Simplify by Composting in Place 🥑🍌🍄

Have you ever chucked a chewed-up apple core into your garden? Or the butt of a carrot? Or the pit of a peach? Well, congratulations because you have successfully composted in place…

Composting in place is the practice of planting your compost waste directly into your garden beds. This idea has been explored and tested by many cultures over the years; many Native American tribes would incorporate fish remains into their agricultural lands as a fertilizer. We tend to view the byproducts of our daily life as a little too un-processed to be a worthwhile amendment for our soil but keep in mind that those vegetable scraps, fruit peels, eggshells, can go straight into your garden beds and boost soil fertility. Here are some tips to guide you while composting in place…

One’s trash is another’s gold! Yard waste like grass clippings can be great organic material for composting in place.

Choosing your method: Composting in place comes in multiple forms. Some opt to do lasagna-esque layering of materials. Some folks dig trenches along their garden beds and bury their materials. We like to mitigate soil disturbance when we can. Because of that, most of these tips are related to layering on top of your existing soil.

Gathering and Chopping Up Materials: Collect a variety of organic materials such as kitchen scraps (fruit and vegetable peels, coffee grounds, eggshells), yard waste (leaves, grass clippings), and other compostable materials (straw, shredded paper, cardboard). If you’d like, you can chop or tear up the materials so that they integrate together a little nicer.

Balancing Carbon and Nitrogen: Nitrogen-rich materials are things like kitchen scraps or green plant trimmings. Carbon-rich materials are things like leaves, mulch, straw, or shredded paper. When composting in place, try to strike a balance that is carbon heavy, as these materials will improve soil structure and water retention, while also limiting excessive ammonia build-up from the nitrogen-rich material.

Spreading Your Material: Some folks do a layer of nitrogen-rich material followed by a layer of carbon-rich material. Others may spread it all in one big mish-mosh. Regardless, you can cover the compost with a thin layer of mulch. This accelerates the decomposition process and offers a pleasant aesthetic.

Monitor and Turn (Optional): Over time, the materials will break down. Feel free to periodically check the moisture level; the compost should be damp but not waterlogged. You can turn the compost with a garden fork or shovel every few weeks to aerate the added materials and speed up decomposition. This step is optional but can accelerate the process.

Extra Amendments (Optional): You can add soil, compost starter, peat moss, coco coir, or finished compost between or on top of any compost layers. This can introduce beneficial microorganisms and speed up decomposition. A view of our medium-sized hotbin - another alternative to the common compost pile.

Whether you already have a compost pile or not, composting in place can be an extra tool in your toolbelt when bolstering soil fertility at home. We love it because it allows us to reconfigure our standards of what is “ready-to-use” for the garden. Although that banana peel might not look like the textbook definition of fertilizer, it will still do the job!

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