Adventures in Apartment Composting

August 12th, 2007 | View Comments

I recently started to research composting methods that were indoor/apartment-friendly because I was tired of cringing every time I tossed a banana peel or a cup of coffee grounds into the trash. I generate coffee grounds at a rather ferocious rate and it seemed so silly to dump it all when it could be usable compost in a matter of weeks.

I found what could be the answer in Compost This Book by Tom Christopher and Marty Asher. The book is out of print, but I snagged a copy for dirt cheap on Half.com. Behold, the mini-composter:

I took a half-gallon plastic soy milk jug, punched a billion holes in it, and sliced the top 3/4 off, leaving one side intact to serve as a hinge. Then I filled it about 2/3 full with used dried sphagnum moss from my orchids, coffee grounds, a bunch of cherry stems, a few spoiled cherries, and a handful of dried leaves.

I watered it down, let it drain, closed the top, and called it a day.

It’s supposed to be a relatively odor-less process, but I left it out on the porch just in case. Time will tell if I wind up with compost or a mess. In the meantime, I still have a ton of coffee grounds left, so I should drink up the soy milk!