Eating nutritious foods is important for growing up and maintaining health and strength. Land and soil need nourishment too, and composting is one way to get there. Easy DIY composting bins reduce food waste and prepare natural fertilizers for the home garden. 

Just as certain foods lead to better moods, various types of food waste nourish houseplants and outdoor garden soil. Compost bins are available in garden and hardware stores, but handy DIYers can make these receptacles themselves (usually from stuff that’s already lying around the house).

Compost benefits soil in gardens by attracting earthworms, encouraging bacteria, and helping with drainage. Organic compost makes great plant food! 

And it’s easy to create outdoor do-It-yourself compost bins.

Plastic Tote Boxes

This is the simplest option. Start with a trip to the store for a couple of storage tote boxes or plastic garbage cans.

Drill holes throughout the top of the lid to let air circulate inside the box. Space the holes at least one or two inches apart. (Tip: Seal the lids securely onto the boxes to keep mice and other wildlife from easy access.)

Two-tiered systems have two boxes stacked together. Drill holes on the bottom of the top box for waste liquid to run off into the second box. Pour the waste liquid over house plants and garden vegetation.

Place leftover food scraps—but not bones—in the boxes. Let the decomposition begin!

Straw Composting

Straw composting and gardening is something like setting up an open igloo on your property—only made with hay, not ice. Straw walls are part of the composting process.

Somewhere away from the house, set up straw bales in an open square with the center large enough to put in as much food waste as desired. Turn the scraps over twice a month or as needed. Water the straw bales occasionally.    

Ground Composting

After digging a deep hole, dumping food scraps directly into the ground is an easy way to get the job done. Cover the hole with soil. Also called trench or "hole" composting, this method works well around large vegetable gardens. Compost dead foliage and grass clippings, coffee grounds, kitchen and garden scraps, shredded paper, hay and straw—among other things. Just no dairy, meat or bones. 

Metal Bin Composting

More sturdy than plastic or wood—but more expensive to make—metal bins are stronger, longer-lasting sources for compost systems. Metal bin systems require steel posts, screws, steel studs, metal sheets and the tools to make it all happen. Skilled DIYers must be good at measuring, cutting, hammering, attaching and everything else since the process is precise. But using metal bins can make things much simpler, too—just buy a steel trash can, drill some holes and toss in the edible trash.  

Indoor Composting

Indoor composting is a little trickier because DIYers must keep ahead of potential odors. If composting outside isn’t feasible, try this method for composting in an apartment.

Plastic containers or well-sealed tote boxes are recommended for indoor composting. Size depends on how much room is available for storage and its location. Compost systems should be kept in dark, warm-to-room-temperature places, such as under sinks and in closets.   

Drill holes in the container lids, about one to two inches apart. Drill holes on the bottom to allow moisture to drain out and be sure to place the boxes on plastic sheets or larger plastic lids. Drain the bottom moisture catchers over plants for extra nourishment.

Before adding food scraps, place potting soil or shredded newspaper into the plastic container to absorb the runoff.

Clean the container once or twice a month unless it starts to stink before then.     

To Compost or Not?

Keep the following once-edible items out of composting bins.

• Large amounts of citrus peels, pickles, garlic and onions. Too much of these mess up the decomposition process.
• Meat, dairy, bones, animal manure, nuts, oily foods, cooked rice and breads. They can attract mice and pests before breaking down completely.
• Also avoid coal ash, pesticides, plants treated with bug killers, weeds, seeds and anything deemed inorganic, such as plastics. Nearby trees can be damaging, too. For example, black walnuts emit a toxic substance called juglone that soaks into gardens and trench composting systems.

When it comes to sustainability, repurposing the earth’s already-used resources to create organic fertilizer lets indoor and outdoor gardeners go green in a natural and environmentally sound way. Build or buy, composting gives back to Earth’s most valuable resource—itself.  ❧

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Teri Silver is a journalist and outdoor enthusiast. For her, the best parts of the year are summer and fall when home-grown veggies are on the dinner table.