Confessions of a Lazy Composter

Hi, I'm Amie and I'm a lazy composter. I want to do my part to keep kitchen scraps out of landfills, but I don't want to spend much time/energy doing it. You too can be a lazy composter.

Here's how:
Keep empty yogurt or take-out containers handy to gather kitchen scraps, coffee grounds, etc.
Store the containers in the freezer until they are so full you can no longer close them.
Dump the scraps into your composting bin. I use an old metal trashcan purchased at a yard sale. Eric drilled holes into the bottom for drainage. It's in a corner of our yard that you can't really see. I try to remember to turn the compost every week or so, but this is where I get really lazy.

Do you want to see inside? You do, right?
Well, here it is, not so scary. It's amazing to see how fast the scraps go down. I just added some "browns" - old leaves to the bin. When it's time to plant and use the compost, I (meaning Eric) puts the top layer of the bin in a wheelbarrow. At the bottom is all the really good compost and I add that to the garden. We then put the reserved compost back into the bin and keep adding stuff. Even if you don't use the compost, it's amazing how much you keep out of the trash.

For more info on composting and gardening in general, check out You Grow Girl.
Happy composting!

6 comments:

pink and green mama MaryLea said...

Love it, I am also a slacker composter. I love the yogurt containers in the freezer trick. I use an old flour crock on the counter next to the sink and just scrape scraps and bits into it but then I have to go empty it every other day. I like the freezer method for sheer laziness.
Do you take a break from your compost pile in the colder months? We're looking into making a second composter for Vermi-Composting in the garage to use in the winter months.

se7en said...

Oh I love it!!! We will definitely try this! I just need to find a bin... I have been looking for a compost idea that isn't an open box to local vermin ... I really don't want to be calling all the local restaurant friends (rodents with long tails aaahhhh) and our other local problem is baboons... so a bin we can close is perfect - thank you so much!!!

Unknown said...

I'm all for being a lazy composter I have just the can do it with!

Amie Plumley said...

Thanks for the great comments/ideas. I'm glad to see there are other lazy composters out there, too!

Andria Lisle said...

I compost, too -- inspired by Amie of course! I have a huge Rubbermaid bin (with holes drilled into the sides for aeration) out in the backyard, filled with red wrigglers. I'm too lazy to take my veggie scraps and coffee grounds out there every day, so I keep 'em in one of those tin composting buckets, which I picked up on a clearance table at TJ Maxx. If you're considering composting, I highly recommend reading Amy Stewart's book "The Earth Moved: On the Remarkable Achievements of Earthworms." Believe it or not, it's a real page turner! Between composting and recycling, I hardly have any landfill-destined garbage at all...

suna said...

Love the post. Love the link. Love compost.