Sustainability Spotlight - March 2023 - Commit to Composting This Spring

Spring is just around the corner and now is a great time to start thinking about plans for a garden (see end of post for more details on the Garden in a Box program that the City of Wheat Ridge is supporting again this year). A garden needs healthy soil and a great way to create healthy soil is to add compost to it. By composting you can recycle your food and yard waste into nutrients for your plants and also keep these valuable materials out of landfills.

What is compost?

Compost is what you get when microorganisms decompose organic matter. Organic matter includes things like food scraps, leaves, and branches. When you mix carbon-rich and nitrogen-rich organic matter in the proper ratio and add moisture and oxygen, you create an environment where microorganisms that will decompose the organic matter can thrive. These microorganisms feed on the organic matter and over time turn it into what we know as compost– a dark, crumbly, earthy-smelling material that is a great soil amendment.

Why compost?

Composting has many benefits. By composting instead of landfilling food waste, we can reduce the amount of total waste that goes to landfills and help slow down how fast they fill up. When food waste and other organic matter goes to a landfill, it often decomposes in an environment without oxygen where it produces methane gas which contributes to global warming. By composting instead of throwing out organic matter, we can recycle that organic matter into nutrients for plants that can reduce the need for synthetic fertilizers and contribute to healthy soil that is better at retaining water (important in a dry state like ours!).

How to compost?

You can compost via an open bin, closed bin, vermicompost, or curbside pick-up and/or drop-off service. The Environmental Protection Agency has some introductory information on backyard composting and vermicomposting. Scroll down to the very bottom of the webpage for more resources on how to compost. If you don’t want to bother with setting up a composting system at home but would like to ensure the organic waste you create gets recycled, consider signing up for a curbside compost service. Two companies that currently serve Wheat Ridge are SCRAPS and Compost Colorado.

Special Note on Garden in a Box

Wheat Ridge is offering discounts on low-water gardens. Check out the Garden in a Box products from Resource Central and select “City of Wheat Ridge” as your utility provider at checkout. The gardens went on sale March 1 and will be available until they are sold out – this usually happens fast, so reserve your garden today!