Evelyn Brumfield Education Director Evelyn@KeepPhxBeautiful

1. Evelyn Brumfield Education Director Evelyn@KeepPhxBeautiful.org Backyard Composting

2. Keep Phoenix Beautiful? • What does BEAUTIFUL mean? • Who am I? • What do I do? • What shall we discuss today? • Definition, Benefits, How, Greens and Browns, Prohibited items, Steps to take, More info, Contact info.

3. Composting! • BUT FIRST - Let’s play a game! • What is your experience with composting? • Heard of it • Tried composting • Currently composting

4. Compost? • What is it? • Compost: A mixture of decayed or decaying organic matter used to fertilize soil. Compost is usually made by gathering plant material, such as leaves, grass clippings, and vegetable peels, into a pile or bin and letting it decompose as a result of the action of aerobic bacteria, fungi, and other organisms.

5. Why Compost? • What are some benefits of composting? • Reduces waste to a fraction of its size • Doesn't use landfill space (and doesn’t create powerful greenhouse gasses) • Add to containers or garden • Useful as mulch • What else?

6. Cycles? • Cycles are a normal part of nature! • Other cycles that we are familiar with: • Life cycle • Water cycle • Recycle • Bicycle

7. Cycles?

8. Compost? • Cyclic: • Materials go from the compost, to the soil, to the plant, and then back to the compost in a never-ending cycle!

9. Compost! • How does it work? • There must be “stuff”, air, water, and bugs!

10. Greens, Browns, Air, Moisture The Compost Triangle works similarly! There must be a balance of Stuff (Greens and Browns) for Work And a balance of Air and Water – your labor! The Fire Triangle: All three sides must be present for combustion to occur.

11. Compost Basics • You can put almost anything into a compost pile that was once alive. (Material that came from the ground can go back into compost!) • Items should be no bigger than a thumb (More surface area = more fun!) • Types of items: Greens and Browns • Mixture of Nitrogen and Carbon.

12. Stuff to Compost • Types of stuff: Greens (N) & Browns (C) • Greens are “wet”: from the kitchen, plants, fresh grass (⅓), decays faster. • Browns are “dry”: dried up grass, wood, shredded paper (⅔), decays slowly. • Don’t Add: meat, dairy, oils, bones, etc.

13. Greens, Browns and Don't Nitrogen-rich greens: Coffee grounds, filters, & teabags Vegetable & fruit wastes Eggshells Horse, cow, rabbit, chicken, (herbivore) manure Weeds without weed seeds Grass clippings (but not if you use harmful chemicals on your grass!) Carbon-rich browns: Hay & straw Fall leaves Straw, cornstalks Shredded cardboard & newspaper (inks are soy-based and are OK) Paper plates, bags, towels Chipped brush, sticks, twigs, branches, bark, sawdust Pine needles AVOID! Meats: pork, chicken, fish, bones, etc Fat, grease, oils Foods cooked with sauces or butter Dairy products Dog, cat, or human waste Diseased plants Weeds with seeds Ashes Herbicide- and Pesticide-tainted items

14. Stuff, Labor, and Work • Collect the stuff, pile it in, in layers, with water • Labor: Mix it up, turn the pile, adding air • Work: Bacteria, colonize the debris and break it down to its component nutrients, producing compost. • To start: one cubic yard, 140ºF to160ºF for 3-4 weeks. • Wait and watch and repeat. Pull the finished product out of the bottom!

15. Details details... • Contained, Uncontained? • Location: easy to access, water, shade, etc • Hot/fast: small pieces, frequent turning, decomposes quickly, can kill some disease organisms and seeds, internal temperature of 140° • Cold/slow: larger/less uniform pieces, infrequent turning, less labor, takes months to decompose

16. There are many ways to compost! Soil Incorporation Mulch Grass-Cycling Heap Wood Holding Bin Wire Holding Bin Plastic Holding Bon 2-bin Block 3-bin Wood Turning Barrel Worm Bin http://www.klickitatcounty.org/solidwaste/ContentROne.asp?fContentIdSelected=1939319116&fCategoryIdSelected=965105457#methods

17. Is it done yet?? • 25-40% of the original pile. • Can't identify the original materials • Dark and rich looking • Smells earthy • Crumbles in your hands

18. Compost Will Go From: I can clearly tell what that is… I can sort of tell what that was… That looks like dirt.

19. Something’s not quite right… Smells like ammonia: Too much Nitrogen, needs Carbon (browns)! Not enough oxygen, turn it! Putrid odor: May be too wet – add browns and turn it! My pile has bugs! Great! They are part of the process. If that icks you out – the more frequently you turn the pile, the less hospitable the habitat for bugs. My pile isn’t HOT: Needs more Nitrogen (greens), could be too small (<1 cubic yard), might need more air. I have flies! Add a layer of browns after each layer of greens, cover a newly turned pile with a thin layer of brown.

20. Local Community Garden: Pierson Model C. G. Camelback and 19th Avenue

21. Local Community Garden: Mountain View Park C. G. 7th Avenue & Cheryl Dr

22. From Landfills to Composting… Paper: 27% Glass: 4% Metals: 9% Plastics: 13% Yard Waste: 29% Food Waste: 15% Other: 13% Source: https://archive.epa.gov/epawaste/nonhaz/municipal/web/html/

23. Questions? Comments? Evelyn Brumfield  Education Director  Evelyn@KeepPhxBeautiful.org

24. Head over to www.KeepPhxBeautiful.org Click on Education Click to download