If my compost buckets would ever thaw...
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I post a picture and just a few words.
I could go dump them into my bins.
During the summer, we take out our scraps every day (fruit flies are a problem if we don't!), but in the winter, I just dump 'em into 5 gallon buckets and then empty the bucket when it's full.
Unfortunately, I've filled up two buckets now and they're a little hard to dump out when they're frozen solid (even if you can get the stuff out of the bucket, it just sits on top of the compost bin in a bucket-shaped cylinder!)
Oh well.
(This is how I compost, in case you were wondering.)
I know I could take out my scraps every day like I do in the summer, but (wuss alert!) I am not inclined to do that in the cold. I think I'll just find another bucket. 😉
Ha! I get my husband to take out the compost whenever possible. Or my kids. I need to wear snowshoes to make it to our compost pile. No, really! I sink into snow above my knees if I don't. At this point I'm really just dumping food scraps on top of snow but it will all melt eventually, right???
Back in my home country we used to do this on our Home Economics class, each of us had garden bed and part of it was composting which is really beneficial if you are growing your own vegetable garden. I’m not sure how my husband will react on this one if he sees me doing it because I’m 100% sure that he never done this before. But this is really great idea especially the spring is almost here to start our garden.
Sometimes in the winter I just dump my compost scraps off the side of the deck. The critters usually eat them and if not I figure they can compost right on my lawn!
I use a old trash can ( that we couldn't use anymore because the trash company makes us use their cans) that has a lid and place it next to the back door outside. I place some wood shavings ( that a woodworker friend gives us) at the bottom to control the smell (if any) and as part of our "brown" scraps we need for compost. Then when the snow melts we take it to our 2 bin compost system ( made from pallets my hubby got from work) that is next to the garden.
The compost breaks down really well in the trash can, I think its because of the heat that generates in the dark colored can.
That's a great idea to use the 5 gallon buckets! I'll be honest - I had stopped my composting over the winter and it made me so sad when I threw romaine lettuce scraps in the trash last night.
I keep my compost in the freezer year round because of the fruit fly issue - it has proven an invaluable method 🙂
I'm battling fruit flies at the moment, with all the hot weather we've been having! Frozen compost actually sounds like a better alternative 🙂
I have a 1.5 gal container with a lid that I keep under my sink. In the cold weather I empty it about once a week or when it gets full, and the smell isn't a problem. With the lid on, under the sink and being a tad cooler, no problem. I have been composting the past couple of years - year around- here in MN and by the time Spring rolls around, everything is nicely composted... even with the polar vortex!