really the most important step in reducing civilizations carbon footprints, as the most efficient way to deal with our waste, is to follow the simple, basic models, mother earth has given us already.

Are we fish that we would leave our number one and two in the rivers, lakes, streams and oceans, or are we humans, that would be caretakers and proper stewards that would enrich the land?

Nature is a perfection all of its own that we as humans cannot hope to improve; either we choose to model the perfection in natural physics, or we end up destroying that beauty, the choice is ours and sustainable architect Sim Van Der Ryn, has been fighting the cause of Earth Day from the very beginning, and The Toilet Papers is a well researched and insightful argument that people are willing to listen to once again.

Why pollute water, when we can take our organic human wastes and deal with them as Mother Nature intended? Safe, energetically efficient, inexpensive, self-reliance and most of all, very attractive to the human eye, this book is the philosophy of turning organic waste into rich and fertile humus, for ensuring our civilizations well-being without waste and most of all, without harm to nature.

This 124-page paperback was published in august of 1999 by Chelsea Green Publishing, measuring 8 x 4.8 x 0.5 and shipping at 5.6 ounces.

Eco-architect Sim Van Der Ryns The Toilet Papers, offers historical facts and philosophies on the proper recycling of our humanfecal material in the form of dry toilets, how to conserve fresh water, replenish aquifers, biologically filter greywater and do it all with astonishingly superb designs that make the soul soar!

Yes, the most popular places to find some pet worms for doing your own worm farm at home is a fishing supply store or local farm, the hardest thing always seems to be keeping them in good enough health conditions to actually survive the trip.

Filling this bait container is enough to get a whole new worm farm started up to show others what vermicomposting can really do.

Even hardy and aggressive worms like eisenia fetida (red wigglers) can just sit around and chill out for a while, this is not a really big problem, but what can happen during transport is they get a little traumatized from the sudden change in routine and that can be too hard on them.

One of the most interesting things about vermicomposting is studying the habits of our slimy brothers of the earth; their survival depends on keeping them as much within the parameters nature preset for them as possible, if they undergo too much stress, even the hardiest will perish in sad and agonizing fates.

Some rules include such conditions as: remaining moist, within a temperature range between 50 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit, avoid too much light, receive enough oxygen (yes they breath oxygen), be kept clear of predators (like chickens and mischievous children), have space to crawl and be fed regularly.

Worms need to be provided with a constant supply of food, such as in the case of red wigglers their weight in organics daily, but they will survive a few days/weeks without food.

Problems can arise if they run out of moist bedding for your worm farm but do not fear, throw in a little shredded cardboard.

You can transfer worms to a larger container with new bedding and plenty of kitchen refuse after being in the worm farm for long periods.

Bait containers can be several sizes, from huge buckets to average sized for worm bin starting kits the size Worm Ranch Worm Farm comes in. Considered a large package at 20 x 14 x 7 and weighing 8 lbs, the complete kit comes with a 4.5 lb bag of worm bedding and a 12 oz bag of worm food (worms not included).

Worms will multiply if you give them a chance, and bait containers like Magic Worm Ranch are a perfect way to share those extra pets that an existing worm bin is capable of producing.

Like to fish? Keep your worms thriving and reproducing in between fishing trips!

If you love your worms, give their offspring to others and promote vermicomposting as an ethical way to reduce the impact of an over aggressive industrial revolution and paving the future of sustainable practices, right at home.

Worm bins get easier and easier to maintain as people come out with new ways to improve comfort and environmental friendliness through recycled materials with more efficient shapes and sizes that do the job with a more ecological tone.

But mostly, it is when people start to really understand what makes vermicomposting so desirable in-the-kitchen that gets them to start up their own worm-bin under the sink.

Those who choose to keep their vermicomposting systems indoors must remember that an excess of fatty, acidic or animal based foods like dairy products, eggs and meats may create a foul odor while worms linger over how much they really need to eat that stuff.

Oh sure, they will eat almost anything, not just kitchen scraps, and they will break it down into some of the cleanest and finest worm castings in the world (their insides are so rugged and well adapted to dealing with bacteria, that they can even destroy dangerous pathogens if need be), but they prefer regular kitchen refuse of plant origin.

In nature for example, worms like anything that just kind of plops down under a tree or is trampled under foot on a field, and as horses and other plant-eaters like cows and deer do leave droppings, they are completely different from the kinds of droppings animal-eating predators like cats and dogs leave.

This doesnt mean worms are strictly veggie loving, they will eat decomposing animal remains and can even adapt to do just that kind of job, especially if survival is on the line, but they just dont eat stuff like that as often in nature as they do veggie remains, so they have personal preferences for non-animal kitchen scraps.

Veggie lovers who strictly avoid animal based foods are usually the first to bring vermicomposting indoors, since their piles rarely (if ever) emit foul odors.

For those looking for an easy to use vermicomposting system, Can-O-Worms for example is one of these kinds of products that blends the latest in modern technology with the latest in eco-friendliness.

Made from 100% recycled plastic, this is the kind of product that could withstand hundreds of years out in the open weather if well kept, ultimately paying off its own ecological footprints as well as cutting down on household CO2 emissions.

This style vermicomposting worm-bin that stacks usually measures the same size as a kitchen trash can, with four different stacking drawers or in this case cans.

Once the first compartment is full, the next is just placed on-top with wet bedding (usually shredded newspaper) and a healthy days worth of kitchen scraps, the worms will migrate to the next bin looking for more food, thereby emptying the lower bin.

They are attracted to the smell of organic materials and can eat their weight in food scraps each day, so they travel up in search of the new food source; red-wigglers are the most aggressive and the most common in vermicomposters today.

With vermicomposters of the stacking style, one of the bins will usually take about a whole seven-day week to fill up with a family of five, so after about three or four weeks, three bins can be emptied into the garden and the top bin goes to the bottom of the stack.

It really is that simple, and the worms will just keep on working, day after day, but please remember to feed them! They are members of the family too, like cats and dogs, and they need to eat every day, especially red wigglers.

Vermicomposting with stacking worm-bins like Can-O-Worms is not only an ecologically correct thing to do, it is a fun thing to do, as the whole family (and even those who visit) will be able to learn about these noblest of noble earth dwellers, transforming waste into black-gold of the garden.

What is the role of bacteria in composting? More than that, what is bacteria in the first place, how do we even know what it does and how exactly does it do all this?

Some of those questions can get icky technical to say the least, but for those of you looking to find out more about the scientific aspects of bacteria, there is a plethora of good information at the library and online.

There is so much scientific info on bacteria that it will make your head spin with all kinds of Greek root words, Latin root words and the combination of words that explain behaviors, structures and shapes on a scale that is most of the time far smaller than the human eye can see on its own.

Historically speaking Thonius Philips van Leeuwenhoek, usually considered the father of microbiology, a Dutch tradesman, a scientist and the son of a basket maker; was the first human to observe what at the time he called animalcules in the year 1676 using a single-lense microscope of his own design.

The improved manner in which Dutch eye-glass makers of the 1600s were carrying out their business had been so creative as to invent some more useful items like the telescope and the microscope making it possible for Leeuwenhoek to see bacteria for the first time ever.

Blended with Leeuwenhoeks curiosity, it revolutionized the way science saw the physical world forever.

It would only be much later on, in 1828 that bacteria would be first called as such by Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg, after the Greek âáêôÞñéïí-á (bacterion a), meaning “small staff”.

Since then, the study of classifying bacteria has gone on and on, and grows even techier as the science of bacteriology advances throughout these long 330 or more years.

Sometimes, bacteria have taken on the role of criminal, sometimes the role of savior.

But to those of us who think practically, and in terms of how important a role bacteria have in composting and have continually had throughout the aeons, it is only reasonable to learn to respect those natural processes as much as possible for what they are; life.

Composting would not work without bacteria, not even vermicomposting would work without them, because without bacteria, there would not even be life on the planet as we know it.

These are ancient creatures, some of the very first forms of life on the planet eventually evolved into bacteria and they might even perhaps be responsible for the original formation of our atmosphere.

Some spiritual composters have even called them midichloreans (a word George Lucas derived from the endosymbiotic theory, yes a big concept), seeing them as a kind of omnipresent collective consciousness capable of healing the world.

That is a metaphysical issue that goes beyond the limits of this column and the fact that many people see them in this spiritual manner is already valid enough to mention since metaphorically speaking, they do a lot to add to our quality of life on this planet, without us even noticing, people accepting the fact as either spiritual or scientific is enough to respect their presence here at least.

They certainly are essential to the planet, cleaning up trash everywhere and producing a useful product, taking on a range of temperatures, surviving the strongest and most intelligent, while always in constant adaptation to environments and conditions.

Probably one of the most fascinating aspects of bacteria is their ability to survive through a kind of communal cooperation, quorum sensing, as in soil and on the surfaces of plants, where the majority of bacteria are bound in the form of biofilms (when bacteria attach to a surface in dense aggregations) also known as microbial mats.

The bacteria living in biofilms will commonly display a complicated network of cells and extracellular components arranging themselves optimally with secondary structures like microcolonies to better diffuse nutrients.

Quorum sensing is kind of a mystery to scientists, some use math to explain it, Kleiber’s Law, others use vitalist anthropomorphism (giving bacteria almost supernatural or human qualities), either way a person wants to rationalize it, these obviously independent organisms just spontaneously organize themselves through chemical exchanges (pheromones) that bind or induce certain genes into certain actions.

But basically what is happening with quorum sensing is, when a given community of bacteria (of the same species or not) undergo certain conditions (usually those that depend on survival, like energy depletion or temperature alteration), the different bacteria signal one another to do totally different jobs and in many cases, jobs that are not even evolutionarily species specific, always optimizing performance.

Friedrich Hayek called a “self-organizing system of voluntary co-operation” Catallaxy. And it is a phenomenon that seems to repeat itself over and over throughout earths communities, even the stock market.

As mysterious as this strange and complex optimization of bacteria is, it is exactly how composting can do its job so efficiently, it is why certain bacteria sacrifice themselves to create a kind of protective layer when quorum sensing starts to send out signals that conditions are going to become unfavorable soon.

The best metaphorical analogy is to say that they are acting like one collective organism, not a bunch of independent single-celled organisms, so where is the central planning?

Essentially, there is none, its just a mess of single-celled organisms that make themselves work together remarkably more efficiently well than even the most able or knowledgeable integrant of the community.

Who knows why that happens, it just does. Time and time again throughout human history and it presents itself as a very big theoretical challenge to both philosophers and scientists the world over. The fact that this catallaxy is the reason why composting with bacteria works is enough to explain how. Why it works, can be left to the reader to figure out.

Perhaps the way bacteria organize themselves could be studied as a form of biomimicry to help our society become more sustainable, since they certainly do have optimal performances during quorum sensing.

Now as for composting, there is a time when freshly added compost begins to pick up heat. Certain bacteria will survive and thrive between 0 and 40 degrees, but below and above that are considered extreme temperatures, thus these bacteria usually form endospores (little impervious shield walls inside the cell, filled with DNA and ribosomes), causing dormancy.

Thermophiles exist above 40 degrees and are what really break down bad news pathogens, making sure that they are completely destroyed during this stage of the hot pile.

Below zero degrees, there are psychrophiles that thrive at extremely low temperatures. Endospores are the way cells put themselves to sleep whenever conditions become too hostile and can just sit through changes until conditions become favorable.

Oscillating from 0-40 degrees and above, or back down to normal temperature and then maybe even slipping into such cold as that below zero. Bacteria use the collective knowledge and the power of quorum sensing to better organize their actions and survive until conditions become favorable once again.

Many bacteria help plants to process nutrients in soil, many help breakdown organic compost into CO2 to return to the atmosphere, many help destroy harmful pathogens and overwhelmingly, each and every single one of these independent organisms has an incredibly important role to play as members of a collective, members of the great cycle of life.

Bacteria work together in ways that we as of yet, do not even fully understand, while in this dance of life, dance of energy and dance of movement; one bacterium can hold the key to an entire community of composting bacteria and maybe even working as gods of the earth.

Marcus Cato the elder or the censor was kind of old schoolin his day and represents an excellent example of traditional Roman values in Italy before the onslaught of Greek culture, but to sustainable farmers everywhere, he is a kind of father figure that reinforces the importance of soil fertility and economics in agriculture.

What is good cultivation? Good ploughing. What next? Ploughing. What third? Manuring. Cato De Agri Cultura (61)

The book De Agri Cultura is an ancient text written in Latin prose, the very first Latin to be written in prose in fact and teaches through observations and notations how to take care of a traditional Roman farm, economically.

Meant to be read aloud, and discussed with workers, this book is just about as low-tech as your going to get; the biggest problem with it however, is the use and recommendations concerning slaves. If you can get over that bit, this book is a must read for anybody into low-tech sustainability.

Just imagine for a moment an elderly Roman man, head of his household, once a great General who had fought wars beside his men, dressed as they would dress, would ride as they would ride, eat, sleep and drink as they.

Now he sits, dressed as a simple farm hand, in his study at home, on his olive plantation in the Sabine Territory about 160 years or so before Christ was born after a long hard day of digging manure trenches around olive trees and scrounging for dry leaves and bedding for the animals; quill and ink in hand before a precious piece of parchment, thus his woolen tunic is filled with the smell of work and he writes about life on the farm:

See that you carry out all farm operations betimes, for this is the way with farming: if you are late in doing one thing you will be late in doing everything. If bedding runs short, gather oak leaves and use them for bedding down sheep and cattle. See that you have a large dunghill; save the manure carefully, and when you carry it out, clean it of foreign matter and break it up. Autumn is the time to haul it out. During the autumn also dig trenches around the olive trees and manure them. Cut poplar, elm, and oak leaves betimes; store them before they are entirely dry, as fodder for sheep. Cato De Agri Cultura (5(7-8))

It sounds almost as if he is giving himself, or his great grandchildren, directives to follow upon inheriting the family farm that once belonged to his own grandfather, and his incessant fingers continue in the reverie that will one day be immortalized:

Divide your manure as follows: Haul one-half for the forage crops, and whenyou sow these, if this ground is planted with olives, trench and manure them at this time; then sow the forage crops. Add a fourth of the manure around the trenched olives when it is most needed, and cover this manure with soil. Save the last fourth for the meadows, and when most needed, as the west wind is blowing, haul it in the dark of the moon. Cato De Agri Cultura (29)

Suddenly, a change in the wind and his mind goes out to the vineyard, he remembers how the soil out there had been so lean, and he thinks, What to do? ah, yes:

In an old vineyard sow clover if the soil is lean (do not sow anything that will form a head), and around the roots apply manure, straw, grape dregs, or anything of the sort, to make it stronger. Cato De Agri Cultura (33)

The day seems to be going afoul and a new idea comes to him; that maintaining soil fertility is so important, and yet, composting almost seems to take care of itself, how often should it be done? He thinks, and the quill moves once again with subtle detail:

When the weather is bad and no other work can be done, clear out manure for the compost heap; clean thoroughly the ox stalls, sheep pens, barnyard, and farmstead; and mend wine-jars with lead, or hoop them with thoroughly dried oak wood. Cato De Agri Cultura (39)

What of cypress, it is in much need of yearly fertility is it not? His mind wanders back to the parchment:

Turn the ground with a trench spade where you are going to plant cypress seed, and plant at the opening of spring. Make ridges five feet wide, add well-pulverized manure, hoe it in, and break the clods. Cato De Agri Cultura (48)

And on that same thought:

Manure meadows at the opening of spring, in the dark of the moon. When the west wind begins to blow and you close the dry meadows to stock, clean them and dig up all noxious weeds by the roots. Cato De Agri Cultura (50)

His mind is at peace and the quill stops its immortal motions.

Cato was a wise Roman, one who knew how important is was to keep a lock on time frames and make the best use of both the calendar as well as help allow those who work with you to feel like you are one in the same.

He took frugality to heart, he thought of the Roman farmer as the greatest example of a decent Roman citizen of true roman ideals, roman philosophies and the least of threats to civilizations, but rather, the backbone of it.

Cato knew soils like he knew his army, or the Roman people, he knew their strengths and their weaknesses for which crops at what seasons would need what kind of treatment, and many of his ideas about economy of resources, hold true to this very day.

Cato has left us an example of what low-tech sustainable practices were really like in the second century before Christ for the Roman farmer, and his thoughts eco out such a deep religious understanding of cycles, especially those that speak of soil fertility.

Marcus Cato the elder has preserved for us in De Agri Cultura, what it means to truly be a Roman farmer and respect soil fertility with the religious honors due to the gods.

There are two main kinds of biodegradable bags A.K.A biobags, one is more environmentally friendly than the other, those with starch based polymers are greener and those petrochemically produced bags with an additive base hold up like the real deal but release CO2 upon breakdown.

Each kind has strong points, and each their specific weak points, but which solution is more sustainable for a given population really depends on the location of composting facilities in the area, and the specific needs of that given population.

Not everyone enjoys the starch based Polythene film products because certain precautions need to be taken in regard to how they are used.

They do not replace petroleum plastics in the sense that they are not as rugged or enduring, having a lifespan and shelf-span, much like food products do.

Starches like wheat, corn and potatoes are usually used, meaning that this product competes with those kinds of food products, possibly even threatening consumption both of the food and the plastic product as crop yields help determine prices and supply.

Agriculturally speaking, this is an alternative that will eventually stimulate the area to produce more starch-based crops and alternative methods of production will come about the more space is restricted and consumer demands grow, but eventually the conditions for a more self-sufficient economy will become ever clearer.

Starch-based Polythene is also known as biobased (hydrodegradable) and reaches the American Standards for Testing Materials as well as the European norms for compostability degrading in 60% under 180 days.

Polymers that usually use starch are Polycaprolactone (PCL), Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and Polylactic acid (PLA), all used to control the microbial breakdown, only allowing breakdown in the presence of microbes, heat, moisture and proper aeration, such as those conditions found in traditional compost piles.

Additive based plastic bags on the other hand are our traditional plastic bag films with a special chemical adjustment so as to make them breakdown more readily under certain conditions.

Instead of taking hundreds of years to breakdown, these plastic bags will take only six months to two years, accelerating their breakdown process considerably, clearing up landfills and other litter issues, such as those found in nation parks, forests, sewers, storm drains and other water ways.

So are these additive-based compostable bags a more sustainable alternative? Not really, they certainly dont need consumers to be aware of how to use them, and they work just like what consumers have now, but they release CO2 upon degradation and petroleum is a limited resource that depends greatly on foreign affairs of state, which contributes to instability.

In the first stages of decomposer, oxygen, light, heat and/or stress react on a molecular level, fragmenting the film in such a way that water can wet and surround its molecules, thus making it readily biodegradable, leaving only CO2, water and biomass once microorganisms get a hold of it.

These oxodegradable/photodegradable plastic bags may make things easier without causing much change in the consumers lifestyle today and cost a little less right now when compared to those that are starch based, but in the long run, this is not a sustainable alternative, thus they do not meet European standards for compostability.

Between the two main alternatives in compostable bags, starch based trash bags are less resistant than the traditional plastic bags with an additive base, and also require more consumer care while using them, but in the long run, starch based bags take less time to decompose (up to 180 days) while additive based bags may takea couple of years (up to 2 yrs) and have the downside of being made from petrochemicals as well as releasing CO2 into the atmosphere.

In the end, the compostable bags you choose need to be right to fit your needs, only you know how green you can be…

Good list of current “approved” bags at:
BPI World Approved Products

Invented by Dr. Ehrenfired Pfeiffer, disciple of philosopher Rudolf Steiner, the founder of Anthroposphy and Biodynamic Agriculture, BD Compost Starter is one of the founding and essential products of Biodynamic Agriculture, with a unique spiritual and scientific preparation style that makes it quite different from other compost starters.

With the whole farm viewed as a living entity, everything in it is considered to be an integral part of this self-contained organism, complete with its very own individuality, emphasizing integration between livestock and crops, the recycling of nutrients, the well being and health of crops as well as maintaining the soil.

Based on Steiners prescription of eight different soil preparations to be used and the details on how to use them in creating quality humus, Dr. Pfeiffer innovated Biodynamic Agriculture with his BD Compost Starter.

The prepared substances are numbered 500 through 507; numbers 500 and 501 are used for preparing the fields, while 502, 503, 504, 505, 506 and 507 are all used for preparing the compost itself.

While rather complicated, somewhat extensive to explain here, or to be done by a beginner in Biodynamic Agriculture, it is both a fun and spiritually uplifting experience to actually create Biodynamic preparations oneself if taken the time to learn. In the end, when push does come to shove, every biodynamic farmer must choose for themselves what works best.

After Steiner released a series of eight lectures, Spiritual Foundations for the Renewal of Agriculture, he indicated several different preparations to be used in agriculture and these are what are now referred to as Biodynamic Preparations (BD preparations).

Instead of bringing straight chemicals into agriculture through such things as ammonia or urea, these chemicals are introduced through products such as manure or rock phosphate.

Beyond the Cartesian thinking of scientists from a mechanistic view of the world and physical reality that thinks along the lines of traditional soil chemistry; Biodynamic preparations also looks to understand cosmic forces that might also influence the preparation of soils and humus on a non-visible or esoteric level, much like gravity or magnetism, which cannot be observed by the naked eye, yet are observable.

Biodynamic Compost Starter (BD Compost Starter) ultimately failed economically, as it was not something that could be readily spread with the common fertilizer spreader used by farmers at the time of its release and as this technical difficulty could not be overcome it was carried on almost single-mindedly by Josephine Porter in the United States for nearly 30 years until her death in 1984.

See also:
Biodynamic Farming & Compost Preparation

Our Book Review:
Principles of Biodynamic Spray And Compost Preparations

Bottle Biology was funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation administered by the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a companion book can be found here.

By using recycled, transparent (clear), two-liter soda bottles, cutting them up, organizing them in a column like fashion and then filling them with composting materials, it is possible to observe the different stages of breakdown more readily.

BottleBiology.Org proposes something incredibly helpful with this device as a parent and child activity, especially for those who enjoy biology, gardening, nature or just composting and want to enlighten themselves and others into this remarkable field of sustainability.

The possibilities with this tool are virtually as limited as the kinds of things that people throw away or compost and the different techniques used in composting itself.

Decomposition columns are even used for investigating such things as acid rain by using vinegar as a simulation tool instead of water.

Investigating first-hand with children what is really going on down their in our soil, either from landfills, leaf compost, kitchen refuse with worms or whatever the imagination might think up to investigate is a great way to see up and close how moisture (adding water) and oxygen (adding holes in the bottles) effects the conditions of a compost pile underground.

So if you find yourself looking for an interesting tool for exposing the conditions we find below the ground, no matter if they be aerobic or anaerobic, making a decomposition column is easy, fun and most of all, educational for everyone, opening a plethora of possibilities to even the most experienced composter.

The Worm Chalet is a verticalized worm bin that allows worms to migrate upward from box to box as the lower boxes have reached their capacity, the worms will automatically find their way towards more organic materials.

As long as the level of soil is close enough to the top where they can reach the next level, the worms will just keep going upward, so when they reach the top box, just place it as the bottom box, empty the castings from the bottom and middle boxes into your garden and start the whole process over again.

The average American household usually has between two to five adults which will use an average of 15 to 20 kilos of food scraps a day; making Worm Chalet the ideal vermicomposting unit in small urban areas like apartments.

30.5 inches tall and 19.75 x 19.75 inches square, it readily fits into any kitchen or pantry as if it were an alternative garbage disposal unit, and it doesn’t smell as long as the compost tea is collected daily from the spigot at the bottom and spread into the garden or used as organic pesticide.

Alternatively, some people like to oxygenate their compost tea with an old aquarium air pump, a bucket and some tubing, supercharging it for better results!

This system is expandable and the plastic was made to look like weathered stone, with a passive climate control mechanism that moderates temperature fluctuations through an insulated air core in the triple wall design.

It is important to keep this out of direct sunlight while in use, to allow a more favorable environment and the tapered lid inhibits rainwater from pooling up.

Made from UV stabilized plastic that is durable and long lasting it comes with metal sieve separators, it can be used indoors or outdoors as is convenient, has a one year warranty and ships at 79 pounds.

The Worm Chalet is one more way to improve ecological friendliness, providing a sustainable outlet for organic wastes in the urban home, avoiding unnecessary ecological footprints and helping those that use your kitchen understand what it means to be a steward of Mother Earth on a daily basis.

Mothers and grandmothers will love to read this book to their little girls between the ages of 4 to 8 or even as old as 9. Recommended to anyone seriously looking to educate a child in the ways of vermicomposting at home.

This is a fabulous adventure between a loving mother and her daughter to convert a storage box into a pet home for their new red worms.

More than just how to build and maintain a worm bin, this is a unique family experience that all children (boys and girls alike) will appreciate, done together with a loving adult to create a marking relationship with the earth and how we deal with our waste.

The art of vermicomposting through a grand explanation that is exciting for both children and adults to hear and read, with poetic rhyming couplets that accentuate an already beautiful process.

Written and illustrated by Michelle Eva Portman, hardbound, 6 3/8″ x 8 3/4″ in full color, 42 pages and step by step How To instructions and resources, this was first published in December of 2002 by Flower Press, a company that knows what people really need to be seeing and thinking about to make progress for this nation of ours.

Flower Press, was founded in 1976 by the passed on, yet well remembered and loved Worm Woman Mary Appelhof, who self-published for years to show the world what people really should be thinking about, not what the book industry thought people wanted to read about.

Books by Flower Press keep it real, teaching us not what to sell, but what to do to actually make a difference in the now, with whatever is available.

True to the Flower Press philosophy, Compost, By Gosh goes beyond money and looks to just get those ideas out there; these are the valued ones that will really make a difference in the world we live in.

Compost, By Gosh is a humane and loving way to teach our children the true secrets of Mother Nature, by passing them on, from parent (grandparent) to child (4-9) through the kind of storytelling that really makes a difference in a childs life.

Compost, By Gosh is the road to a more sustainable future through family vermicomposting, and it begins with our children; today.

This is not just a full comprehensive guide to transforming the novice composter into an expert within a 208 page paperback, measuring 5.5 x 8.5 and weighing only 295 grams; its a quick and easy way to acquire both basic gardening techniques and an overall understanding of the range of alternative living methods used by those looking for the path to sustainability.

Diary of a Compost Hotline Operator was first published in October of 2003 by New Society Publishers and written by Spring Gillard, who is a powerful storyteller that takes you into the fascinating realm of better, greener living in urban agriculture the world over beginning with her day to day experiences of what makes for good healthy humus and a more sustainable lifestyle.

Diary of a Compost Hotline Operator makes for a great gift idea for the curious in what all the big hype with compost and sustainability is, perhaps even indirectly helping to create a better tomorrow, by just letting us think a little about those alternatives.

Buy Now on Amazon.com

Red worms like those cultivated are not just for worm composting though, they can also serve as fish bait or reptile food just as easily, as these are alternative uses for their cultivation from other distributors.

Red worms take on manure, paper, household kitchen refuse and pretty much any organic materials that you offer them at a rate of their own weight daily.

Jill offers 1,000 (roughly one pound) of handpicked red worms by mail order, with an assortment of mature breeders, young, extra egg-capsules in two pounds worth of bedding, shipped on Mondays by priority mail (expedited) only or overnight in extreme temperatures (shipping in this case required) and a thee page worm care notes included at a total of four pounds for the whole package.

Your worms may arrive somewhat dehydrated from the shipping, but with a little moisture and liquid food, they should come out of dormancy and perk right up again in no time at all.

This is done by leaving some easily digestible organics like fruit and dinner leftovers in the bottom of some soil and allowing microorganisms to break it down during shipping, the messy goop that results is what your red worms will need to restore themselves to full health upon arrival.

Enough red worms could purify your home of all its organic waste in just seven to fourteen days at a time, leaving you with the best form of soil nurturing additive on the planet; worm castings as a byproduct that is some of the most hygienic processes known to science today.

It is possible to say that there is no other known solution more directed towards environmental stewardship than one that reduces ecological footprints to a minimum while replenishing directly and in abundance, the soil nutrients we deprive nature of when we avoid the food chain through the garbage man.

By allowing red worms into our homes and daily lives, we allow our civilization to take part in Mother Nature once again; as purifiers, that is, as true stewards.

This is a sustainable way to deal with our civilizations organic wastes and one of the most low-tech ways to be environmentally correct with as few ecological footprints as possible.

If you have already been doing vermicomposting or intend to start soon, know that by using red worms to take care of your organic waste, you are replenishing what others have not and becoming a true steward of space station earth.

For ages 4-8, this 32-page hardcover published by Dutton Juvenile in May of 1993 measures 11.1 x 7.7 x 0.4 inches and ships at 12.5 ounces.

Bianca Lavies is a professional photographer with an eye for natures most glorious moments, and by constructing her own compost pile at home, she observes in as only an artist can, through images, a year of bacteria, insects, worms and crustaceans all working down loads of household food scraps into fertile soil.

Rich detail and color, Lavies has experienced the most sublime aspects of a process that most people choose to ignore, and brought those experiences to life for all to see and feel.

Compost Critters even has an essay that clarifies and informs with factual information, broadening youngsters concepts in a very special and beautiful way.

Bianca Lavies even goes so far as to plant tomato vines around her compost pile, showing respect for lifes wonders and the joy that we as humans can have in the role as stewards here on earth.

Compost Critters is a truly wonderful display of Nature, through art, respect, love and joy, that our children will understand, accept and hopefully; live for.

This book is an overview of the history of agriculture, the applications of compost preparation, the practicality of organic spray as well as the biodynamic philosophy behind these techniques.

According to biodynamics, keeping our gardens sustainable is one of the first steps to healing the world, and it is something that everyone can do at home by using the most simplest of household wastes, organic compost.

Through creative techniques that have a long history of usage throughout the world, biodynamics challenges the sustainable gardener to prove these (often dubbed esoteric) philosophies scientifically.

Best of all, this stuff works! Biodynamics is an older term for what is now a trend in gardening, self-reliance, the all-American do-it-yourself sempra-fi attitude that just might save us from our own outlandish energy consumption in the past century and a half.

This introduction to biodynamic agriculture was written by Manfred Klett (over twenty years of experience), former director of the Department of Agriculture at the Goetheanum in Switzerland.

Klett is the founder of a biodynamic farming community in Germany and this book deals with the very basics of biodynamic agriculture; based on lectures by the author from the BAA (Biodynamic Agriculture Association).

This 110-page paperback published by Floris Books in its second edition in April of 2006 measuring 7.9 x 5.1 x 0.4 inches and shipping at 3.5 ounces is a great way to begin using sustainable agriculture as not merely a way of caring for the earth, but in living a better life.

Principles of Biodynamic Spray and Compost Preparations helps us understand the core philosophy, background and techniques behind biodynamics, which may just lead to a deeper understanding of our own lives; healing ourselves, through the healing of the Earth itself.

As the editor-in-chief of Organic Gardening Magazine for seven years, Mike McGrath has never stopped studying or looking for the best up-to-date information for his Public Radio Show You Bet Your Gardenon 91FM and his Book of Compost is all the most useful information in one tome of knowledge.

Tips that anybody can use such as how to keep the driveway and yard leaf free, while recycling those leaves at four parts for every one part kitchen scraps into a cold-pile, or how to get a worm bin setup by yourself in small urban spaces without yards.

Mike McGraths Book of Compost is a 128-page paperback published by Sterling in August of 2006 measuring 8.8 x 6 x 0.5 inches and shipping at 6.4 ounces.

Years of experience, research and knowledge about what the average gardener is looking for at home and how to take that knowledge into his/her own life from doing good to the environment can be found in Mike McGrath’s Book of Compost.

Stu Campbell breaks the art of composting down. The novice thinking of composting as a dirty activity will surely begin to change ones mind, turning it into a fun and exciting pastime that touches the spiritual realm of gardening.

This 160 page paperback measures 9 x 6 x 0.5, ships at 8.8 ounces and makes for an inspiring refresher for those that already know how to compost, Stu Campbell makes an effort to keep the information highly detailed and easy to read for the general reader.

Let it Rot not only gets into reasons to compost, but also shows differing approaches, how decomposition works, various methods, ingredients, rate of breakdown, how to use the humus, how decomposition itself works and even how to build bins.

This book contains aesthetically pleasing sketches as well as black and white illustrations and diagrams that please the eye and answer questions at a glance.

A list of sources, supplies and a bibliography (14 titles) make this revolutionary book from 1975 a classic must-not-miss for those building a compost library at home.

All information you needed for your first composting project at home, this thirty year old best seller is a classic among composters; Let it Rot will change your outlook on composting forever.

A parent or teacher looking to get into the world of vermicomposting for the very first time will get a wide picture of how to teach this ancient art form in a way that children find it fun and exciting, just by flipping through the pages.

Worms Eat My Garbage was written by a woman who really understood thesacred cycle of life, and her 30 years of experience with worms goes beyond academic, Mary Appelhof was passionate in life, and her passion lives on through her work and those she touched through her work.

Learn with illustrations and easy to follow information, how to set up a small-scale worm composting system, choosing worms, how to take care of the worms, harvesting them, their sex life, how to prepare bedding, how to meet their needs, foods they eat and the potting soil they possess.

This 162 page do-it-yourself vermiculturing guide for kids has 50 illustrations, measures 5.5 x 8.5 and has a 63 page bibliography with 24 references that grab parents attention and take students to further curiosities.

Worms Eat My Garbage is a work of art that touches the lives of our future generations, and shows us how easy (and fun) it really can be to understand and experience Mother Natures truest magic really close-up.

Worms Eat My Garbage is an extension of Mary Appelhofs knowledge of vermiculture, and touches those who really do make our world a different place; our children.

Related:
Mary Appelhof

The Rodale Book of Composting has easy methods of doing-it-yourself from the small-scale to the industrial scale and uses language that is both inspirational as well as informative.

This book puts all the need to know information right in one 278 page paperback measuring 9 x 6.4 x 0.7 and shipping at 12.8 ounces.

With the history of composting, materials, methods, structures, uses and equipment all put into a half-scientific, half-anecdotal writing style, this is a fun read to say the least.

Chemical reactions are described in detail, the different forms of life that inhabit the a given pile throughout the breakdown procedure, from the initial hot pile to the later cold pile and different ways to get different results with line drawings that makeeverything comprehensible.

Charts and ingredients that indicate the difference between a brown (carbon) and a green (nitrogen), which is which and in what extent will give you what kind of humus are an essential to understanding the deeper scientific principles of composting; The Rodale Book of Composting does all this for you.

The whole art of composting on your own, the easy way, would never be complete without unique and genius ways to build your very own compost bin, this is saved for last.

The Rodale Book of Composting does something incredible for our community, it breaths the magical life of inspiration back into our hearts, putting us once again in touch with the earth, through a natural and easily understood communication vehicle; the written word.

The Rodale Book of Composting provides every comprehensive tidbit of information about this ancient art of low-tech sustainability, for a world that is just now, waking once again to the realities of our way of life.

Biostack Bin is composed of three double walled, heavy-duty plastic edges that retain solar heat (which is why they are black) and air slits that create a passive aeration system throughout the compost.

Biostack Bin is just a little over two feet per side with a little over four cubic feet contained in each of the three tiered drawers, coming to a total of roughly twelve cubic feet in the entire container when full.

The black plastic lid is hinged, fixed to the top to retain both heat and moisture as well as avoid flooding from rainwater.

Biostack Bin is built from 60% recycled polyethylene, it is totally waterproof, will not rot, is always free of rodents and extremely easy to clean.

At 28 square inches and 34 inches high, Biostack Bin holds 13 cubic feet of organic waste materials.

Biostack Bin does a better job of keeping compost healthy and pathogen clear, something that a traditional cold pile cannot do.

Biostack Bin is all about composting in the backyard more efficiently a mixture of yard debris as well as kitchen wastes.

For the surface area occupied by the Biostack Bin itself, the user will also require an equal amount of space to deposit the already well-produced compost.

For greater yields in less time, and a pathogen free cold pile, Biostack Bin prepares with semi-hot pile technology, a unique, tried and proven method of composting, all year long, even those light winters in summery climates.

Biostack Bin is the future for those interested in getting outside and getting just a little bit dirty while doing good for the energy as well as their own bodies and producing quality compost in just a month or two.

Places like farms, public gardens, community associations, correctional facilities, dormitories and schools can also find a more sustainable existence in the worm bungalow, processing at optimum capacity from between 30 to 40 lbs of post consumption food wastes daily.

Weighing 80 pounds empty and measuring three feet in diameter by three feethigh, castings are separated from the worms and the partially decomposed wastes without any turning, supporting populations of up to 40,000 red wrigglers the Worm Bungalow is setting the stage for a greener tomorrow.

100% of the composting area is used, no need for restarts or emptying; Worm Bungalow is the answer to all those ecological footprints leftover at the landfill from our societys intense food industry.

Our food industry throws so much in the landfill that replacing all that energy back in the fields would actually create a self-reliant and sustainable process eliminating ecological footprints from the industry completely.

By harvesting vermiculture in a relatively compact size such as this, fast food businesses could find a niche in the ecological world we are moving toward slowly but surely, Worm Bungalow is one more secret to a sustainable world.

Apartments, condos or anywhere space is a commodity and every inch counts; Bokashi Kitchen Composter was designed to handle the smallest of our cities small spaces with sustainable practices that reduce our ecological footprints.

Although designed for anaerobic conditions, the use of EM (Effective Microorganisms) based technology allows Bokashi Kitchen Composter a revolutionary place in our future, one that is cued for sustainability.

Bokashi is a blend of water, wheat bran, molasses, EM-X ceramic powder and efficient microbes that do natures job efficiently and in a way that what we waste can be readily replaced back into Mother Natures womb with fewer footprints.

Bokashi is a patented compost activator for beneficial microbial inoculation, fermenting and pickling organic food scraps in less than half the time a conventional cold pile takes.

Bokashi Kitchen Composter is a hot pile that uses a composting activator called Bokashi (from Okinawa) for indoor composting, and after it is full, will take between 10 to 14 days to fully ferment, which is the average amount of time the average American family takes to fill a five gallon kitchen crock.

If you are looking to recycle all your kitchen compost indoors with this system its recommended to have at least two Bokashi Kitchen Composters; one for adding daily scraps throughout the week and another for simply composting.

When the barrel composter has fully dissolved all the nitrogen based organic materials into a useful a humus like product, the smell will be good

Most anaerobic fermenting processes will smell, because of the anaerobic nature of the fermentation process.

Bokashi on the other hand, has everything necessary to keep that hot pile thriving with EM technology.

Smaller urban spaces make composting ever more challenging, but it is possible to compost indoors efficiently with Bokashi Kitchen Composter.

Bokashi Kitchen Composter is the modern way to deal with our human kitchen wastes in an ecologically conscious process that lays cobblestones of sustainability on the highways of tomorrow, for the children of our childrens greener tomorrow

The change occurs at a moment that being Green is not just a Canadian issue, but also one for us here in the USA.

Tuesday, January 30, 2007 marked a change over from polystyrene containers to containers and lids made from corn and sugar cane.

Quote:

“We have heard a lot of feedback from students about Styrofoam, about unenvironmentally friendly products on campus. It’s kind of a hot topic these days,” University of Manitoba Students Union vice-president Amanda Jonson said.

“But the No. 1 reason is just to take a leading step and say we are at least trying to take an initiative and be more environmentally responsible here on campus. And hopefully other people will catch on,not only on campus, but other food service options, other options all across the city and across Manitoba.”

With only a 0.25$ environmental levy per package, its a small fee for a campus that already has a composting program; just throw the empty container in the recycling bin and UMREG (on-campus recycling group) will make sure it is properly composted instead of landfilled.

Degrees Diner has boosted the motivation of not just those on-campus, but those off-campus will follow in their lead, as they notice what a difference being a little ethical means to their clients.

One thing is for sure, we can certainly expect something from this, and we can see how important composting is becoming to the mainstream commercial food industry and to our country’s elite of tomorrow.

The compostable biodegradable packaging in Manitoba is just one more example of a trend that is hitting Northern America on full; soon we will see even the USA with news like this, very soon.

Pet Waste Digester is exactly that; like a stomach, fresh digesting enzymes are applied to the buried green plastic pyramid that neutralizes pathogens that thrive in foul anaerobic conditions.

Pet Waste Digester leaves behind a healthy protein liquid formed by the bodies of dead fecal bacteria and other nasty anaerobic microorganisms that might find their way into this septic earth stomach.

A deodorizer can be used together with the conventional outhouse-digesting enzyme, killing foul odors associated with wet pet wastes.

A 14-20 hole should be dug and then backfilled, the pyramid design saves garden space, holding more below ground, and opening only enough for the lid with a pedal mechanism that makes it all that much more convenient for backyard composters with dogs, cats, pigs, horses, chickens…etc.

Making a smaller footprint in the backyard than traditional septic tanks, Pet Waste Digester absorbs harmful organic materials, rendering them safe to the environment, the digesting enzymes doing all the work.

At 18.5×18.5×17.5 and weighing 12 pounds, Pet Waste Digester comes with 8 oz of enzyme for one or two dogs safely rendering six months worth of animal fecal material safe for return to the earth.

Soda cans are essentially cylinders that can be radically reduced in size and still be properly recycled neatly with a can crusher.

Space is such a commodity in todays American culture, where verticalization, industry and commerce go hand in hand.

Not just time is money, but our precious urban spaces are money as well; this can crusher will hold up to 300-crushed soda cans where only 100 non-crushed could traditionally be stored in a bin of the same dimensions.

Weighing only 14 lbs when empty, made of composition high impact, heavy duty durable plastics that will last for hundreds of years, this can crusher measures 33 high x 14 wide x 18.5deep and is an attractive addition to any kitchen recycling program.

At a 3:1 reduction ratio, you can keep your recycled aluminum cans from messing up cardboard boxes and bins that tend to take on foul odors when left unattended properly.

This can crusher will help keep the area neat and clean, preserving space and helping our civilization go one step closer to self-reliance.

This elegant neutral light gray color blends well with most decors and most importantly, this can crusher is an efficient way to keep those tin cans recycled in a more organized fashion that helps us remember that we are on the path to self-reliance, one step at a time.

Verticalization through recycling towers is a concept that goes back as far as the very first walled and defended city-states of primitive human civilizations, but is made from products that are essential to our current way of life, recycling those things with an open mind.

Learning from our past, we can make a better future, and that is what this recycling tower is all about, separating our trash before it goes to the dump.

Made from composition plastic this recycling tower will endure for hundreds of years if well kept and extremely light weight with 3 recycling bins, the most important inorganic kitchen trash to be recycled are metals, plastics and glass.

Paper and Organics go hand in hand with each other and can be composted easily, but usually there is always a surplus of paper, such as newspaper.

If this is the case, one of these recycling bins should be reserved just for that in place of another material that is less used, which might be glass in your case for example.

Each bin pivots to allow for ready access, and the bottom bin has a foot pedle that saves on bending over every time you want to throw a tin can in for example.

This three bin recycling tower measures 50 1/5 high, 13 ¼ in deep and 14 ½ wide total, while each individual bin measures 13 high x 7.5 deep x 12.5 wide.

All the pieces (simple assembly) weigh a total of 15 pounds only, easy to move around to wherever in the house when empty.

This light gray 3 bin recycling tower uses verticalized space to be more effective in todays ever smaller indoor urban spaces, using ancient human knowledge and modern materials for a better tomorrow.

Naturally weather resistant northern white cedar that looks of forested meadows of open plains and a more energy efficient approach to recycling.

This cedar compost bin looks good and does the job of harvesting a traditional hot pile in less than a month if turned every few days, and in 14 days if turned daily.

Measuring 30 inches high by 39 inches wide and 36 inches deep, this Green Culture cedar compost bin will hold 24 cubic feet, about a week worth of kitchen scraps (nitrogens) and paper materials such as sawdust or moss (carbons).

The more balanced you keep a traditional compost bin, the faster it will compost and if all you are looking for is a place to harvest quality home grown humus for yourself or as a gift, this is the perfect item.

If you already have a place to store your kitchen scraps, like a couple of closed plastic trash cans or another compost bin, you can turn this pile daily the old fashioned way and take care of all your garbage disposal unit organics.

Once full, the more you turn this pile the faster it cures and done once a day, within two weeks you will have humus, due to this compost bin design.

This cedar compost bin allows for excellent oxygenation and room for microorganisms to thrive in the middle of the pile, killing deadly pathogens and leaving only clean humus.

If you have a second cedar compost bin holding the piling kitchen scraps and dowsing them with carbons every day after turning (eliminating foul odors) will further speed up your compost production so much you will be giving it away for free and recycling what normally goes into the landfill or worse, the sewer.

Either way, if you have a family of five, live in America and eat lots of fresh fruits and veggies, you will need at least two weeks to turn this compost bins holdings into fine humus for your garden if not some thirty days or more if you turn the pile less than once a day.

So a single unit is for those looking to just get started and experiment with composting, not go full out on green living.

This cedar compost bin is the perfect thing for those who are looking to recycle only certain kitchen scraps to get that just right home made humus, the old fashioned way for those award winning rose beds or tomatoes. A great hobby.

For a world that sees self-reliance as a way of life and the future, this cedar compost bin by Green Culture makes the excellent addition to any home garden that enjoys do-it-yourself composting.

Originally marketed to start-up composting toilets, Envirolet Premix Starter Kit is not just for those looking to compost humane fecal materials; it will eliminate any harmful pathogens or toxic pollutants that might find their way into your compost pile, merely because they work “with” Mother Nature, rather than against her.

Hypothermophilic microorganisms require oxygen, so unless you are using Envirolet Premix Starter Kit in a covered pit without air, it is sure to fire up a major boost in the breakdown process starting out from day one.

Tumbling is a must, not necessarily on a daily basis, but decent amounts of ventilation and tumbling in regular intervals (of at least a couple of days) are required to get the pile to heat up to the proper pathogen destroying temperatures (between 120 and 150 degrees Fahrenheit) constantly throughout the composting process.

If the compost is kept at the proper temperature for killing lethal pathogens, Envirolet Premix Starter Kit will help produce useful and “healthy” vegetable loving humus in just 15 days.

Envirolet Premix Starter Kit will get that fresh hot pile started and already on the way to becoming refined “black gold” in just weeks, offering an alternative to traditional starting methods.

Envirolet Premix Starter Kit is an alternative of the future, part of a trend that makes our society just a little bit more on the ecofriendly side, defending the earth, with earth!

Cascadia Compost Bin is available in a large 36-inch diameter or a small 27-inch diameter, as needed, the larger bin with a capacity of up to 20 cubic feet of organic scraps, the smaller 12.

UV inhibitors in the plastic protect Cascadia Compost Bin from the damaging rays of the sun for at least 9 to 10 years, proven reliable and effective.

Cascadia Compost Bin comes with a specially designed tapered hole in the top for rainwater harvesting, keeping the pile with exactly the right amount of moisture, to allow for faster decomposition.

Diamond shaped holes in the side walls of Cascadia Compost Bin allow for a more dynamic aeration, the perfect thing for tumbling a hot-pile manually, keeping breakdown time to a minimum of 14 days when kept properly.

Composed of 100 percent post-consumer and recycled plastics (HDPE on the walls and polypropylene for the ends), Cascadia Compost Bin is multipurpose for both food and yard scraps.

Lightweight with a one-year warranty, Cascadia Compost Bin is lightweight, of simple assembly yet ships at 37 pounds.

Cascadia Compost Bin is an excellent way to take care of the kitchen and yard refuse in one simple composting barrel that keeps compost moist and well oxygenated with ventilation that will produce healthy humus in just a few weeks after reaching its capacity.

Cascadia Compost Bin is an excellent way to deal with our civilizations own problems today, keeping us in-line with Mother Nature.

Covered Bridge Hot Composter is an example of modern technology blending with Mother Nature in harmony.

Made from 100 percent post-consumer waste plastics, this high molecular density HDPE is long lasting, durable and weatherproof.

36 inches in diameter, 30 inches tall, with a capacity to hold 18 cubic feet of organic waste materials; Covered Bridge Hot Composter can compost a mixture of food scraps and yard debris alike.

With a unique rainwater hole on the lid, Covered Bridge Hot Composter even has a new brick design that extends all the way from top to bottom, to be more aesthetically pleasing.

With a 2-year warranty, Covered Bridge Hot Composter only weighs 16 pounds, yet ships at 39 pounds.

Easy assembly in less than 15 minutes, Covered Bridge Hot Composter has ventilation shafts near the bottom for excellent aeration, a quick harvest drawer with firm ergonomic handle and a large top opening for easy depositing of compost materials.

The stainless steel hardware inside is rustproof; making Covered Bridge Hot Composter a blend of ancient composting techniques with modern technology, showing us that the world we live in can not only survive, but also provide an even brighter future for our children and their grandchildren alike.

Covered Bridge Hot Composter is the perfect composting bin for those looking to make a statement about earth friendly relations and modern technology, collaborating for a better tomorrow.

Being sustainable means not only knowing how to use our civilizations resources, but also knowing what to do with our waste materials, and that includes last generation plastics, such as those used in Pyramid Composter.

Pyramid Composter itself is not recyclable, as the plastics are end plastics, that can take up to 200 years to degrade, giving this model an edge over other models, a lifespan that is spent giving back to our planet in the form of humus.

Pyramid Composter is our waste products turned into a valuable, useful and meaningful future.

At 28 inches in length, 28 inches wide and 34 inches high, Pyramid Composter makes quality compost in less than a month, retrievable in an easy to manage door at bottom.

Pyramid Composter (part number CMP-02) made by Achla’s home and garden department is a great gift idea, one that states something about our humanities future.

The 3/16th of an inch recycled polyethylene walls absorb heat, instantly creating a passive “hot pile” that waters itself perfectly with passive rain harvesting.

Zinc plated hardware of 12 nuts, bolts and washers make for a simple assembly that requires nothing more than a screwdriver and yet at the same time, guarantees generations of durable, long lasting composting at 12 cubic feet per fill.

Shipping at only 32 pounds, the sleek pyramid design at top makes for a mysterious conversation piece, Pyramid Composter also has a passive aeration system with strategically located slits at the sides.

Ideally the average family of five would do well with two of these compact Pyramid Composters, while one is composting, the other is filling.

Pyramid Composter takes our civilizations trash and turns it into hope; the hope of a future that is based on the rigid foundation of a science that fights the war FOR Mother Nature, on the battlefields of our own backyards.

Envirolet Compost Accelerator is a unique product that immediately activates a synergy of endospor forming thermophilic bacterial strains that can remain dormant in compost even throughout winter, until conditions become correct for them to reactivate.

When being applied directly to backyard systems, Envirolet Compost Accelerator can produce large amounts of natural humus (healthy humus) within no more than 30 to 60 days.

This process of thermophilic breakdown of composting organic materials is essential for any good “hot pile.”

A healthy pile of black gold is definitely hypothermophilic producing the kinds of nutrient rich, hygienic soil additive that all gardeners enjoy for that competitive edge.

Introducing the thermopiles externally through this dry compost accelerator made by Envirolet will ensure doubled yields for any system, from backyard compost bins to tumblers, as long as there is access to oxygen and moisture with warmer temperatures.

Envirolet Compost Accelerator is a sure proof way to be absolutely certain that your organic waste materials are going to receive the most effective forms of endospor forming hypothermophilic bacterial strains in the business.

Envirolet Compost Accelerator is the additive of additives, for your healthy and competitive this winter “hot-pile.”

Solar Digester’s solar trap, speeds up the breakdown process, eliminate foul odors and keeping the compost “all around healthy and balanced.”

Healthy compost means keeping the amount of hypothermophilic microorganisms up to a maximum, but they need oxygen as well as higher temperatures; those found near the earth’s core.

High temperatures will kill pathogens and bad news anaerobic microorganisms responsible for those bad smells.

Although even a cold pile will breakdown and finally transform itself into humus; Solar Digester speeds up the natural process of composting with three main parts, a black opaque cone inside, a green light cone on the outside and a buried basket that allows the earth’s own microorganisms to do its job more efficiently.

The green cone heats up the air between itself and the opaque cone, thereby creating a passive aeration process that fuels hypothermophiles, while constantly maintaining an adequate temperature for them inside the space of the opaque cone.

Handling between 15 to 20 pounds of organic waste materials every week and sealed with a child proof safety bar, about 80 percent of the kitchen refuse is water, which is quickly absorbed in the ground, in total if well kept, Solar Digester will last at least three years.

Solar Digester once assembled is 27 inches high, 24 inches in diameter at the base, 11.5 inches in diameter at the top, the basket is 16.75 inches tall and 22.5 inches wide, total weight; 17 pounds.

Solar Digester is made from 100% recycled plastic, both the basket and the inner cone, while the outer cone is made from an attractive translucent green polyethylene.

Enhancing the transmission of solar energy into a low impact and an environmentally conscious design that expresses the power of today’s world in one single statement.

Solar Digester is the household compost producer for a more sustainable planet.

Wire compost bins are great for improving aeration in a hot pile, allowing more room for hypothermophilic microorganisms to maneuver and thrive.

A well structured wire compost bin such as this one will maximize the breakdown time on a compost pile to as little as 30 days, even less if lots of grass is used.

Welded construction, this 36 by 36 inches square and 30 inch high PVC coated steel wire compost bin holds up to 22.5 cubic feet of diverse garden debris.

Some of the different kinds of debris that balance this “hot pile” out include grass clippings, leaves, weeds, twigs and even organics from the kitchen, turning out excellent black humus from 30 to 90 days, depending on how often it is turned and what materials are composted.

Nutrient rich soil is efficiently obtained in this 10.3 pound wire compost bin that makes gardening fun and enjoyable, especially when friends come by and notice how well kept your compost pile is.

This wire compost bin has the tactical advantage of today’s modern technology along with Mother Nature’s natural way of recycling organic refuse, especially garden debris.

A wire compost bin is exactly the kind of toy, every serious gardener is looking for; making sure that your property is more sustainable, for a cleaner and a more self-sufficient nation.

Mantis Compost Thermometer will read up to 220 degrees Fahrenheit reaching the core of most compost piles (20 inches in length).

For your “hot pile”, this compost thermometer is sure to do the trick, especially if you are planning on marketing your humus, or use it for any kind of edible plants.

A compost thermometer will make sure that the pile stays between 120 and 150 degrees Fahrenheit, the optimum temperature to allow hypothermophilic microorganisms to thrive and multiply to their full potential (with a given oxygen supply).

Mantis Compost Thermometer weighs no more than 3.2 ounces, reaches a maximum reading of 220 degrees Fahrenheit, is 20 inches long and perfect for reading the core of most any compost pile in just seconds.

Above this temperature, hypothermophiles begin to slowly die off, and below this temperature as well, but high temperatures are extremely necessary for two reasons, one to kill harmful pathogens the other to speed up the breakdown process.

A good compost thermometer is wonderful for making sure that harmful pathogens are neutralized.

Sometimes some of the worst of these “bad news” microorganisms (harmful pathogens) can find their way into the compost pile, especially when a “hot pile” is being used to “sterilize” and purify fecal materials of any kind, from horse, rodent, pig to even human (Alaska for example).

Anything “animal” for that matter such as milk and eggs can be carriers of “bad news” microorganisms and it is the compost thermometer’s job to protect the pile from these foul entities with the help of HypothermophilesJ

Hypothermophilic microorganisms are the main reason to be using a compost thermometer frequently, as hypothermophilic microorganisms are ALL “aerobic microorganisms”, which means they kill foul odors and seek out to feed off of anything that could potentially be harmful to Mother Nature’s delicate cycle of oxygen breathing fruit and veggie eating creatures (like us humans:-).

A good compost thermometer will in short, “keep your compost pile healthy”, leading with human civilization in a low impact way.

A compost thermometer will make sure that your hot pile stays at the perfect temperature, keeping us humans in-sync with Mother Nature, leading the way for a better, more environmentally friendly future from the smallest of creatures to the largest.

Stainless Compost Pail is a cylinder that holds up to one gallon of kitchen organic waste materials, while still only occupying but seven inches in diameter and eleven inches in height, a must for any kitchen composter.

Weighing only five pounds, five and a half with the lid, the Stainless Compost Pail can be filled with charcoal filters to better impede that awful odor that comes from the neglect of a decomposing anaerobic pot.

If Stainless Compost Pail is left to sit far too long in the kitchen without removing the contents on a weekly basis, the charcoal filters go a long way at minimizing unsavory smells that can attract unwanted four legged visitors.

Crock pots like the Stainless Compost Pail are interesting for the average North American family with roughly one gallon of organic kitchen scraps to compost on a daily basis, but most families will only find the need to empty the pot once every two days, hence the special charcoal filter with holes in the attractive stainless steel lid.

Stainless Compost Pail also comes with instructions on how to maintain and use the crock-pot itself, as well as a constant supply of compost tea, excellent for warding off insects in an organic and environmentally friendly way.

Stainless Compost Pail was made to endure the millenniums, is low tech and yet a highly efficient investment for the future of our planet and our children’s children.

Earth Machine Home Composter is 33 inches high, 33 inches deep and 34 inches wide.

Earth Machine holds up to 10 cubic feet or 80 gallons, weighing only 20 lbs empty, made from recycled polyethylene that is UV resistant and a deep black color to improve heat conditions inside this hot pile of black gold.

A special twist top lid allows a better control of ventilation, it has slots that are large enough to let oxygen in yet keep critters out, twist pegs fasten Earth Machine to the ground for animal and wind control.

The round design allows Earth Machine to be turned or lifted to access the pile from any direction.

Earth Machine has a sliding door that can be secured to prevent unwanted rodents or other animals as well as being free of corners (where materials can easily dry out).

No special tools are required for assembly, no holes need to be dug for setup and the assembly is snap together and for simplicity.

Earth Machine has become a sleek high-performance compost bin used by more than 2 million environmentally concerned people, worldwide.

Kitchen wastes and garden debris can be broken down more efficiently by using an Earth Machine Home Composter.

Hyperthermophilic microorganisms flourish with the ongoing access to oxygen; heat and nitrogen based organic materials encountered within Earth Machine.

With superior solar retention, Earth Machine is a hot pile for breaking down materials faster and more efficiently than traditional open piles.

Worm Factory was designed by Cascade Sales (Home and Garden Experts) to take on some of the undesirable chores that can come with harvesting worm castings, more specifically separating the worms from their castings.

Worm Factory is available in three tray, four tray and five tray models, the more trays the higher the production, but the four tray model is 16 inches wide, 16 inches long and 22 inches high.

By offering a system of migration for the worms that climb from drawer to drawer whenever a given food supply has been exhausted, they leave behind a drawer full of castings that can immediately be spread on the garden with no time consuming removal of hungry worms.

Worm factory automatically separates food scraps from finished compost and houses anywhere between 10,000 to 12,000 worms when in full operation.

A Hand Operated Food Processor/Chopper comes with a 16 page program management guide along with an order for a worm factory, red wiggler worms however must be introduced only after Worm Factory worm bin has been fully assembledand prepared for their habitat.

Worm Factory worm bin is a living cold pile that is sustainable and takes care of anywhere between five to eight pounds of food scraps daily, producing in return a whole drawer full of nutrient rich worm castings once a month.

Soilsaver is a charcoal black color, 28 inches wide, 28 inches in diameter and 32 inches high and holds up to 11.4 cubic feet of composting material when full.

When empty, Soil saver weighs 30 lbs, as it is made from 75% post-consumer recycled polyethylene with a weather resistant construction and UV stabilizers.

Soilsaver has two slide up doors and can even come with an optional base plate made from 14-gauge galvanized welded wire with 1 inch by 1 inch openings for aeration and drainage.

Soilsaver also comes with a unique self-watering feature to allow only enough rainwater in to moisten the composting pile, thereby reducing composting time.

Soilsaver comes with a lock down lid to prevent the entrance of unwanted varmints or curious children, a definite plus for urban areas.

With four inches thick of natural insulating structural foam molding, Soilsaver extends the composting throughout the long slumber of winter months.

Hypothermophilic microorganisms are responsible for accelerating the composting process, and in doing so; stimulate the sterilization of compost materials, reaching temperatures that are far too high for offensive bacteria to survive.

The secret to this design is aeration, as oxygen is a must for benefic hypothermophiles to flourish, this was done by incorporating adjustable air vents, an easy access lid and a sliding bottom door that make the Burpee Backyard Composter easy to use.

Holding up to 11 cubic feet of compost materials from both the garden and the kitchen, Backyard Composter is easy to assemble, without the need of any tools. Instructions are of course included.

Backyard Composter (product number 96297) is unobtrusive, aesthetic and recommended as a safe product for both flower and veggie gardens alike, the perfect thing for gardeners looking to make their very own black-gold right in the comfort of their own backyard.

Bamboo Composter is a stationary outdoor compost bin that holds up to one cubic yard (0.76 cubic meters or 200 gallons) of compost materials, at 36 inches in diameter when at maximum size and only 36 inches high.

Collapsible and easily transported Bamboo Composter weighs only 25 lbs (11 kilos), is made of half inch diameter individual poles that are bound by stainless steel retaining wires and is sealed with UV protection.

The small gaps between each pole provide optimum ventilation/air flow and drainage that accelerate the decomposing process with hypothermophilic microorganisms that just love to transform kitchen refuse and garden debris into healthy and useful black humus.

With a 30 day money back guarantee (unused condition only) or 90 days against defects Bamboo Composter is an all natural solution to our ever growing need for energy conservation.

The aesthetic nature of Bamboo Composter is its most attractive quality, and although made of bamboo, will easily withstand years of active composting, making an environmentalist statement in the middle of any garden.

A good compost spreader will equally distribute compost around the yard through the perforated rust-resistant metal drum.

Green Culture makes a compost spreader model that is reliable and totally 100 percent American made.

At half an inch by one and a quarter inches, the diamond grid pattern on Compost Spreader by Green Culture totally breaks up the chunky clumps of compost materials through an efficient low-tech, tumbling drum unit that is both easy to manage manually or towed, as desired.

Compost Spreaders like this one made by Green Culture are environmentally friendly and do mother natures job more precisely in a more aesthetically pleasing fashion.

The comfortable handle grip makes Green Culture Compost Spreader, user friendly as well as a sustainable low-impact/high-result gardening and lawn care tool, for those who take gardening that one extra step in energy conservation.

Hand pushed/pulled or tractor/animal towed, Green Culture Compost Spreader has a full-width latchable door for quick filling.

A total of 24.5 inches wide, 18 inches in diameter, 4.7 cubic feet and weighing 20 lbs with a powder coated green finish, Green Culture offers a two-year warranty on this efficient compost spreader.

For those who think sustainable and low-impact on the environment, low-tech is the way to go; Green Culture Compost Spreader is an option unlike the others.

This Compost Aerator is made of rust-resistant powder coated steel, sporting a solid half inch shaft with hinged folding wings that extend out two whole inches.

CT Compost Aerator will dig deep down into any cold pile, where the wings will open up to a full diameter of 7 and a half inches, creating large air passages.

These air passages created by CT Compost Aerator, with nothing more than a few easy turns stimulate the balance of the pile and give life to hypothermophilic microorganisms that help the breakdown process reach hygienic temperature levels.

The overall length of CT Compost Aerators shaft is 36 inches, and will ship for as little as 2.20 pounds.

Not everyone has the time or can give the effort of taking out a pitch fork and tumbling their composting pile twice a week, instead, CT Compost Aerator does all the work with just an easy thrust and twist.

If done properly, a good cold pile using CT Compost Aerator will effectively turn itself into a nutrient-rich pile of potting soil known as humus within as little as two whole weeks, or fourteen days.

CT Compost Aerator makes life all that much easier, maintaining constant oxygen levels to propel those beneficial microorganisms that destroy pathogens and other urban dangers, with a process that nature herself has consecrated as part of a perfect all renewing cycle.

CT Compost Aerator, with nothing more than a thrust, twist and turn, transforms cold piles into thriving hot piles of healthy proportions.

Within just two weeks of filling, EzComposter Compost Tumbler will produce, nutrient-rich fresh organic humus for planting soil.

Ez Composter Compost Tumbler is an efficient hot-pile, it kills harmful bacteria through thermophilic composting that makes useful and safe soil for your garden or plants.

Even human organic wastes can be safely and efficiently cleansed through the dynamic process used by EzComposter; a process that takes temperatures up so high that absolutely no harmful pathogens could survive.

The secret to this efficient and rapid humus production for enriching the soil of edible and non-edible plants alike, is a constant balance of oxygen throughout the pile; this is done through easy tumbling once a day or a couple of times per week as desired.

EzComposter is a large barrel with some 72 ventilation holes and as it is rolled on its base from time to time, the oxygen if further distributed throughout the hot-pile.

This cools it down at first, but then immediately heating it up once again as the oxygen loving hypothermophilic microorganisms prosper and reproduce; thriving off of the nitrogen and carbon materials found inside the tumbler.

For every one-third green materials used, two thirds should be brown materials, this will maintain the proper balance necessary for quick, efficient and safe hypothermophilic composting with EzComposter Compost Tumbler.

If used and tumbled correctly, EzComposter Compost Tumbler could produce excellent humus once or twice a month. A process that normally takes months or even as long as a whole year.

At 36 inches by 31inces by 28 inches and weighing only 49 pounds, EzComposter Compost Tumbler is a great way to make your own compost from household organic waste materials.

From kitchen scraps to kitty and doggy number ones and twos, even human (if you have the courage to be catlike and use sawdust instead of drinking water as your potty), EzComposter Compost Tumbler is a great way to make your very own nutrient-rich humus for edible and non-edible plants alike.

Hypothermophilic microorganisms are natures way of taking care of our number one and number two, EzComposter Compost Tumbler just takes that process to its maximum potential in a single barrel.

EzComposter Compost Tumbler is an environmentally friendly way to take care of our cultures waste by recycling what we through away, including the very product itself; an icon of American ingenuity and our beautiful nations ongoing recycling efforts.

Microorganisms that enjoy oxygen are excellent for fighting down those bad news anaerobic varmints that can attack roots, create diseases or gobble up the nutrients plants and roots systems need to stay healthy.

Aerobic microorganisms found in worm castings are beneficial and can act as an organic alternative to noxious pesticides and fertilizers.

Soil Soup Brewers carry down the microorganisms found in worm castings immediately through the soil and oxygenate them making a difference in even the more clayish of soils with nothing more than a little oxygen to boost their number count.

As one of the better protections against plant diseases, increasing in both aeration as well as soil fertility, Soil Soup Blenders use an interesting pump called the Bio-Blender to maintain the compost-tea.

The Bio-Blender will continually infuse air into the compost tea while keeping it fully stirred, feeding the microorganisms with a special nutrient rich solution. Be these beneficial bacteria, protozoa, fungi, nematodes.

Soil Soup Brewing will cause an enormous fungal biomass multiplication, allowing the aerobic bacterial populations to grow more than one billion per teaspoon alone.

Soil Soup 6.5

The 6 and a half gallon SoilSoup Compost Tea Brewer 6.5 comes with enough worm casings to make 64 gallons of compost tea. Nutrient-rich solution, Bio-Blender and worm castings all come complimentary with a purchase, and are the only things necessary to start brewing compost tea onones own.

Soil Soup 25

Nutrient-rich compost tea made with the Soil Soup 25 will make a 128 gallons total. Soil Soup 25 also comes with the Bio-Blender, and can even be diluted 10:1 in water.

Soil Soup Brewers are an excellent way to use energy more efficiently, especially worm castings, through the dynamic aerobic feeding process of microorganisms.

Soil Soup Brewers such as the Soil Soup 25 and Soil Soup 6.5 are truly one of the more unique products for consumers thinking about going totally low-tech sustainable, any time soon.

Urban Compost Tumbler 7

capacity: 7.3 cu. ft.
height: 44″
width: 32″
55 gallons
weight: 35 lbs.
Ground space needed: 32″ x 26″.
Wooden stand and recycled plastic 55 gallon drum.

Urban Compost Tumbler 9

capacity: 9.5 cu. ft.
height: 43″
width: 33″
71 gallons
Weight: 61 lbs.
Ground space needed: 43″ x 35″
Plastic stand and recycled 71 gallon drum.

Urban spaces are becoming ever greener in our modern society and US citizens are turning more and more to sustainable ways of co-existence.

Thermophilic microorganisms are our friends of the future and the creators of Urban Compost Tumbler know this fact all too well, as they made oxygen their number one priority with this design.

75% less work for the end user, the Urban Compost Tumbler has a unique airflow design that increases the oxygen rate equally throughout the bin on a daily basis, making quick work of yard and kitchen refuse in a low impact eco-friendly product.

Good soil for gardeners and excellent liquid compost tea for the passionate horticulturist; this is more than just an ordinary compost tumbler.

The Urban Compost Tumbler is a work of sustainable art that fashions itself with a 100% recycled food grade plastic drum that is turned daily with no gears or buttons.

Just turn a couple of times and shake back and fourth to bring oxygen levels to a maximum; and ualá, 15% more oxygen throughout the composting pile.

The Urban Compost Tumbler is a 9.5 cubic foot barrel that holds some 71 gallons, on a rotating axis, just inches from the ground.

With a secure lid, the container remains child proof as well as critter proof, and your black gold can be harvested within 13 days with just one daily tumble that require no more than a single turn on the axis and a little shuffling from side to side.

Make quick work of excessive yard debris and your kitchen scraps in just two weeks with the Urban Compost Tumbler, an innovative design for safe and efficient urban composting that kills odors and bad news bacteria with stable levels of oxygen, water, carbon and nitrogen.

For a more sustainable and energy efficient country that need not pollute or destroy our mother planet, Urban Compost Tumbler was created to work with our microscopic allies; thermophilic microorganisms.

Envirocycle Composter produces homemade compost tea that is hygienic and powerful.

So powerful is this quality tumbler in fact, that for every one part tea, you can easily add ten parts water and even the most clayish soils will become filled with nutrients.

Envirocycle Composter also produces top quality humus for veggies and other edibles as you need, all coming from your kitchen and yard scraps, just remember that half of what you put in should be brown and dry paper solids (excellent carbons), and the other half can be green and wet for those urgently needed nitrogens in the soil.

Tumbling is easy as the Envirocycle is a sturdy plastic drum weighting some 19 lbs at 28.5 inches high, 24.5 inches wide and 20 inches deep.

Envirocycle Composter sits on rollers, allowing for up to 19 liters of pure compost tea per batch of compost. One batch of solid will produce 7 cubic feet of humus within four to six weeks of tumbling only a few times a week and up to 900 lbs of solid per year.

Rotating the Envirocycle Composter will quicken the composting process, allowing for extremely healthy humus and tea within just a few weeks if done daily for example.

This is due to higher oxygen levels produced during rotation, making the ideal environment for thermophilic microorganisms that just love to cook and digest unwanted bacteria thereby breaking down the refuse in a more friendly and hygienic way.

This aesthetically pleasing compost humus/tea tumbler even comes with a lockable lid, ideal for preventing animals from rummaging through your black gold.

The biggest advantage of the Envirocycle Composter is the mere fact that it not only collects solid humus but compost tea as well claiming to be the only commercially sold product on the world-market that has this ability in such a compact and practical style.

Envirocycle Composter is perfect for your apartment or house where space is limited, but you plants and veggies still need both liquid and solid fertilizers that are sure to be both sustainable and low impact on the environment as well as excellent for starting a conversation with friends and fellow eco-geeks

Depending on your kitchen, you may want this compost crock in stainless steal or white ceramic, either way; it occupies no more than seven inches in diameter and eleven inches in height, filling a total of one-gallon capacity.

The size and capacity of this Plow and Hearths Compost Crock is strategic, it allows for optimum performance for organic refuse in the average American kitchen within one day. Making emptying easy; and for the eco-friendly, a delightful task.

Both the ceramic model and the stainless steal model of Compost Crock made by Plow and Hearth come with the option of buying a replacement lid/filter that keeps the crock odor and oxygen levels at their ideal levels.

Plow and Hearth Compost Crock is a delightful work of art and a design that was expertly developed for the modern American kitchen; matching both green living with modern expectations of hygiene and beauty, all in one compost crock of the future that you can enjoy.

When the past becomes our future, we have finally learned that there truly is hope in the ways of our ancestors, Plow and Hearth Compost Crock is one example of that hope, how our heritage, can blend with our here and now.

Busch Systems Kitchen Compost Carriers support sustainable practices in urban spaces not only during their lifespan, but also during manufacturing, as they are made from a minimum of recycled plastics.

With a wide opening, the KC1000 and KC2000 are perfectly designed for cleaning off plates and scooping out pans directly into the bins.

KC1000 Mini Kitchen Compost Carrier

This is a smaller version of the KC2000 and holds 5.8 US quarts, while occupying 8.5 inches wide by 9 inches deep by 8 inches high.

Weighting only one pound the KC1000 is a soft medium green and made from high density polyethylene with a 25% blend of recycled pellets.

Less people in the house means less kitchen food scraps, but still requires optimum hygiene while eliminating foul odors.

KC2000 Kitchen Compost Carrier

Perfect for short term storage, with handle, this portable compost carrier is uniquely designed for the average North American household, with large amounts of organic kitchen refuse.

Holding 9.6 US quarts of leftovers, table-scraps and other organic refuse materials, KC2000 is 8.5 inches wide by 9 inches deep and 11 inches high weighting only 1.35lbs.

Made of the same material as the KC1000, the KC2000 comes with a special carbon filter option that, eliminates odors caused by anaerobic microorganisms already involved in the breakdown process.

Kitchen Compost Containers by Busch Systems also come with rounded corners and edges to be safer around children and easily cleaned as well as emptied.

Kitchen Compost Containers are dishwater safe and will hang on the wall or cupboard door from two strategically placed screw holds on the back.

For the ideal Kitchen Compost Container, choose between the KC1000 (small and to the point, for one or two people) and the KC2000 (made for the average household consumption).

http://www.compost-bin.org/original-compost-tumbler/ The Original Compost Tumbler by PBM Group is the perfect compost tumbling bin for large yards with lots of leaves and grass clippings throughout the gardening months.

Large annuals, vegetable garden, enormous trees, extending lawns and anywhere up to 18 bushels; the Original Compost Tumbler will produce fresh earth smelling humus within just 14 days of tumbling.

The compost from the yard debris can become one of the most valuable resources available for gardeners and landscapers with this 27 inch tall rotating drum that is easily loaded and unloaded and takes no more energy than a simple few turns a day.

By rotating the Original Compost Tumbler daily, the compost aerates efficiently, creating the ideal environment for thermophilic microorganisms, speeding up a process that used to take a whole year and eliminates the backbreaking work of turning compost by hand.

Original Compost Tumbler uses gears to rotate, so that even when it is full there is no slipping, everything is even.

At 68 inches high 50 inches wide and 40 inches deep, the OCT barrel will easily hold even the biggest loads and give each load the same attention that quality humus deserves.

The special aeration drainage units on the door of the Original Compost Tumbler permit maximized intake in a unique way without spilling compost.

Painted the color of most landscapes, a relaxing green, the interior mixing fins create thorough mixing and faster decomposition; screened vents on the end caps ensure constant airflow.

The tubular steel frame makes for a firm support system, holding the rustproof galvanized metal drum at exactly the proper height so as to make filling the tumbler easier on the muscles.

The Original Compost Tumbler was built to take up to 18 bushels of yard debris and quickly process it within just 14 days into safe black nutrient rich humus to put safely in the garden.

Related:
PBM Group

Biomass is a word that has been overused by the fuel and energy industries in recent years and is now becoming a word that can break down into the four F categories, fuel, feed, fiber, and fertilizer.

1. Ecologically speaking however, biomass is simply the total mass of living organisms in an ecosystem, population or designated area at any given time. This also refers to the culmination of living matter such as in forests.
2. As a potential energy source, any vegetation or other plant material that can be converted into useful energy, fuel, fiber, feed or fertilizer is highly considered by the new energy generation to be biomass.
3. Photosynthesis is how the sun naturally stores energy in plants, through chemical bonding of plant materials.

Biomass takes carbon from the atmosphere, thereby storing it in the form of living organic matter and economically converting into electricity, fuel or heat as needed.

Biomass energy most typically comes from such sources as agricultural crop residues, municipal and industrial waste, and energy plantations.

While the department of energy publishes more and more information about biofuel and biodiesel, the more and morethe term biomass begins to refer to stored energy for a more sustainable biofueled tomorrow.

Biomass is very much a part of the carbon cycle. A cycle that is based on sustainable methods, as they are in agreement with todays biology.

Crops such as corn, sugar beets, grains, sugarcane and kelp are all considered energy plantations thatcan be harvested through cogeneration, gasification and fermentation, thereby creating energy and liberating their carbon once again, back into the atmosphere.

Over urbanization into green spaces and deforestation can contribute to Global Warming, therefore the very nature of creating sustainable solutions to biomass is all that more appealing.

The higher the dry yield of materials and the smaller the given plot of land for developing the project the crop will then be able to generate productive energy.

Biomass is used more to describe the variety of materials available and their potential uses rather than specific ones.

• The word biomass itself comes from two root words, bios Greek for life, course or way of living and Massafrom Latin meaning kneaded dough, lump, that which adheres together like dough.

• In order to be sustainable, biomass must generate more energy than the production itself does.

Any organic matter that has been out of the carbon cycle for too long such as coal and or petrol canhelp to deteriorate the already fragile infrastructure, usually measured only in dry weight.

According to systems theory, biomass is a very important ingredient for helping our planet breath well.

Not only is biomass used for producing energy, as it is also used in making alternative plastics that are biodegradable and excellent building materials.

While paying attention to deforestation and over-urbanization into green areas, it is important to always keep the continual cycle of replanting new biomass resources in unison with recycling waste products and the continual production of humus as a source of life on earth.

Composting well, avoiding environmental disasters, and always replanting will keep our biomass production sustainable and efficient for future generations to come.

Further Reading:
Characteristics of Biomass
Department of Energy Biomass

But challenges with the outdoor composting create a smell that is intolerable to Woolen Mills residents.

Recently on the 25^th of September, discussion was underway as to how to deal with the problem, and at an estimated 10 million dollars, an enclosed structure could render between 17 and 19 percent more compost.

The Rivanna Solid Waste Authority board met with Woolen Mills residents about the issue on Monday the 25^th, bringing relief to both parties.

Moores Creek Composting project processes between 8-8.5 thousand tons of wet compost per year, a revenue that almost pays for itself.

Sustainability is just a hop skip and a jump away for Charlottesvill, VA, and composting human biosolids without odors is more than just the first step, it is a giant leap toward a better tommorow.

As our nation becomes ever more sustainable and with the invent of biodegradable packaging, so does the world around us.

The dependence upon fossil fuels becomes less and less a concern now that biodegradable packaging is a part of our world economy; being without such an industry would cost us dearly in hygiene, energy and practicality.

NatureWorksLLC.com offers a solution to the worlds packaging need that is not only sustainable, but is the world leader in biopolymers for the food industry.

The project was first established in 1997 and the company was finally established in 2000, as a global stand-alone organization wholly owned by Cargill, with more than 200 employees, is a several hundred million dollar investment with a 300,000,000 lbs polymer capacity.

NatureWorksLLC is dedicated to manufacturing a plastic that not only costs the same as traditional fossil fuel based plastics but also, is just as useful if not more so and environmentally friendly with a rapid return to the environment.

Made from 100% corn crop, NatureWorksLLCs biodegradable plastics use carbon that is produced through the process of photosynthesis.

Instead of taking 100 million years to produce the base product for plastic, NatureWorksLLC takes only 100 days to produce a resource that is renewable and plentiful enough to stimulate our nations economy.

Two majorbiodegradable packaging types are developed by NatureWorksLLC, Nature Works PLA and Ingeo Fibers, which are part of the Smart Care Focus that uses thermoformed plastic parts in a more efficient way during handling at the factory, raising life expectancy and performance.

Nature Works PLA makes three different categories of biodegradable packaging:

Serviceware disposable Dixie cups, dishware, forks, knives and spoons that are used only once, then thrown away.
Rigid Containers precut salads, fruit, vegetables and convenience store and fast food restaurant bought fountain drink cups.
Bottles vinegar, water, milk, juice etc.

By using biodegradable packaging made from corn crops, Wal-Mart USA alone will save more than 800,000 gallons of gasoline per year or 13 million pounds of greenhouse gases that would otherwise be used to make disposable plastic packaging

Traditional non-biodegradable packaging takes more than 200 years to return to the earth and creates harmful greenhouse gases when burned.

Aside from Wal-Mart, Del Monte produce packaging has also been using this biodegradable packaging since 2005 and the rapid growth of investment in this green area has been increasing geometrically around the world in an almost equivalent fashion.

Marks and Spencer in the UK, DelHaize in Belgium, Iper in Italy and E-Mart in Korea, all creating triple digit growth in the plastic industry.

Consumers actually prefer buying a product that comes from Mother Natures renewable stock rather than something derived from fossil fuels.

With the best supply chains in North America, Europe and South East Asia, Natrual Works LLC has developed the worlds leader in biodegradable packaging that meets the markets current needs as well as the current prices at the same performance level as traditional non-biodegradable packaging.

While a peat pot may sit around for weeks at a time, it cant get wet or left outside in the weather or else it will quickly begin to decompose into soil matter, making watering itself a quick way to start the process.

Biodegradable pots on the other hand are wonderful for long-term usage as plastic pots, especially for seedlings.

Upon maturing to replanting stage biodegradable pots such as those made by Rosso’s International, can easily find their way directly into the soil.

Even if a pot is broken, split or cracked beyond use, no more worrying about how to recycle the plastic in an environmentally conscious manner.

Rosso’s products come in a wide range of colors, shapes and sizes to meet the same needs and aesthetic value as those proposed by traditional fossil fuel pots.

Dishware and pots made from the pulp of bamboo pulp as well as other agricultural residues such as corn pulp.

A stable and sustainable technology for a brighter human future. Biodegradable pots made by Rosso’s International, come with the very latest in modern technology and research, using only environmentally friendly production.

Bacteria, water and carbon dioxide do the composting of biodegradable pots within 6 months, they are 100% natural, hygienic, suitable for the use with foods, they can even withstand temperature of up to 180 Celsius, freeze proof as low as 40 Celsius, fully microwavable, acid, alkali and oil resistant, durable structure free of odors or poisons, with a 2 year shelf life.

Indoors, outdoors, plant nurseries, gardens, and anywhere you would like to have your growing environment more aesthetically pleasing as well as make a political statement about energy conservation, will do for Rosso’s biodegradable pots, longer lasting than peat pots which have always been biodegradable, but never last this long.

Rolypig is actually a big ten sided garbage can on its side with internal composting chambers, painted on the outside to look like a cute piggy rolling around.

This compost tumbler is certainly a lot bigger than little Wilber from Charlottes Web, but still all about calling attention to itself.

Easy to use, natural, and all about nature, Rolypig makes a decent statement about energy conservation.

Just introduce kitchen or garden wastes into Rolypigs mouth, then roll over upon one side for aeration.

There are four chambers inside of Rolypig, and after a full turn, Rolypig readily supplies perfectly safe humus in the rear compartment on a continuous basis.

Rolypig is a hypothermophilic compost tumbler, but can also be a combination worm bin if tumbled less often (like once a week for example).

This incredible tumbler was designed to compost an amount of organic wastes equal to that produced by the average American family, in this case, tumbling Rolypig on one face a week is a standard recommendation.

Only 32 inches tall, 43 inches long, 31 inches wide and weighing 20lbs, Rolypig comes in pink, green, yellow, blue and orange for your satisfaction.

Steve Watson of Minnesota is both an artist as well as an environmentalist with a knack for composting.

What started as an educational project, soon became a city wide call for urban environmentalism in the form of an efficient backyard compost bin.

Steves Earth Engine is a custom made, either double or single bin that does all the work of decomposing our residentially produced organic kitchen scraps and returning them to the earth in one of the most efficient ways.

Steves Earth Engine has an easily adjustable cedar side opening that makes turning the compost bin all that much easier.

At 36 inches high and 36 inches wide, the double bin is 68 inches long and the single bin 36 inches long.

For trustworthy composting that looks good in any backyard or garden, Steves Earth Engine is the perfect thing.

Steve’s Earth Engine Cedar Composters
4841 Garfield Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55419
Phone: 612-822-1893

Tilterator makes manually tumbling your organic yard debris a snap with a special tilt, turn and tumble design.

This sturdy cube will hold 17 cubic feet and can be assembled and used by anyone capable of lifting 10lbs.

Just remove one of the sides, tilt forward and back again, then scoop the compost back into the Tilterator, fully oxygenated and ready to heat up once again.

Compared to the traditional wire fencing that most yard debris composters are already used to, Tilterator makes turning the compost pile easy on the back muscles as well as a fun endeavor that can be done far more often.

Tilterators double walled design keeps heat inside the pile, making hypothermophilic organisms right at home and speeding up the decomposition process.

This compost bin not only makes tumbling easy, it is also very durable, able to take on even the natural elements.

Tilterator is an excellent model of composting bin for easy manual tumbling due to its unique aeration method that is easy on your body.

This two chamber automatic composting model by NatureMill maintains heat and moisture conditions for a 100% safe hot pot. Just add organic kitchen scraps in the upper tray at any time and NatureMill does the rest, depositing ready-to-use compost in the lower chamber.

When it is full, NatureMill comes on with a light, indicating that it needs to be emptied out into the garden.

One of the advantages of this automatic composter is that it only uses 10 watts of power, costing about 50 cents less than your garbage truck would spend in fossil fuels while hauling your trash away to the landfill.

In fact, NatureMill Automatic composter will recycle its own weight in organic compost once every 10 days, almost two tons worth of kitchen scraps that go straight into your garden every year, instead of in the local landfill.

One batch of automatic compost from this efficient kitchen crock design is enough fertilizer to cover about 10 to 40 square feet of your garden, once a year.

Nomore worms, no more tumbling, no more digging and maturing, it is all done inside this one single unit constantly for a price that is more than cost effective, NatureMill Automatic Composter takes up as much space as a waist high trash can, while making enough fertilizer for the whole city to go green.

NatureMill Automatic Composter is sustainable and comfortable, both blended into one perfect design.

NatureMill, Inc.
530 Divisadero Street PMB-149
San Francisco, CA 94117

Sun-Mar has been a leader in composting human organic by-products for more than thirty years, and now they comes with the Garden Composter 200 made for taking care of your kitchen scraps as well. The garden composter 200 has a capacity of 50 gallons.

The garden composter uses hyper thermophilic microorganisms to deal with your kitchen in a constant tumbling fashion, but there is no need to empty it out and start over.

The big advantage over common tumblers is that it takes in organics from the top and tumbles them daily until the bin is half-full and releases a constant flow of humus out the exit hatch on the side.

This design is an industrial solution to what has most commonly always been a homemade and custom built product.

The Garden Composter 200 competes well on the market, and few other products can compare to the special design that allows for a constant, no maintenance flow of humus, daily.

Aesthetically pleasing to the eye, this globe is more than a map of the planets continents and oceans, it is a convenient way to get rid of kitchen scraps and other organic wastes that a household may create.

The sphere is an interesting model of composting bin because its dimensions allow the largest internal volume while at the same time, occupying the least amount of surface area.

Tumbler capacity:
8.7 cubic feet
Base capacity:
5 U.S. gallons
Empty weight:
26.5 lbs

This ratio, allows for higher rates of decomposition and conserves more internal heat produced from thermophilic microorganisms doing natures composting.

Highly weather resistant plastic, molded handles and lid, Blue Planet SMART is a work of true visionary entrepreneurship.

As household composters go, Ecolosphere Inc. has created something very decent for todays market of global sustainability.

The medium is the message. And Blue Planet SMART is just one way to give those who care about the well-being of Mother Earth an effective yet simple way to make a direct impact in the fight to protect our environment.

By reducing the amount of final waste products that actually reach the landfill every year, BluePlanetSMART will cut down on the final size of your garbage bag by at the very least one third and provide excellent compost for your garden or lawn.

Blue Planet SMART gives you the chance to think globally while acting locally.

Getting down into that buried pile of kitchen scraps once a week or once every two weeks may not sound like fun to some people, but those who understand the whys and hows of composting on the other hand; can have a lot of fun with a cold pile.

Children just love cold pile composting, especially when adults are interested in talking about it. Not everyone is like you or I and enjoys digging up a putrid rotting mass of left-overs just to pile more on, but that could change if they knew what is so kool about it all.

Like most cold pile composters, I look forward to that special day every two weeks when I can open up my cold pile and harvest some “black-gold of the earth.” And sure enough, I can, as long as I keep a couple of practical things in mind like:

1. Are only organic wastes going into the pile? (left-overs, kitchen scraps, paper, wood…etc)
2. Are these materials going into the pile free of harmful agents? (toxic wastes, high concentrations of insecticide or other pollutants…etc)
3. Is the pile itself free of harmful agents that might be nearby? (acid rain, leaking sewer system, gas station or mechanic’s run-off…etc)

If we answer YES to all of those and keep our basic rules of cold pile composting in order, like carbon/nitrogen ratio and keeping new material well distributed throughout the pile with ample oxygen supply, two weeks is all it should take without a single scent.

Reminding people that for every 1 part of rotting animal or plant mass we throw along something like between 25 to 30 parts high carbon based materials: dry leaves, dry straw, newspaper, cardboard, woodchips or sawdust the pile might scare some people, but it should do the work itself if left alone.

What makes cold pile composting fun? Not the hows, but the whys! It may sound strangely religious, and I guess it is after all, but communion with nature and the earth!

I don’t want this entry to sound too personal, but when I get my hands in the dirt, I can feel myself connecting somehow, in a spiritual way.

To really get down to the earth and put your heart into making that cold pile; something that mother nature can be proud of; is not hard at all to do, but putting your heart into it, that is something that makes the pile take on a whole different meaning.

Nobody should ever be ashamed of having fun while composting a cold pile, it is as noble an art as any other composting technique, probably due to its simplicity. I myself just pick up a bag of sawdust at the furniture mill up the street and throw it over my pile once a month, looks great and smells like Douglas FirJ

Kids like to listen about why we compost, and showing them how simple it can be with a cold pile is a sure fire way to get more people back in tune with their heritage (the earth).

Cold pile composting is fun because it is prewritten in our very cells, from a time when our ancestors knew what it meant to respect the very soil we eat from.

Rejoice in the simplicity of composting your own cold pile today, be proud of that feeling, tell others and always try to just “let go” of all those worries, be one with the soil and you will be happy.

So we took the big step and purchased a farm. Our goal is to grow one hundred percent organically and start a farm composting business. Yes there are some suppliers of natural fertilizers however; the cost can be a major issue.

But can we not make our own organic soil amendment with natural products such as manure, leaves, and other organic materials such as dead plants?

The answer is yes we can. Not only will it benefit us financially but it will also help keep our farm healthy.

Lets take a look at some of the benefits of creating a composting business for your farm.

The benefits far out weigh any potential issues as long as you use common sense.

1. Management of manure. By using your animal manure for your compost you are helping to take care of potential smell and heath issues. Use common sense and always wear gloves and a mask when handling animal wastes. Collecting your animal manure twice a week also helps keep flies down. Make sure you situate your compost pile downwind at least one hundred yards away from your primary residence and water source.
2. Increased organic material and minerals in your soil. The main reason to use compost is to enrich your soil. By adding organic material you will increase your yields and also help prepare the soil for thefollowing years.
3. You can sell your compost. Many people do not think of this option. However if you contact local garden shops and cooperative extensions you can ask them to resell your compost for you. Be prepared togive them at least a twenty five percent of gross commission.

So we can logically justify having a compost operation on our farm now how do we go about starting?

The first thing we need to determine is what can we mix together to make our compost. The following are a good start. Leaves saw dust (other then Black Walnut), pine needles, shredded paper (no colored sections only black and white), dead plants, wood chips, and animal manure (other then swine).

Try to make everything a similar size so it will break down uniformly.

What I suggest is to start out the traditional way with a large pile you can mix bi-weekly with a backhoe. The easiest way to do this is to gather all your materials together wet it all down well. Using the backhoe mix the compost together, again soak the pile with water mix again with the backhoe. We now want to cover our compost pile with a black tarp; this will help increase the heat inside the pile. One key thing to remember you need airflow within the pile itself so never pack your compost pile down. If anything fluff your compost up so it will get more airflow.

When you first start to clear your land or clean up the previous owners mess make sure you start your compost pile. Last years crops make great compost ingredients. Plan now for next year. If possible let your compost work for a full four months. Mix your compost once every two weeks and you will have wonderful compost that you can use for your crops and also sell. The ability to legally call your crops organic will also increase your margin. In a sense compost is Mother Natures way of rewarding the farmer for being environmentally friendly.

When in doubt think of compost like wine, the longer it ages the better it becomes.

Use common sense and you can effectively create and manage a successful farm based compost business.

Related:
Farm Scale Composting Resource List
On Farm Composting Handbook

What is the technical definition of biodegradable plastic? To qualify as biodegradable a container, cover, or other object made from plastic must decompose sixty to ninety percent within sixty to one hundred and eighty days.

What if someone could come up with a plastic that was user and earth friendly? Perhaps one that naturally breaks down similar to a peat pot. This container would have to be pleasing to the eye and durable. Now let us take it a step further and add nutrients to the material that the biodegradable plastic was made of. Sounds like an interesting concept huh?

Besides being a huge benefit to our environment think about the business application in the agricultural, nursery and landscaping business.

Let’s research this some more to find out if there is such a thing as biodegradable plastic for a cell phone cover.

The University of Warwick in the U.K. has come up with the first product that fits all of our criteria…

Originally designed to make disposable cell phone covers, the University and Pvaxx have produced the first sturdy, moldable biodegradable plastic.

One of the very unique features about the cell phone cover design is that they embedded a dwarf sunflower seed into it. This should please the ecologist in all of us.

You can literally throw the cover into a pile of dirt and a sunflower will grow which is an interesting marketing idea indeed.

Imagine a day when everything plastic can break down in our landfills, and gardens. This is not mentioning all the litterbugs across the world that throw, plastic bottles and containers out their car windows. What if the major fast food chains started to use these types of containers? The possibilities are limitless.

This technology makes good practical, business and environmental sense. I hope within twelve months we can walk into a local nursery and pick up a plastic biodegradable starter planting pot.

Related Composting Info:
Composting Mobil Phones

Not all Americans are familiar with the mystical Afro-Brazilian martial art called Capoeira, even fewer with the Afro-Brazilian religion called Candomblé, much less what they have to do with compost and composting.

They have everything to do with composting, they have even been called a reserve of sustainable practices with nature. Candomblé and Capoeira emerged from sustainable villages in Brazil during the days of slavery, villages called Quilombos, places where composting was necessary to cultivate crops in accordance to their religious practices.

Most all Afro-American religions, including those in the southern hemisphere suffer from serious discrimination due to the use of religious offerings that are non-perishable and therefore harmful to nature.

Misunderstanding about the meaning of such things as the burning of candles, clay plates filled with corn, glass bottles of heavy drink, plastic bottles of honey or any a number of materials that are not easily disposed of in nature have given even greater emphasis on the negative aspects of such religious practices and even been called unsustainable.

In Brazil however, Candomblé has recently taken on a cause for environmentalists as a reserve of Afro-Brazilian culture and identity through such simple practices as low-tech composting.

In today’s Brazil, sustainable practices are becoming more and more popular as a trend, and many have turned to Candomblé for alternative practices, as composting is a serious challenge for those who practice the religion today.

The Executive Secretary of the Minister of Culture Juca Ferreira in Brazil said in Salvador Bahia on the 12th of December 2003 at a the Seminar for Candomblé, Health and Axé (spiritual energy), the following:

“The desire – many times heroic – to dominate nature, stimulated the transforming energy of capitalism and allowed the fantastic development of productive forces and knowledge. But, today, we find ourselves at an impasse. We are before the possibility of an environmental unbalancing of no return in consequence of the human actions. We cannot discard that this unbalancing comes from the malpractice of life on the planet. The social and environmental impacts of such developments have brought us to this threatening point. The rise of the temperature of the earth, the destruction of entire ecosystems, the daily disappearance of thousands of species and the vertiginous reduction of drinking water supplies are symptoms of this global environmental crisis, a true challenge for all humanity.”

“Candomblé is more than an ally. It is a precursor of environmentalism, it is a reserve. The point of view of candomblé is deeper. It is not treated to defend. The reverence of Candomblé, praises, recognizes the sacred one, the manifestation of the Holy Ghost in nature. In this direction, candomblé is a cultural reserve for the change that we need to make for a more sustainable society, or rather, fraternal, just, tolerant with the differences between human beings, because it understands them and because it in general respects other forms of life and nature. Candomblé is, at the same time, space of tradition, base of resistance and place of renewal. The diffuse influence of candomblé in the set of Brazilian society has contributed for many of the qualities of our society. The ecological question demands a magnifying of this influence.” – translated by Babelfish

Juca Ferreira makes a point that has become a trend in Brazil in recent years, the Afro-Brazilian culture, of which Capoeira and Candomblé are integral parts. They teach of ways that countries like Brazil can become more sustainable through such simple things as composting and taking interest in the earth.

More importantly, Afro-Brazilian religions themselves need to take more interest in what the do with their offerings, which when neglected, can be harmful to nature. As this is a growing trend, it becomes more and more obvious that followers of the religion look to low-tech methods of recycling their offerings in creative and innovative ways.

So creative are these methods sometimes that they have even become the object of research in such famous universities as UFBA and USP. Composting in Candomblé is a perfect example of how a religion can play a big role in some of the habits that our society seems to have acquired and how a religion can learn to adapt to new situations that threaten its existence.

According to many researchers and historians, the most influential deities in Brazil come from a now extinct tribe in Africa called the Yorobá tribe who’s priests came to Brazil in slave ships along with there followers, a society that was once “one with nature.”

There are many other tribes that influenced Brazilian Candomblé and the many faces of the religion all point to one thing in common, “harmony with Mother Nature in all walks of life.”

In the days of slavery, slave owners, frowned upon African religions; for this reason it was always hidden and disguised in the form of more acceptable religions, such as Catholicism.

Capoeira has a similar story, but the only place the enslaved Africans in colonial Brazil ever found refuge, was in the escape of the rain forest, a place where sustainable practices meant survival.

In places known as Quilombos, African-Brazilian culture flourished and composting was an integral part of their sustainable villages, without composting, harvesting crops on time, would have been impossible.

We know that in the Quilombo, it was essential that people’s wastes all went into the same area, cured under the earth and turned several times a month until it smelled like earth, and could be put to work in the fields. This was part of religious ceremony and made the difference through prayer and offerings.

For example, animal manure, horse, pig, lamb and human, needed to be “planted” with other materials such as dried grass, sawdust and old leaves in order to get the favor of the gods. In those times the gods would speak to people through priests who would receive dreams that told them what to plant, where and how, and most importantly, it worked.

As a trend, the story of such sustainable villages as Quilombos is one that continues to make breakthroughs in both cultural discrimination of a traditionally Afro-Brazilian religion as well as opening minds on both sides of the coin to the richness of history.

Composting can be spiritual and it can be scientific, how we see the facts is up to our own hearts and minds.

Tribes like the Yorobá from where Candomblé first came to the Americas, are perfect examples of how spiritual ways can tell the same story science keeps telling us all along, that we need to treat the earth with a little respect, it is, after all, our home and composting is the first step to being respectful. (By Mario Lopez)

Why not learn about nature’s laws through a little ceremonial composting in our own lives?

Mr. Joe Jenkins has written a book for the really passionate do-it-yourself composting enthusiast. His book, “The Humanure Handbook — a Guide to Composting Human Manure” is filled with research and bibliographies that teach us step by step, what we should really be doing with our sewage, rather than discharging it into the toilet. If low-tech off the grid solutions to sanitary challenges and sustainable systems is a major concern for you, then The Humanure Handbook should definitely be on your bibliography.

Discharging human sewage into water creates blackwater, a complete waste of precious H2O. The Humanure Handbook shows how to dispose of humane manure in an environmentally safe and productive way, producing completely clean fertilizer and humus.

Most people think that something as ugly and smelly as human fecal material could not, nor should ever, be used as compost in edible food gardens. Mr. Jenkins argues that human compost can be just as healthy as horse, chicken or any other animal manure once properly exposed to the breakdown process of thermophilic composting.

In chapter 6 of The Humanure Handbook; Fecophobia and The Pathogen Issue, Mr. Jenkins describes fecophobia as “The belief that humanure is unsafe for agricultural use…” a term he admittedly made up himself. This seems to be the most important issue to be studied, people’s fear of humanure.

Basically, that people are afraid of composting their sewage seems to be what hinders the development of a more sustainable civilization for everyone. But what people fail to realize is that by the correct practice of thermophilic composting, all harmful pathogens are permanently destroyed. The Humanure Handbook explains in simple terms as well as scientifically, how this process happens.

Mr. Joe Jenkins’ book is available in over 60 countries around the world; it is a viable solution for those who want to live off the grid from city sewage. Avoiding the contamination of water all together is his proposal through the self-development of your very own composting toilet for only 25$.

A composting toilet is nothing more than a bucket filled with number one, number two, toilet paper and sawdust or moss (how you make it look nice however, is what costs money). Putting a good layer of sawdust over the top of any fecal material neutralizes foul odors completely, and prepares the compost for the thermophilic process.

The thermophilic process begins in an outdoor composting bin protected from rain and protected from contact with soil.

Thermophilic composting correctly is a matter of making sure that the compost is reaching heat levels far above those of the human body, thereby neutralizing anything that could possibly be living in human organic wastes.

In order to make sure all the harmful microorganisms are completely destroyed, it is important to make the compost heap reach these high-temperatures many times. Mr. Jenkins’ own compost pile at home is an average size and takes about one year to become rich and useful compost material that is both safe and clean for plants and people alike.

For those who are looking for the perfect booklet to do-it-yourself human manure composting at home, The Humanure Handbook by Joe Jenkins is the perfect manual. Humanure is not just for the lone hippie stuck in the 70’s, this book has a reach that goes beyond living out in the woods.

Humanure is a safe and productive alternative for urban spaces and on whole community level scales, if not one day perhaps, even nationally. The author’s speculation is that those that would most benefit from humanure techniques are those living in places where epidemics and sanitation is a serious concern. If you like low-tech off the grid solutions to sanitation and sustainable systems, this book The Humanure Handbook, is definitely one to be read.

Can composting in a poor low-tech community or nation bring a greater concept of wealth and well-being than a good economy? Does composting have such value?

When people think about gross domestic product that supposedly shows how wealthy a given nation is or is not, the poor of any given nation look at those numbers like they were lies, and with good reason, they dont see any of that wealth in their own lives.

But one thing people in low-tech impoverished communities usually dont have access to, is a good and decent education. And in the end, the GDP only determines the final services and products in a country in any given time, not a nations well-being.

Well-being is what is most important, not the current situation of the economy. GDP is not a calculation of real wealth; well-being is a real calculation of wealth. Human happiness.

Composting in an impoverished low-tech community can be one of the most important factors in creating that kind of well-being. But why? Why would they care? The media makes it a point to merchandise fast cars and new clothes.

And even worse, most of these communities walk around living in a kind of urban landfill, dumping trash and human fecal material all in the river behind the house just to find that it all clogs up and floods in heavy rains.

Romans sacrificed rivers to send their number one and two into the sea, but that was 1,500 years ago, do things need to still be done in this way, just to be low-tech? Why not compost and recycle? Those are products that can actually generate monetary revenue! And better yet, do-it-yourself projects create well-being!

Recycling number one and number two is easy, and just about as low-tech as one could possibly get. Its safe, AND a feasible way to purify human organic by-products. By never throwing waste in the water, we never contaminate it.

By cultivating our ugly human organic by-products into clean earthy smelling humus, we create garden materials that could be either sold or used in community agriculture.

Human organic by-products are high in nitrogen, and as long as there is a high concentration of easily composted carbon materials at hand (like sawdust, paper and moss) composting it into a community based project can be simple, safe and clean.

Not just clean for the environment, clean for ourselves, our children and our childrens children down the line. Composting is natures way to do good for itself and us, providing forests to breath air, food to eat and ground to walk on, all of it filled with life!

Composting is a way to commune with the planet. Not just spiritually, but also scientifically, logically, historically and statistically, as one wishes to think of it.

The obvious is that by composting on individual, community, national or even global scales, we work with nature. If we work with nature, nature will work back with us, providing eternally, it is simple and obvious.

But who will invest? Who is interested in helping the poorinvest in their own wastes? Perhaps only those people living near or around the poor neighborhoods and find themselves most victim to the naughtious smells and toxic floods. Those people who find their well-being greatly disturbed, independent of theircurrent financial situation.

How much would it cost to actually do the marketing with posters and flyers until those people start to wake up? How many lectures on community consciousness would need to occur? How many people would go if soup was being served? How much would it cost to find a space for all that compost?

How much would it cost to get people to invest with their own wastes? How many compost toilets and kitchen scrap bins would need to be made? How about finally getting that compost to the market? Would it market? If so, for how much?

If community agriculture was taught, how long would it take for people to do it themselves? How about getting their final agricultural products to market? Would it market, if so how much?

Well, if people are given the resources, they can figure it out for themselves, and education about composting is a valuable resource indeed. Especially to those who go without. Pride in ones own achievements is an outcome to composting that creates the kind of well-being that money cant buy. Compost itself and even some personal low-tech home gardening, can actually generate wealth.

So who has the passion to do it? This is the final question. Is anyone willing to fight and die for life giving humus in a community that needs it? One day perhaps, that diamond in the rough will emerge. And on that day, the true wealth of composting will be seen. Any revolution, a real revolution, starts with just one passionate person. Let it come forth! (by Mario Lopez)

One thing that is surely hurting the composting industry is compost odor. Large composting facilities start off with the best intentions but often people soon start complaining about the smell. Public concern over composting facililty odor can also put planned projects on hold if the developer and city planners do not incorporate a proper level of odor control into their facility. Compost odors in small scale compost piles, heaps or bins are easy to eliminate with weekly maintenance, but for large scale facilities a more advanced method is required.

The Three Compost Odors

The three odors that are most unpleasant to humans are ammonia, hydrogen sulfide and volatile fatty acids.

1. Ammonia – Ammonia is generated by the build up of nitrogen in an area that does not get enough air, this is called an anaerobic condition.
2. Hydrogen Sulfide – Anaerobic conditions also produce hydrogen sulfide which smells like rotten eggs. Compost compaction increases levels of hydrogen sulfide in an active compost pile.
3. Volatile Fatty Acids (VFA) – Microbial decomposition under anaerobic conditions produces volatile fatty acids in the form of a vapor or liquid.

Compost Odors – Causes and Solutions

Compost Compaction – Be sure to churn and add bulking material to compost such as bark mulch, to prevent compost compaction which increases the level of anaerobic activity.

Low Temperature – Cold weather causes compost compaction.

Too much moisture – Plastic compost bins tend to build up excessive moisture, so if you have a homemade bin, make sure to allow proper ventilation by drilling holes in its sides.

Improper C/N ratio – The carbon to nitrogen level in a compost pile requires balance. What I like to do is have two barrels of “leveling” materials on hand. One barrel of browns (shredded leaves) and one barrel of greens (grass clippings) to mix in as needed.

If you are new to composting do not get too lost in the details, just remember the above simple tasks and you will get a feel for what works for you. Compost odor is the easiest way to determine if you are doing your maintenance correctly and remember, properly composted material smells earthy fresh.

Robert E. Richter, CEA-Horticulture, Travis County and The Texas Agricultural Extension Service put together a great composting slide show for kids. It shows and teaches about the basics of composting in compost bins and trenches in an easy to follow way. I would like to see more educational institutions and non-profits do this type of thing.

Here is the composting for kids slide show.

by Kelly Slocum

There are more than 4400 named species of earthworm on this planet, and researchers have broken them into three categories, largely descriptive of their habits in the soil. These three categories are endogeic, anecic and epigeic.

Endogeic worms build complex lateral burrow systems through all layers of the upper mineral soil. These worms rarely come to the surface; instead spending their lives in these burrow systems where they feed on decayed organic matter and bits of mineral soil. They are the only category of worm which actually eats significant volumes of SOIL and not strictly the organic component. Endogeic worms tend to be medium sized and pale colored.

Anecic worms (like the common nightcrawler Lumbricus terrestris) build permanent, vertical burrows that extend from the soil surface down through the upper mineral soil layer. It is not unusual for their burrows to reach a depth of six feet or more. These worm species coat their burrows with mucous which stabilizes the burrow so it does not collapse, and build little mounds (called middens) of stone and castings outside the burrow opening. Anecic worms are able to recognize their own burrows, even in an environment where there are hundred of other burrows present and return to these burrows each day.

The anecic species feed in decaying surface litter, so come to the soil surface regularly, which leaves them exposed to predators. They developed a spoon shaped tale that bristles with little retractable hairs, called setae, with which to grip the burrow wall and avoid being easily pulled out. They also tend to be very large worms and have bellies with less pigmentation than their backs. These worms have a long generation time, do not do well in high density culture and require the stable burrow environment in order to thrive. In the absence of this burrow, anecic worms will neither breed nor grow.

The worms we use in vermicomposting systems, like Eisenia fetida (commonly called the redworm), are in the epigeic category. In nature epigeic worms live in the top soil, and duff layer on the soil surface. These small, deeply pigmented worms have a poor burrowing ability, preferring instead an environment of loose organic litter or loose topsoil rich in organic matter to deeper soils. Epigeic species feed in organic surface debris and have adapted beautifully to the rapidly shifting, dynamic environment of the soil surface.

We use epigeic worms in vermicomposting because we can duplicate their ideal environment in a bin or bed, because they are voracious processors of organic debris, because they do well in high density culture, and because they are so very tolerant of a wide range of environmental conditions and fluctuations.
Among the epigeic species there are several dozen that have become naturalized to North America. It is widely believed that all native worm species were wiped out by glacial activity thousands of years ago and that those now supported in North American soils were introduced from Europe with explorers and settlers. While the recent articles about non-native species causing damage to US forests are interesting and worth noting, few soil ecologists feel that earthworms pose a major threat.

The epigeic worm species Eisenia fetida is found on nearly every land mass of this planet, with Hawaii being a notable. Regardless, there are typically multiple epigeic worm species in most regions of the US that process organic surface litter. In the southern states, for instance, where E. fetida is prolific, at least two other worm species suitable for vermicomposting systems are common to area soils, Amynthas gracillus and Perionyx excavatus. This is not to say these are the ONLY other species present in these soils, but they are two that are routinely found south of the Mason Dixon line and in many areas of irrigated soils in the southwest. Northern soils are home to many worm species, including E. fetida, but no A. gracillus or P. excavatus as these species cannot tolerate cool temps for any length of time. Alaskan soils support rich populations of E. fetida worms, which can survive the extreme winters. Admittedly the adults are typically killed by the freeze, but the amazing little cocoons can easily survive being frozen solid for many months, hatching healthy young when the spring thaw arrives.

In every region of the world there are worms adapted to the local soils. Not every place has had a taxonomic survey done, so researchers do not always know which worms may be present in a given area, but it’s fairly certain that wherever you are there is a worm adapted to converting surface debris to topsoil. When a composting or vermicomposting system is in soil contact naturalized earthworms will be drawn to the system when and if it meets their environmental requirements. Local epigeic species will all live happily side by side, processing vast amounts of organic debris, and the one best adapted to the particular bin environment and local climate will be the species that ultimately dominates the system. In most areas of the US this worm will be E. fetida, though P. excavatus is sometimes the dominant species in composting systems in the southern states. In systems in soil contact it is also fairly common to find anecic species like the common nighcrawler investigating the bin. It is highly unlikely they will set up residence IN the system, but will visit the bin to find a nice meal before returning home to the comfort of its burrow.

Earthworms are an incredibly varied and adaptable group of animals that are so common in our world that they often go unnoticed and unsung. We are far more dependant on them than we realize, and are fortunate that they are so eager and able to rise to the challenges we pose them!

Listen up school teachers and composting hobbyist with children. The Volvo Adventure Conference in May 2006 will be offering an award to young folks who enter and win their competition for local environmental projects that help educate schools and communities.

Here is the award or should we say “reward”:

Win an all expenses paid trip to attend the Volvo Adventure Conference in May 2006,

Present your project and practical action to a jury of international experts,

Win$10,000, $6,000 or $3,000 prize fund your environmental project,

Show your project to the world by publishing it on this website,

Contribute to a handbook of practical action for use by your peers and UNEP.

In 2004 the National Public School, (Indiranagar) India presented a vermicomposting project that won the award, so get your thinking caps on. This is a world event so all are welcome to participate.

Also, if you would like some ideas feel free to contact me, I have many and would love to give your group a hand. :)

Now that the ground is frozen here in New England, MA my plan is to recognize and write about those who have contributed to composting. If you are not new to composting with red worms (vermicomposting) you have surely heard of Mary Appelhof. Though people have been vermicomposting for who knows how long, Mary was the first to actively educate the public.

At a Stockholm conference in 1972 Mary promoted the idea that worms could eat “tons of garbage” and produce rich worm castings. Mary had a background in biology and was a high school teacher which lead her to print a brochure about basement worm bins. She printed them using an old mimeograph machine.

Mary helped organized conferences, lectures, classes and wrote books, if there was an event on composting Mary was there.

Most of us who enjoy composting with red worms have a copy of Mary’s most well known book titled “Worms Eat My Garbage” which has sold 165,000 copies so far. Mary also published “Worms Eat My Garbage Classroom Activities” pamphlets which motivated many schools to take composting to the next level and reduce school cafeteria organic waste.

Mary even has a patented worm bin she named the Worm-a-way® and had a business contract with Goodwill Industries to give out of work folks jobs making and packing bins for sale.

Mary was proud of a National Science Foundation grant she obtained to make a videomicroscopy VHS. This educational video titled, “Wormania”, shows footage of worm cocoons hatching, babies growing. You still can purchase all these great educational resources from Mary’s website.

I had emailed Mary a few years back and was going to interview her, but when I visited her site recently it was sad to find that Mary passed away on May 4, 2005. I will never get to interview the Worm Woman who I have admired over the years so much. This post is dedicated to keeping Mary alive in our thoughts. If you read her books, see her videos or discover her classroom activity pamphlets, Mary is still here teaching us today.

Mary said:

My personal mission is to change the way the world thinks about garbage. To think of it as a resource, rather than something to throw away. Worms help me to do that.

Here is a great interview by Evy McGinness (who also is no longer with us) that had the pleasure of asking Mary about her passion.

Here are some Compost Pictures from Flickr. I enjoy finding pictures related to composting. If you are going to use these pictures you must go to flickr to read the rules. I will start a good collection here for you to view.

Here is an example of how a rat can chew his way into your plastic compost bin if it is too thin. This is where an old fashioned wire, or wire lined composting bin can help. Also if you have a precomposting container that allows the organic matter to break down naturally, it can be worked into the compost pile and not become a tasty treat for a rat (in this case).

More to come…

Deciding to compost with shredded leaves can send a person around the neighborhood looking for lawns that need raking and offer to haul them away for free to have a good supply of nitrogen for indoor worm bins in winter. Leaves, as simply leaves are great for soaking up abundant amounts of water, and can be a great way to make to make leaf mold, that black stuff on the forest floor. But it takes time, and depending on how you leave it, it can take even longer.

Unless shredded, leaf compost just stacks the leaves up on one another leaving a moist and oxygen-less environment which is no good for thermophylic microorganisms. Shredding leaves can be a fun task by just mowing the pile over with lawn mower or using a shredding machine for exactly that purpose.

Most importantly while doing thermophylic composting, be sure and turn the compost often. With shredded leaf compost it’s possible to achieve a nice black humus in a little over two weeks if properly turned. This is one of the main reasons why gardeners like to use shredded leaves in a “hot” compost pile, it can save time on making a rich and urgently needed top soil.

If using highly pathogenic nitrogen compounds be sure that the compost gets itself well heated up first before protecting any ground soil, because pathogens will just march right into the ground soil of the garden with the first heavy rain. A positive point about shredded leaf compost, as mulch, is that it is wonderful at soaking up absurd amounts of water, 300 to 500 times its own weight in water, where as top soil only twice its weight. That can be an effective way to protect sensitive plants that enjoy a more controlled water intake.

If shredded leaf compost is used with passion, the garden becomes a place of deep and powerful emotions. The surrounding trees that look so beautiful in the sacred fall are then synonyms to the wonderful and joy filling chance to crank up the lawn mower and fill the grass bag with load after load of shredded leaves, to be composted or molded as desired. And with a little patience, a fine, rich, black humus is soon achieved, that brings pride to the gardeners life, making the flavor of berried more delicious and vegetables more nutritious. All this from something so simple as shredded leaf compost.

Looking for a compost pail? Other items linked above, thank you!

Deep within every human heart there is a need to make a better quality of life for ones own self as well as their surrounding family. This basic organic need which can be found in all forms of life is a law of nature. No creature is exempt. Humankind tends to see things in a bi-polar way. Good and Evil, black and white, odd and even… All “human” ways to interpret an already time-test-proven-perfect ecosystem that seems to only know how to give… And humanity takes. In large scales, humanity takes. And what does it give back to the ecosystem? Trash! Millions of tons of trash every year! With no regard as to where it goes, is collected or how it is processed. In most poverty stricken communities the organic trash can be bad news. And one fine, beautiful way to deal with it are community compost containers.

Large compost containers that are built and maintained by the communities themselves or by the government are excellent alternatives to pollutant landfills. Who has seen what goes into a landfill? There is no control. A landfill is an uncontainable environment for creating uncontainable pathogen infested disease that seeps into the ground soil when it rains, into our precious underground streams, to the roots of fruit trees and beautiful flowers that become sick and die from the extent of the horror that is ground contamination. People must be educated about the horrors of non-containment and realize the benefits of separating and containing our organic wastes. Whole communities could rise up in action against this injustice with the proper compost containers in hand, a little know-how, and lots of willpower.

If a compost container is used in the correct fashion, the kinds of composting being done will be far more predictable, for example, if the composter wants a high chomper friendly compost with a low temperature and lots of hungry red worms, then the style of container used would be in direct contact with the soil, but yet completely surrounded and covered with a lid, never coming in contact with rainwater in order to keep the surrounding ground soil clean. If on the other hand, the desired compost processes dangerous organic substances, such as those pathogenic in nature, this idea of coming directly in contact with soil and producing a chomper friendly environment should be replaced with a thermophylic friendly world of compost. A thermophylic friendly compost container is the kind of container that prefers microorganisms that work well under very high temperatures, the kinds of temperatures which are dearly necessary when making sure that all those vile pathogenic bad guys fall dead on the battle field.

Should the peace-loving communities of our children’s children be forced into dealing with compost containment themselves, or should they be allowed to explore other, more elevated issues? Compost containers are ways of opening peoples’ minds and hearts to the fact that we are all inevitably contained on the very same planet! Compost containers are the future of our lives in sustainable communities here on the planet. When does the future come into our lives? Usually when it starts hitting us in the face like some gigantic salmon fish jumping out of the river on two hind legs and screaming “hey, I’ve got a three headed baby fish I wanna talk to ya about you foolish human beein!!” But if humankind acts now, with sustainable community action and compost containers that teach of nature and her law, tomorrow can be a dream, rather than a nightmare, come true.

What is then, organic compost? Organic compost is the fuel that takes gardeners to new dimensions in their field. Organic compost is the ideal way to start building a repertoire of gardeners’ delights. Things such as hot compost piles, cold compost piles, worm composts, compost tea and others can all be made from good organic composting. To make sure that a compost pile is “organic” it must be prepared, almost like baking a cake. And careful preparation entails carefully planned compost for deeply meditated final compost products.

An organic composter is the type of person who really is environmentally conscious about the kinds of stuff that go into their compost pile. Not just any old thing can be organically composted. TNT, many different explosives, gas, oil, jet fuel, diesel fuels, insecticides and such are all perfectly compostable, but not considered the kind of thing an organic compost pile is made from. Most people when doing composting in an organic way want things that come directly from nature. Mostly non-animal in nature, but that’s being really detailed about it. But basically fruits and veggies are well recommended by those brave and daring souls, be they men, women or children, who, with such a courageous heart, would venture into the knightly Order of organic composters.

In an incredibly obsessive world that delves in consumption, it is no wonder that there are such adventurers as those doing organic composting. Organic compost is an alternative to other forms of compost, in that organic compost will produce exactly what you put into it. That is, if the composting crusader wants a multi-use urban plague fighting organic pesticide, they need to bake the hot pile of hot piles with specific urban plague fighting thermophylic microorganisms that will provide the proper ingredients for a highly aerobic compost tea that stops the plague dead in its tracks.

Truly pathogen thirsty organic compost is usually made by optimizing the initial organic content, with the proper Nitrogen to Carbon ratio. If organic compost is too high in rotting veggies, it will start smelling bad. Neutralizing bad smells means upping the Carbon ratio, which means more peat-moss, paper, wood chips, or sawdust. Anything really absorbent is good. However if the pile has too much of this, it will take far too long to decompose and only a few pockets of usable material might be achieved.

Thus turning organic compost and maintaining the ratio between woody materials and rotting materials is as important as in any other compost pile. Cold piles, however different from hot piles, are usually full of chompers and chompers (mainly read worms) love veggies. These are usually the most organic composts to be found since they start out really natural and produce great fertilizer. Organic compost is also a very socially acceptable way to get people who used to see compost as the icky truths of a rotting world as something almost adventurous or romantically dreamt, now manifesting itself into a better world for our grandchildren.

A Worm Bin can be an excellent way to throw less food down the garbage disposal unit. What is a worm bin exactly? Well the bin itself is basically a box of some kind, usually filled with some kind of moist newspaper scraps, leaves, a little earth and sand, for bedding, red worms, and kitchen scraps. A worm bin, is usually vegetarian, since red worms prefer their veggies. Worm bins can be found under kitchen sinks, near the dog food, or even as a table display next to your son’s pet fish Goldie. The worm bin is more than just a gardener’s tool the worm bin is a way for people to feel good about doing something positive for a world trying to live at peace, amongst itself, and the surrounding environment.

A worm bin is an alternative way to supply wonderfully nutritious worm compost, also known as worm castings, for the garden. It is a way to cope and deal with the constant siege of consumer thinking. But is consumer behavior going to save humankind from itself? Having a worm bin will surely help a person think about that, if they don’t already. One main reason is because a worm bin is a whole other look on life from the one seen by the day to day roughing about of the average urban dweller.

If built from recycled materials, a worm bin will radiate pride and joy from a creation that delves in environmental thinking. When built with small amounts of money the feelings of pride and joy are just as powerful and balance as the inspirational well spring from which such a masterpiece is normally derived. There are so many different kinds of worm bins, they can even be bought brand new, for those who are looking to get right at worm castings through vermicomposting. Gardeners, environmentalists, green living experts, sustainable architects, and even vegetarians, are all enthusiasts of worm bins.

With a multi-layered worm bin, it is possible, to cultivate worm tea. Usually by putting holes in the bottom of the worm bin and collecting the moist drain offs from inside the worm bin. This works by putting a layer of bedding, with moist inkless recycled cardboard or a fluffy layer of moist newspaper scraps on the bottom of the worm bin and making sure the right kinds of foods are being given to the red worms in the correct amount per week. For example, a pound of red worms can go through a pound of rotting non-animal based kitchen food scraps in about a week. Non-animal, because that stuff usually starts to stink and attract unwanted visitors like flies and rats, while keeping those wanted visitors like other environmentally conscious people and curious children not only away from the bin, but sometimes even completely away from the house. So by keeping the foods that red worms like in the worm bin, and no more than they can eat at any one given time, everybody is happy.

Maintenance, can be even easier than taking care of a gold fish. By putting veggie scraps in the worm bin along the edges or corners, in different locations once a week, the red worms have a better time at decomposing the organic material into worm castings, which in the end is the final product that both mother nature and the environmentally conscious are looking to put to use. Mother Nature loves those worm bins. To get at the worm castings, is fun too, just gently place the fully composted castings and their adjacent red worm army onto a tarp along the edges, leaving a battlefield in the center to rally forth upon, project lamps onto the mounds of castings and watch in awe as the fearless troops unite more motivated than a roman legion into the center of the tarp. Whereupon gathered, may be gently placed back into the worm bin for another exiting adventure in composting.

Learn more about Worm Bins:

Human beings have some of the worst habits concerning urban sanitation, due to an old Greek and Roman tradition. Plumbing. Not the redirection of water in and of itself, but the inconvenient way in which we usually dispose of our own human organic wastes. The toilet. The toilet uses water pressure to take our processed liquids and solids away to the sea, out of the public eye. And we forget about it.

Buy Envirolet Composting Toilets at best prices!

Most people don’t even know what happens when human fecal material comes in contact with water. Black water happens, and its toxic. No creature can drink black water. Plants will become disease ridden and die, and animals will become hosts to any pathogen that was in the human fecal material. Nasty water-born pathogens, that just love to spread. And the only way to make sure that they die, usually takes so many chemicals and processing filters to clean it. A compost toilet on the other hand, makes use of the breakdown process found in nature to purify highly pathogenic human organic wastes (both liquid and solid), into simple, safe, and useful organic resources that can be used in gardens as fertilizer.

A compost toilet can come in unlimited designs, and are found from the most rustic kinds as a mere chamber pot with a lid and some sawdust on it or as sophisticated as a solar powered port-a-potty, with a unique custom made tumbler baking chamber with automatic exhaust fan and fertilizing drawer retrieval unit, that could cost as much as 1,500 US$ and use special peat moss bought from the local department store. Compost toilet systems that use a compost pile need to be attended to, throughout the composting process, while those that do the job automatically are much more maintenance free, even though most people won’t want to use a compost toilet when visiting. They might have a hard time trading a white hole filled with water for a black hole that smells like sawdust. But whatever the kind of compost toilet, the principles of thermophylic pathogen slaughter continue the same.

Given enough heat, malignant pathogens found in human fecal material will not survive a well designed compost toilet. When using a compost pile in extension to the compost toilet, 135 degrees Fahrenheit is the starting temperature for pathogen annihilation, all the way up to 160 degrees F. More than 160 degrees will usually start killing off the good guys who do all the thermophylic work… Purifying human organic waste materials through composting is a very important tool for the future, since it avoids even polluting our rivers and streams, dealing with our human organic waste in accordance to mother nature.

Mushroom Compost is basically a delicately produced compost of materials for the commercial harvesting of mushrooms. The kind of mushroom to be commercially harvested is pretty much irrelevant, since the basic conditions that permit mushroom farming use the same kinds of composts. Mushroom compost is a fairly new concept that came about officially in the year 1678 by French botanist Marchant upon presenting the transplantation of the white filament found under mushrooms into an adequate medium (mushroom compost), to the Academy of Science.

Mushrooms have been venerated throughout the ages, and from ages past to this very day, they continue to allure and motivate the human soul. In ancient Vedic cultures, the mushroom was venerated as a god. 4600 years ago, the Egyptians believed that mushrooms were the plant of immortality. Reserved only for the nobility of their time, mushrooms continue a delicacy to this day. Due to the fact that it was only possible to find mushrooms in the wild or growing wherever whenever, the gods felt like it, mushrooms had always been a thing of restricted consumption.

After Marchant however, that changed, since mushrooms have since then been harvested on mushroom farms. In Paris, the first commercially harvested mushrooms were done in old roman quarry caves around the city, and these were named champignons de Paris. The kind of compost that these mushroom farmers would use was the same they used for growing melons. A kind of mix between the soil found there and horse manure. In the early 1950′s a plant pathologist and mycologist in India named Shri S.S. Jain, was living with farmers, trying to help with their apple orchards, when he discovered mushrooms growing in the darkness of a barn on top of rotten apple branches, cow manure, twigs, wheat and other fruit tree branches. Mushroom compost rediscovered!

Today, mushroom farmers use mostly an industrialized and controlled process of making mushroom compost, pasteurizing the compost, using it, and after harvest, selling it as fertilizer for gardens. Mushroom compost is very nutritious in and of itself, as are the byproducts, SMC (Spent Mushroom Compost) or SMS (Spent Mushroom Soil). Usually in the making of mushroom compost, some kind of vegetarian manure is used, like horse, cow, or chicken, as well as hay, or dry grass as a good base, with corn cobs to help nitrogen levels. Gypsum which is a calcium sulfate is also usually found in todays modern mushroom compost.

Once made mushroom compost must be pasteurized in order to keep the aerobic microorganisms alive that help the roots thrive such as benefic nematodes, and thereby eliminating any other types of fungi that may want to take advantage of the wonderful conditions found in mushroom compost. All in all, once mushroom compost has been fully used and the mushrooms harvested, the compost itself, is then reused in gardens as the SMCs and SMSs. If the gardener is looking for the perfect fertilizer, that is 100 percent environmentally friendly, then it has certainly been discovered. Spent Mushroom Compost.

For those who love gardening, compost tea is a wonderful way to achieve riper, more lush and tasty vegetables. Compost Tea involves using compost as if it was just that, a tea. Note, however this does NOT mean, dumping buckets of rainwater over any kind of compost and expecting to extract a perfect, environmentally friendly, oxygenated, death to bad news pathogens garden warrior spray. No, compost tea is a gentle and ethical procedure that takes some care and knowledge. Composting properly to extract compost tea is an art, and requires proper timing, and choices of compost.

Once in the early part of the 1600′s, when the renegade Japanese samurai, Myamoto Musashi survivor of the battle of Sekigahara, first went to challenge one of the countries most revered samurai warriors to a duel to the death, he did not expect to be welcomed with a traditional tea ceremony. This was unheard of. Tea? Cultivating tea is an ancient tradition, and so is gardening. The feudal samurai lord who received Musashi was also a master in the art of cultivating different kinds of tea. His garden was impeccable. So was his tea. Not surprisingly, he used compost tea to keep the garden that way. Compost tea cared for in the same way as a samurai polishes his katana, or develops his technique is an easy thing to achieve. The kinds of compost that can be used will depend on the variety of compost tea being produced. Compost tea was written about in the using of agricultural development by the roman soldier/orator Marcus Porcius Cato (234 – 149bc) who advocated the use of many different kinds of compost tea for different purposes.

Compost tea is used to enhance the productivity of beneficial microorganisms, such as bacteria and fungi, that do decomposing, protozoa and benefic nematodes that are predators. By composting 25 percent high nitrogen wastes, 30 percent wood stuffs, and 45 percent green materials, a high in benefic bacteria compost tea can be made for example. Timing is also important, compost tea needs to be properly cared for, in certain stages of its development in order to achieve the proper tea. If worm tea is to be achieved, then worm compost must be used, in which case a tray collects the moistened worm compost over a long period of time. Using a thermophylic composting system requires a good knowledge of what kind of compost material is being used and the current temperature at any given time. If for example the temperature in a given thermophylic compost reaches 135 degrees F, that’s enough for killing off all the bad news pathogens, but if the temperature goes above 160 degrees F. then benefic microorganisms start dieing off, and that’s not good. So timing is as important as the ingredients.

Another interesting part of compost tea is air, or rather oxygen, itself. Benefic microorganisms need to breath, or else they die, in which case the gardener will know that his faithful troops have succumb to the enemy by the bad smell coming from the compost tea. Compost tea should not smell bad. If it does its because the troops are being suffocated and left with no air to breath. This can be avoided by maintaining the aeration of the compost tea. If using a large compost pile, buckets of water a hose and a pump, then plan on taking some time at this. Worm tea however is much simpler. Just dampen the surface of the compost bed until drops of fresh compost tea drip into a tray. This procedure can be done with cured compost piles as well, but they must be well cured, and the water MUST be as pure as possible. If it’s full of chlorine, it needs to be oxygenated like an aquarium for at least an hour, or else those microorganisms will die from the chlorine. Rainwater can be used efficiently if it’s clean and non-toxic.

Making compost tea from a fully cured pile, means brewing tea, in which case clean water as mentioned above is needed that is well oxygenated, some molasses, and about half a bucket of the well cared for and cured compost, should get the tea started. Pour the water into the bucket, about three aquarium bubblers and a pump, and stir a couple of times a day. Bacteria just love molasses. And once the compost tea is brewed, it can be strained, sprayed immediately on that wonderfully kept garden that would make the most ancient of meditative samurai warriors proud.

To most, Worm Compost is a rhetorical statement, because when thinking about compost, worms are usually one of the fist things to come to mind. A worm does one thing in its whole existence, compost nutritious and valuable fertilizer that can be used in gardens to enrich the growth and development of tasty veggies. More specifically, worms eat the rot off of rotting organic materials, and in exchange, leave behind what we call worm castings.

Worms have been eating organic waste for millions of years and returning nutrients back to the soil, they can breakdown pretty much any organic material, but they have their preferred kinds of food. When doing worm composting, regular earth worms can be somewhat ineffective due to the low concentration of soil. Usually the term Vermicomposting is used when using eisenis fetida or lumbricus rubellus, (red worms), as well as brown nose wigglers. These guys just love kitchen scraps. They can take nutrient rich fruits and vegetables and turn them into nutrient rich compost, within just a few months. A good body of red worms and bedding of moist newspaper strips with some dry leaves, a little soil and a hand full of sand, mixed together inside a cool, dark box under the sink or out in the backyard, away from noisy traffic and dishwashers, could make the perfect place for worm compost.

Red worms can actually double their population within 90 days, when fed properly. Red worms eat about 1 pound of kitchen scraps per pound of themselves in a week. This gets even better for the more space they have to crawl around. The final results are worm castings. And can take some two to three months to be ready in some cases maybe twice that, but once completely transformed, worm compost is a wonderful additive for plants to grow big and strong.

Harvesting worm castings can be a fun and exiting process. For children who are learning about the process, its exiting to separate them by hand, from the finished castings, by gently dumping the whole compost over a tarp and picking them out one by one, but there are easier methods, which can be just as exiting. Worms, are not thermophylic composters. They prefer the very early and latter cooler stages of composting in itself. When said and done, a compost pile left directly in contact with the ground but still properly protected from the rain and elements, will attract worms from out of the ground and into the pile, but once the thermophylic process begins, this situation will change as worms really don’t like heat.

And it is with heat that worms can be convinced out of the finished castings. Just put a few piles around the outer edges of the tarp, and place a lamp light directly on each pile facing in and the worms will all migrate out of their finished castings and into the center of the tarp, where they can be easily collected and given more tummy filling work to do. Which is probably the most remarkable thing about worm compost in and of itself, worm compost means they really will enjoy what they do. Worm compost, in this way, could perhaps by a synonym for humankind in harmony with nature.

Are soil and compost different? Compost and soil are very different. Soil can take in some cases, up to 200 years to finally be produced. While compost is the process of making humus (earth or soil), soil itself is broken down over larger periods of time. Usually once humus is fully composted, through the composting process, it can be added to the soil enriching its already powerful role in nature.

The ecosystem in which we live is unique. It is a complete and perfect system that has withstood the tests of time and developed the laws of nature. No human law can compare to the greatness and beauty that Mother Nature has sculpted through time, in this law, the cycles between life and rebirth are constants. Composting humanities organic waste into humus is a way of humanity working WITH the laws of Nature.

Soil is an integral part of the ecosystem. An entire world of life and rebirth can be found deep under the confines of the earth. For some reason along the course of human evolution, we began to use the realm of soil in ways that were not in accordance to the laws of nature herself. Soil is in fact the accumulation of organic materials that have been broken down completely to produce resources for basic plant growth. Soil is not an easily replaceable resource either. Some studies have shown that to scuff your shoes up in the mountains in a pine grove, could take some 200 years to replace the kicked soil in question. Trees falling over, rotting, and finally becoming reintegrated with the top soil, is a process that could take that long? Then what is the point of composting?

Composting is in fact the process that leads up to the development of humus, a word meaning earth or soil in Latin. Composting should be done in such a manner that it NEVER comes in contact with soil. If a compost pile is being used, it should at the very least be fully layered underneath by some kind of mulch to protect the compost from the soil and vice-versa.

Mulch is any material that can be used as a cover to protect soil from weeds, insects, pest and such things, it can be organic or inorganic, but when dealing with soil and compost, it is always less energy consumption in the end to use only organic mulches. In fact, energy consumption can be measured in kilos of soil. For example, how much petroleum did the truck consume to haul that black plastic tarp used as mulch (Polyethylene), from the factory to the local hardware store? How much did the buyer use to haul it home? How much was used in producing it? How much was used in building the truck that hauled it? How much was used in all and total that into square acres of land that would have been used to retain all that oil? How much does all that land weigh? How many years did it take to produce that oil? For inorganic mulches, and pretty much anything else, energy consumption can be calculated in terms of soil… Why not just use organic mulch? The energy consumption is obviously FAR lower when calculating in terms of soil?

If organic mulch is used, then one day, obviously, soil will be obtained, so no real harm can come to the soil below it. If compost comes in contact with soil and its carrying some kind of dangerous substance such as pathogens or toxic chemicals like gasoline, diesel fuel, oil, grease, jet fuel, wood preservatives, insecticides, herbicides, even TNT and other explosives, these things could potentially seep into the deeper layers of soil until finally reaching an underground stream or just poisoning the whole local regions potentially clean soil. However, if properly kept out of contact from soil, the composting process can break down the vial substances cited above into simple and safe organic molecules. In such an intense example of composting as this one, perhaps a layer of inorganic mulch would be more appropriate?

In the end, what makes compost into soil is careful use of its process. By using compost in an energy efficient way, rich and powerful humus can be added to soil, in a very ethical fashion. Soil may take a long time to produce, but through compost, renewal can be achieved safely and peacefully in accordance to the laws of nature. If the laws of nature are followed and the path of least resistance held true, then the trash known as organic wastes can become a blessing, reusable and efficiently put to ethical use.

Normally a compost pile aka compost heap is just a place out in the backyard where people throw there organic wastes. But when studied, the compost pile becomes a living and thriving focus of knowledge about the world in which we live. A metropolis, of thermophylic microorganisms, that purify all of humankind’s organic wastes, in a natural and energy efficient manner. The compost pile becomes an intense learning environment for people interested in planning and meditating around an alternative future, filled with hope.

Many years ago in the ancient underground Greek cities of Kappadokya, in what is now central Turkey, organic wastes were dealt with by creating humus, and planting it in the garden. They did this by building compost piles and maintaining them. An art as simple as composting, brought prosperity to grape fields, and enriched an already fertile soil… When the Romans introduced sewer systems into western culture, they knew not the grave dangers that they would be creating through river sacrificing.

But compost piles survived the invasion of the Roman Empire, and can still be found today. Thriving metropolises of microorganisms and thermophylic decomposers, compost piles love to eat organic waste and turn it into the rich earthy substance we call humus. Dividing compost into “hot” piles and “cold” piles is most common. Hot piles usually are faster at producing humus, and cold piles take a little longer. Depending on what kind of pile used it could take 1 – 2 years to produce humus or as little as 6 weeks. It really just depends on how much care a person puts in to their compost pile.

A compost pile involves some basic equipment if it is to be done properly and safely. On the other hand, if humus is the only goal, then just dig a hole and throw the compost in it, cover it up with about eight inches of soil and that’s it (a real Kappadokian style “cold” compost pile). Later on however, humankind learned that by layering the ground with some highly carbon decomposers, like sawdust, peat-moss, wood chips, or old hay, by building walls and a roof, and keeping it far enough away from the house (at least 2 feet) to keep critters that might want to get into it outside, we could control the conditions of the compost. By keeping the compost “out” of the natural elements like rain, wind and snow, it can become a better place for thermophylic microorganisms.

Thermophylic microorganisms are important in a compost pile, since they are responsible for sanitation. They can get the interns of a compost pile up to a 140 degrees F, far above the necessary temperatures for killing any bad news pathogens. Microoganisms that do the job of composting need four basic elements for survival: oxygen, carbon, nitrogen and temperature. The different temperatures will define the kind of microorganisms that can exist at any given time, but oxygen, carbon and nitrogen are needed by all. Oxygen they breath, carbon gives them the energy they need to keep on going, and nitrogen offers stuff like proteins, cell structure, and genetic material.

By keeping the compost pile properly turned (could be once a week or month), the amount of oxygen can be evenly distributed throughout the whole pile. There are other ways, of course, like ventilating the compost pile, installing shafts in it from the very start or just basically shoving holes in it from the top. But turning, helps equally distribute the thermophyles, as well as mulching the compost better to give it a better look. In the end, an earthy smell should be obtained, and when you pick any given part of the compost pile up in your hands, that Grizzly Adams log house living off the land and in perfect harmony with nature kind of feeling should fill the human soul. If that happens, or something similar to that, then humus has been achieved, the compost pile is a success, and so is the person who composted it.

A compost tumbler is used as a tool for those interested in composting as a safe and viable alternative to throwing their organic waste away. Normally when composting, people hear about having to turn the compost from time to time. There are reasons for this turning, some say even because it’s just plain fun to go out and turn the compost a little, to make you feel like you are actually doing something. For those doing backyard composting, this usually means a pitchfork, and a personal mantra like: tumble compost… tumble compost… tumble compost… (over and over). A compost tumbler is usually a little more than just a pitch fork and a power phrase.

Some tumblers, look like spinning beer kegs, others globes, some can even be just a barrel on its side, rolling around the yard. The important thing is that they mix and turn the compost so as to get more efficient results. Better looking humus (the final product), is probably the most important reason. But also, by frequently turning the compost, you can achieve safe and enriching humus more quickly.

The main purpose of turning compost is to aerate it. What compost needs to be really efficient are hungry oxygen breathing microorganisms like bacteria and fungi, some are even thermophylic (which means they really love heat!). So that by turning the compost, it actually gets more oxygen throughout its mass. Tumblers are great for this, since with a hardy turn a week or as much as you like, these microorganisms can get all the oxygen they need.

Secondly, by turning or tumbling compost, you ensure that the intense internal heat is well distributed throughout the full body of compost. Whereby pathogens and bad news organisms can be effectively annihilated, building in this way a safe and hygienic product. The point of this becomes even more important when using compost to not only recycle organics, but when thinking about urban sanitation. By allowing the heat to be properly distributed throughout the compost, even the most vile pathogens die. This could be the most energy efficient process for disposing of the most pollutant of urban organic wastes.

Thirdly, the more compost is turned and tumbled, the better it gets chopped and mixed into little pieces. Making the final product more pleasing to the eye, which can be very good if anyone plans on selling the humus once finished. Good looking humus usually means profitable revenues.

Lastly, by using a compost tumbler, the composting process speeds up. Not that it is in any sense less efficient, but rather the CONTRARY is true. By tumbling, the process is even more efficient, since it equally distributes heat, and oxygen throughout the compost and the more you tumble it, the more it chops itself up and even looks better. Compost tumblers are tools for better and more efficient composting. They make sure that all that evil pathogenic stuff from organics, can become an integral and harmonizing part of the environment and nature itself.

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Simply put, Composting is a way to purify and reuse organic waste produced by human civilizations. Making compost is a simple and natural procedure that involves human cooperation with nature itself. By composting, humanity uses the most energy efficient method for dealing with the most harmful and toxic of organic substances. Below are a list of past and current articles.

Compost is a word of Latin origin coming from the word “compositus” (to compose, or put together), “com” – together plus “ponere” – to place. In this case placing together different substances that decompose (or fall apart), to produce a newly composed substance composed of rotted organic materials called “humus” (from Latin meaning “earth, soil”). The earliest writings known today were written on clay tablets from the Akkadian Empire in ancient Mesopotamia that mentions the return of manures to the soil. And throughout history, the Greeks, Early Hebrews, Romans, even into the Middle Ages until today, the art of composting has survived.

Human cooperation means not only helping nature, but also, helping ourselves. Statistically, the amount of organic waste produced in the world is astronomical, and it usually ends up somewhere like a landfill, where it is rained on and eventually seeps into underground rivers, polluting our natural drinking water. Composting, is a way of using the organic waste we throw away by mixing it with things such as peat-moss, hedge clippings, sawdust, woodchips, dried grass… etc. is this all that is needed to compost? Well, compost must be protected from contact with water, and tumbled from time to time. Carbon and Nitrogen are the basic resources obtained, but to decompose them both humidity and oxygen are also needed. Carbon is the basic building block of all life on earth, and can be found in any organic material, since the very definition of the word “organic” is any molecule containing carbon.

Composting implies that from these decomposing resources, a product called “humus” will be obtained. Humidity and Oxygen are required to create the temperatures and conditions necessary for fungi and other microorganisms that participate in the breakdown process of decomposing organic materials to produce humus. High temperatures, will kill any volatile organisms that can be found in compost, such as when composting manure. And in the end, enriching humus is made, which can be put on lawns, flower beds, parks, forests, gardens and even plantations.

No matter what material is to be composted, composting continues to be the most energy efficient method for dealing with organic wastes produced by human civilizations. By composting correctly and safely, humankind can walk in harmony with Mother Nature. But to compost in such an efficient manner, also means learning about the world outside the city gates and keeping an eye on those things that can perhaps be alternatives to the harmful things that have been done in the past. Keeping ourselves, in this way prepared for a better, and brighter future.

A compost bin is a safely controlled environment that recycles organic waste in an efficient and natural way, by producing humus, (Lat. earth, soil). Mostly, instead of using a compost bin, our organic waste is flushed down the drain, into the sewers, and thrown away in the trash, but a composting bin is a safe alternative method to dealing with our own waste. There is one major rule for anyone interested in composting: Organic waste (especially animal), should NEVER, EVER come in contact with the environment. It shouldn’t come in contact with water, nor soil, and it’s always a good idea to keep your hands clean after messing with any organic waste. This is the point of a compost bin, to keep the environment well controlled.

Dealing with the waste produced by humanity is a complex issue that has troubled us from the beginnings of human civilization. But dealing with it in the proper way is still a very plausible possibility, especially when using a compost bin. What is a compost bin?

The origin of the word Bin, is difficult to define, in Old English it was “binne” (manger, or crib) in Gaulish, from Old Celt “benna”, akin to the Welsh word “benn” (a cart), in Dutch “benne”, (is large basket). Perhaps Compost Bin comes from the Old Celtic word “benna”, (which could be used as a dung cart). There certainly is a logic to these associations, but most importantly, why the word?

There are so many different kinds of compost bins, that the proper way to choose a compost bin is to decide which process will give you the kind of humus needed, and provide the most efficient composting process for your environment. In short, the bin itself is just that, a bin, or a place to store your compost while undergoing the breakdown process. It could be of wire-mesh, recycled warehouse pallets, old wood from a ripped apart shed, maybe a broken above ground plastic swimming pool, or even a pile of compost sitting in the backyard between two layers of tarp.

Just as long as the bin, provides the compost with a place to do its job; make humus. The oldest compost bins, were just holes in the ground with about eight inches of earth thrown over the top, which is fine, if you don’t throw anything really volatile, in the hole. But the idea of a compost bin is to RECYCLE organic waste. Which means providing a place totally out of contact with the environment, protected from rain, since rainwater, would just wash the decomposed materials into the ground soil, polluting it.

Soil pollution is a crime against nature and human kind. Making compost bins an essential concept when composting. Any compost bin, needs a bottom (to protect it from coming in contact with soil), walls (to keep it in an organized pile, easily turned, or tumbled without falling away from the bin) and a cover (to protect it from the rain). The compost bin can be made from recycled materials, and requires very little upkeep. The important part is the compost itself, so as to produce a safe, and viable product that keeps the planet, the country, the city, the home and our families, healthy and safe, for future generations to come.

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