Here are some tips on composting
fruit waste,
so
it does not go into a slimey mess !
How can we Reduce
Fruit Waste from the start ?
Many of the apples that children
discard have only one bite taken out of them. Perhaps some of the fruit could be sliced or
quartered, so the children take only what they can eat.
·
Whitminster School Garden Club and Eco club are
setting up a system that can take wastes from the school and garden.
·
Each class has their own compost cone.
·
Therefore the waste is spread between bins, and so
will compost in thinner layers, with
more surface area.
·
Fruit collected in a caddy at play time, can be spread
out between the bins, and a layer of torn cardboard added.
·
Thinner layers means more air: which is needed for
composting to happen.
·
Artistic labels can be laminated and glued on, or
painted straight on with gloss paint (but
maybe not
with small children). I saw some
bins painted
as monsters with the hatch as the
mouth.
·
The lids of the bins were hard to get off so a ‘handle’
was made (string and piece of wood) : something to pull on. We also made small
cuts on the inside of the lid edge to make it looser.
Why Compost?
● It saves money
on waste disposal;
● Gives
fertile compost to feed the soil in a garden;
● Reduces the
(global warming) emissions of carbon dioxide,
caused by landfilling, and transport of waste.
Perspex
side on compost cone,
The children see the fruit gradually decomposing, and the
creatures involved such as worms and snails.
·
Fruit and veg waste will rot better if it is chopped/mashed/bashed,
so it is in lumps of 1 inch or less.
A barrel and spade can be used for this.
Greens and Browns
Fruit waste is wet and acidic
and so the key to composting it is to mix it with drier, carbon rich wastes
which are called the ‘browns’
The compost bays are for garden waste such as weeds and leaves. The four cones are for fruit waste. They are more rat proof than the bays.
Add a sprinkle of soil
A sprinkle of soil is added each week. This buffers the acidity of the
fruit, and adds minerals and microbes, which supports the variety of life in
the composting process, making it act quicker. Adding some garden weeds will also help to
balance it.
Flies
The little flies you get are fruit flies (drosophila). They are not a
health hazard, but can be annoying. By placing materials such as leaves
or shredded paper over the fruit waste, it reduces the access that flies have
to it, and so there are less of them.
Rat-proofing
By placing the compost cones on paving slabs, rats have more difficulty
getting in.
But in this situation they are
still getting in, so mesh will be added. The square-holed ‘weld mesh’ with 1 cm
sized holes is best; it will be placed under and part way up the sides and secured
with wire. Alternatively Gloucs county Council supply a moulded rat-proofing
base for compost bins. See www.getcomposting.com
Storing and preparing materials
·
To keep ‘brown’ materials more pleasant to handle they
are kept dry in a shelter with separate containers for shredded paper,
cardboard etc.
·
Cardboard needs to be torn to pieces about 20cm
square. This can be difficult for small hands. Soaking it first helps, or
sawing it.
·
Newspaper tears easier in one direction;. Take 5– 10
sheets, and find the tear direction. It is fun, and creates shredded paper
which soaks up the moisture in the fruit waste. All its rough torn edges give
plenty of surface area for bacteria and fungi to ‘get their teeth round’!
The compost bays are for garden
waste such as weeds and leaves. The four cones are for fruit waste. They
are more rat proof than the bays. You can put some garden weeds in with the
fruit waste.
Why mix the compost ingredients:
the browns and the greens ?
Fruit waste is wet and quite acidic (a pH meter will show that it has low
pH.)
It sinks down into a solid mass that does not allow air movement.
Air is needed for composting to happen.
The brown materials are rough and
fibrous. This creates a ‘structure’ with
air pockets, and allows all the living things to thrive, that make
composting happen.
The ‘browns’ also have a high carbon content which provides fuel for
those bacteria.
It’s a bit like providing a balanced diet: feeding the compost with the
right food, makes it healthier.
Without the ‘browns’ the fruit would still rot down, but in a slower
smellier way, by anaerobic microbes.
Why add a weekly sprinkle of soil or
well rotted garden compost ?
This provides minerals and microbes
and other life to keep it all going.
It has tiny crumbs of rotted organic matter (humus), which absorb
acidity. This balances the acidity and
allows a greater diversity and variety of life in the compost which will work
more efficiently to break it down.
The key to compost is that variety
leads to efficient breakdown.
A
balanced compost ‘diet’ leads to a more neutral pH, and :
Lots of
living creatures such as:
● Bacteria (good sorts)
● fungi
● Woodlice
● Earthworms
● Pot worms
● Centipedes
● Spring tails…..and more
Health and Safety
● Wash hands after working
with compost.
● Safe
lifting: keep your back straight, and
bend knees
● Safe tool
use
Composting ….
…… is more than just putting rubbish in a bin !
It is about a building a relationship with life’s processes of recycling,
● and turning
a waste into a resource !
It’s also like following a recipe:
● getting the right ingredients
in the right proportions,
And then:
● waiting …… quite a while…. before you get any
useable
garden compost:
90 % of fruit waste is water.
Therefore 10 buckets of fruit waste produce one bucket of garden
compost, at least 6 months later. (Well,
Rome wasn’t
built in a day…..)
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