The document provides information on starting a composting program at schools including how to build compost bins, what materials can be composted, and benefits for students. Key steps include finding an ideal site, obtaining bins, creating layers of brown and green materials, and teaching students about decomposition and the composting process. Common issues that may arise include attracting animals or producing smells, which proper building and maintenance of bins can address.

1. Composting at Schools Janice McPhillips Holly Hill Farm Cohasset, MA

2. What is compost? Decomposed organic matter (leaves, manure, kitchen scraps, grass and other yard waste), also known as humus The process of decomposition of organic matter into humus

3. Why bother making compost? recycling spent resource into a useful one saves on garbage disposal costs (transportation, bags, dump fees, etc.) creates a valuable organic material for the garden for free (almost) learning about decomposition, soil structure, and returning nutrients to the soil

4. What makes compost happen? microorganisms including bacteria, fungi, and molds earthworms insects including spiders, beetles, pill bugs, millipedes, and more air, water, sunshine, occasional mixing, and time

6. How can you compost at your school? interested and committed teachers, administrators and custodial staff? cooperative kitchen staff? parents or other volunteers? help the students “own” the process! find a convenient site (near the garden, or cafeteria) ideal site should be partially shaded, near water source

11. How do you get started? get a free compost bin from MA DEP ( www.thegreenteam.org ) get a free compost bin from your town DPW or local garden club make a bin out of pallets or chicken wire or other containment system buy or make a worm bin for indoor composting

17. What can you compost? lunch scraps cafeteria food preparation scraps coffee from the teachers’ lounge leaves and garden waste including grass clippings straw, hay, or shavings some paper and cardboard sawdust cow, chicken, or horse manure

21. How do you make an outdoor compost pile? layers of “brown” (carbon-rich) and “green” (nitrogen-rich) materials, about a 3:1 ratio by volume add a shovelful of soil every 8-12” water stir frequently

22. Nitrogen and Carbon sources Nitrogen-rich materials: food scraps including coffee grounds manures seaweed grass clippings Carbon-rich materials: leaves sawdust newspaper paper towels straw or shavings

24. Do NOT to put into a compost pile: meat, dairy, bones, fatty foods like salads with dressing or peanut butter dog or cat waste weeds that have gone to seed diseased plants weeds that spread with runners

25. How long will it take to make finished compost? depends on temperature, what you put in compost, moisture, size of pile, how often it is turned can take as short as 12 weeks or as long as 1 year

26. What can students learn from having a compost pile at your school? math concepts observing and writing predicting microorganisms, earthworms, insects, pH vocabulary food web: producers, consumers, decomposers

37. What can go wrong? attract unwanted animals bad smell fruit flies students putting things in compost that don’t belong SNOW!

40. Make or buy a worm bin for indoor composting

45. How do you make a worm bin? buy a Rubbermaid Tough Tote drill 1/8” holes every 3” around the bottom and in the cover start with a damp layer of carbon rich “bedding” material like leaves, straw, or shredded paper layer “greens” and “browns” in the same way you would for an outdoor bin make sure to bury food scraps under a layer of bedding to prevent fruit flies add red wiggler worms

46. Need more information? www.mass.gov/dep or www.thegreenteam.org Ann McGovern [email_address] (617) 292-5834