Q. I want to make compost for my raised bed patio garden. I live alone, so I don't produce many kitchen scraps. I live in a townhouse with almost no yard. How can I get enough stuff to compost?
A. It seems to me you only need to compost on a small scale. A compost heap or bin will probably be impractical, taking too long to fill, taking up too much space, and possibly offending neighbors. I suggest you chop your fruit and vegetable scraps, pulverize egg shells, then store them in a lidded plastic container - the 45 oz. size like buttery spreads come in - until it's filled. Then bury the contents directly in one end of your patio garden. Cover immediately with a few inches of soil. The next time you have a full container, bury the contents beside the first batch. Eventually you will have a row of compost in the making. As you collect more material, begin your second row, and so forth. Within a few months, you should be able to plant vegetables or annuals directly in your first row of finished compost, then later into the second row, etc. As time goes on, you should have a very fertile patio garden.
A. It seems to me you only need to compost on a small scale. A compost heap or bin will probably be impractical, taking too long to fill, taking up too much space, and possibly offending neighbors. I suggest you chop your fruit and vegetable scraps, pulverize egg shells, then store them in a lidded plastic container - the 45 oz. size like buttery spreads come in - until it's filled. Then bury the contents directly in one end of your patio garden. Cover immediately with a few inches of soil. The next time you have a full container, bury the contents beside the first batch. Eventually you will have a row of compost in the making. As you collect more material, begin your second row, and so forth. Within a few months, you should be able to plant vegetables or annuals directly in your first row of finished compost, then later into the second row, etc. As time goes on, you should have a very fertile patio garden.
