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What to Compost?

By
Education & Training with Alan Kells School of Real Estate/Howard Hanna Real Estate

As Green becomes the way to go more and more people are talking about composting as a convenient & practical way to dispose of yard waste.  I have friends who live in subdivisions who bag 50+ bags of leaves & other green waste every fall and almost that many during their spring clean-up.  Did you know that compost is just decomposing organic matter?  Take a walk in the woods & breathe deeply.  That rich, earthy smell is decomposing organic waste that nurtures new growth in the coming season.  Yes, you can have that same compost whether you live in town, in the suburbs or more rural setting like mine.

compost w/flowers

 

My compost bin sits to the left of the park bench. Visitors coming up my driveway would never know I had a compost bin nestled behind the foliage and bench.

 

What should I compost? What shouldn't I compost?  Let's look a few do's and don't about composting. 

 

 

 

 

Two sections/compost bin

bin          Composting Do's

     Grass clippings, most yard waste, leaves, flowers, twigs, dead plants, potting soil, kitchen scraps, coffee grounds, tea bags, egg shells, corn cobs, stale bread & rolls, paper nakins & towels, dryer lint, human or animal hair, straw, hay, shredded paper and the list goes on.

 

             Composting Don'ts

   Weeds, with seeds, poisonous plants, invasive plants that are not native to your area, dog & cat waste, meat, fish, dairy products, cooking oil

 

Scraps from your kitchen may be new to most who have not done composting in the past. However I grew up putting most kitchen scraps in the pit as my parents called it. 

    compost  If you have bears that raid your garbage, don't add scraps to your compost                                                  

Using Compost

I add compost to all my flower gardens.  I put it around trees and shrubs.  It's a natural fertilizer for all plants even indoor plants.  I have read articles about compost bin for apartment & condo dwellers.  Small bins that sit on your kitchen counter or under the sink are available for sale.  I simply reuse a sherbert container.

 

Posted by

 ***************

Mary Yonkers

 

      I thought about a Real Estate career for 11 years before I made the decision to get my Pennsylvania Real Estate license in mid-80's.  

      Thirty years later I can say affirmatively that Real Estate has been a fantastic career. 

      Come join me in class soon. Mary Yonkers, Real Estate Instructor

 

With so many homes for sale in Erie PA, this is the right time to begin your career as a Real Estate salesperson in Erie, PA.

 2018 Alan Kells

 

 

 

www.alankells.com

Mary Yonkers, Real Estate Instructor

 

 
 Mary Yonkers Howard Hanna Real Estate Services in Erie, PA

          Office:  814-835-1200 or Cell:  814-881-7548

Real Estate Classes Alan Kells Schools of Real Estate in Erie, PA  1-412-967-0240 

Real Estate Career in Erie, PA  1-814-835-1200

 

Comments (10)

Andrew Mooers | 207.532.6573
MOOERS REALTY - Houlton, ME
Northern Maine Real Estate-Aroostook County Broker

Green font type a nice extra touch..thanks for the post.

Sep 11, 2009 08:44 AM
Candice A. Donofrio
Next Wave RE Investments LLC Bullhead City AZ Commercial RE Broker - Fort Mohave, AZ
928-201-4BHC (4242) call/text

BOOKMARKED. A lot of good posts today for me! I needed to know the do's and don'ts.

Ex boyfriends and icky clients? Are they in the 'do' list?

(giggle)

Sep 11, 2009 09:31 AM
Anna "Banana" Kruchten
HomeSmart Real Estate - Phoenix, AZ
602-380-4886

Good Stuff Mary!!  I need to re-learn all this stuff as it's a bit differnet and off season for me in Phx.  Thanks!

Sep 11, 2009 04:52 PM
Laura Cerrano
Feng Shui Manhattan Long Island - Locust Valley, NY
Certified Feng Shui Expert, Speaker & Researcher

Mary, I love your idea that your compost is out of sight.  I don't believe I could leave one outside because of the raccoons and squirrels and wasn't aware they had an indoor compost.  Thank you for the information.

Sep 12, 2009 12:06 AM
Mary Yonkers
Alan Kells School of Real Estate/Howard Hanna Real Estate - Erie, PA
Erie/PA Real Estate Instructor

Andrew--I could resist the green font for a green post, but this morning it is too early for color on a Saturday. 

Candice--I almost cracked up laughing--e-boyfriends, & icky clients!  Love your humor.  I keep the Do's & Don't list posted inside cupboard door for easy reference.

Anna--In warmer, drier climates you would need to keep compost moist.  Here we have to keep it from being too wet.  Balance is the goal.

Sep 12, 2009 12:11 AM
Mary Yonkers
Alan Kells School of Real Estate/Howard Hanna Real Estate - Erie, PA
Erie/PA Real Estate Instructor

Good morning Carole,

The inside compost bins look like any other kitchen gadget that can sit on the kitchen counter.  The design prevents any odor, I guess since I have not used one myself.

Have a great day in NY.

Sep 12, 2009 12:14 AM
Barbara Heil-Sonneck
Design2Sell - Atlanta, GA
Home Staging Atlanta

Hi Mary, thanks for sharing and by the way I love the green twitter sign :-)

In my hometown in Germany every family has there own Compost waste basket, picked up every 2 weeks by the city.....

Sep 12, 2009 07:16 AM
Carra Riley & Declan Kenyon
Brokers Guild Cherry Creek Ltd - Westminster, CO
Helping people Transition at all ages!

Mary,

You are sure dripping on us to become green.  You are making it look so easy we should all be growing leaves soon!  Thanks for showing us the way.

Your friend in the Cosmic Cow Pie.

Sep 12, 2009 12:36 PM
Joan Whitebook
BHG The Masiello Group - Nashua, NH
Consumer Focused Real Estate Services

Good pointers... I agree with no food scraps in some areas.. we have lots of wildlife and we prefer they stay a safe distance away from our home and our pets.

Sep 13, 2009 02:41 AM
Mary Yonkers
Alan Kells School of Real Estate/Howard Hanna Real Estate - Erie, PA
Erie/PA Real Estate Instructor

Barbara,  Thanks for coming here this weekend.  Our Canadian visitor from St. John siad that their community has the same pick up service.  Good idea! 

Carra--Try it.  It's easy once you get in the habit of composting.

Joan--Most people don't do the food scraps for that reason. Once in awhile the raccoons will come if I put corn cobs on the pile.  Otherwise the deer & squirrels ignore it.

 

Have a great weekend!

 

Sep 13, 2009 04:13 AM