If you enjoyed this video, please “Like” and share to help increase its reach! Thanks for watching 😊TIMESTAMPS here: 0:00 Intro To Composting 0:58 Compost Piles VS Composters 2:47 The Best Things To Compost 4:00 Composter Results 6:56 Frequently Asked Compost Questions 11:48 Where To Buy A Trash Can 12:46 Are Plastic Trash Cans Safe? 13:53 How To Fill The Composter 16:20 Adventures With Dale
Love it ! and perfect for a small household . Yes, my hot one was a nightmare so I started to just straight up burry mine in the yard but can't do in the winter . But with your system 👍 I will be off getting myself a black trash can ! Oh and I use an old thrift store coffee grinder for my eggshells ...
I make my own potting soil,I don't add anything to it such as cow manure or minerals,should I and what should I add.need info.ilive in s.west Mobile al.co.WEY
@TheMillennialGardener I live in southeastern North Carolina and fire ants are a huge problem here. I have a compost bin and they have infested my compost. Do you have any issues with ants?? They seem to be everywhere here… my raised beds, beds on grade, and as I mentioned the compost pile. I live on 3 acres so would be difficult to treat the entire property.
My roommate and I would bring fresh garden greens to the cashiers at the Fast-Mart (Circle-K, whatever) when we exchanged an empty bucket w/ lid for the one they'd filled with coffee grounds. It was a favorable arrangement for everybody with an added dose of community building and education. Thank you for spreading the word along with the homegrown fertilizer!
Y'know, I have like 17 of those trash cans that I've been using as rain barrels for the last 10 years. While they work GREAT, I have 3 or 4 that have developed small splits in the last year and no longer hold water above that split. I was gathering materials to repair them over the winter, but now I think I'll convert them to compost bins. I only do cold composting as it is, but this would give me a way to experiment with different compost materials. It's also a lot easier for an old woman like me to manage, lol. Thank you for the idea!
I think that will work! As long as the trash cans can tolerate the weight of the compost, anyway. I’m sure it is a lot less than the weight of the water, so I guess it’ll be ok. I recommend old pickle barrels for rain barrels. They’re so thick they’ll last a human lifetime.
I have two going and they have done great!! I fill one and then start another. The first is done when I am ready to use. Sometimes I add a compost booster. I bought a gadget that turns the contents ( my husband loves it). I forget the name it is like a big corkscrew. We do add dry, kitchen scrapes and some dirt. We add water only to keep it like a wrung out sponge.
@@shaunnichols8170same here. Done that for 15 years... I see them when emptying the compost, but a year or two later i almost never see them where I use the compost. I dont know if birds eat them? Dont really know why ppl put the egg shells in the oven or grind them, they go away anyway.
@@bsod5608 we do the oven & grinding to add calcium to our chicken feed for better eggs. For the garden I allow them to sit in water to "release some of the calcium and water our tomatoes with it to stop blossom end rot. My mom grew up on Norway & my grandmother used to drink the liquid for the calcium. Was fairly common when she grew up (my grandmother) in the 1890's.
This is a great idea, composters being sold are WAY overpriced! I'd like to share my small experience- I made a worm bin composter in my garage from 2 nested rectangular tote bins, I think they were 32 gallons. It worked GREAT. However- a mouse DID chew it's way through the outer heavy plastic/rubbermaid tote. My cat was going nuts trying to get to it, which is how I noticed. The other note is: to get the bin going, I obtained some good fresh compost from a friend. Once I put THAT in, the bin took off and was great. Along with the compost came black soldier flies, which really tear through food waste like demons. Super fast. I don't have chickens, but I heard chickens just adore the BSF maggots like treats. The flies themselves are big, very slow, and not interested in buzzing around people, they were NOT a nuisance, they just wanted to go outside if I opened the garage door. Maybe this note will help someone.
They cost a bit more, but if you get the trash cans with locking lids, you can tip the cans on their sides and roll them to mix them up. I haven't done it yet, but I've been seeing where a lot of people do the trash can composting. Thx for answering questions and concerns.
I created a kitchen scraps composter like this but used a much bigger vessel which was a 300 litre water tank. We actually had rats chew through the plastic and get in. Lessons learnt would be to just wrap it in chicken wire but also the other thing I did was start to layer the material like a lasagne bed. So every time I added kitchen scraps, I covered them with soil from the garden or else grass clippings or leaf litter and just kept doing that which helped to keep the rats away as the scraps were covered. The compost from my digester was used to grow our potatoes and I have never grown such big potatoes before. This method really works very well.
Rats chewed through my trash bin, too. They start chewing at the drill holes and make the holes big enough for them to go through. Like you, I also now wrap my compost trash bin in chicken wire👍
Interesting. Thanks for comment. Also, I habitually plant mint around by property perimeter and ~ when I had a three bin cold composter ~ around the bins. I also took care to add NO FAT, no protein, no pernicious weeds and no diseased leaves. As we have a possibly deranged promiscuous "animal lover" in the neighbourhood (who daily feeds bear, coyotes, crows, squirrels, skunks & racoons...she consequently ALSO FEEDS RATS. The neighbour kitty corner from my suburbian lot paid an exterminator to remove rats from under his deck (before he moved to another neighbourhood where the bylaws ARE enforced). The exterminators pulled over 500 corpses from under his SMALL 15' X 20' deck...whereas WHEN THE MINT was thriving...not a SINGLE rat was espied on our property. Do NOT have standing water (in tires or other receptacles) and DO NOT leave your doors open in cool weather. I can attest mint was incredibly effective for the three decades I had the 3 bin composter. Good luck with the non human vermin.
Thank You! After I saw the first video, I made 4 of these cold compost bins. I drilled smaller holes in the bottom and did not sink them in the ground. Nor did I turn them. The results looked a lot like yours. Egg shells and some plant matter did not fully break down. I used all four in a new raised garden bed. This was so easy. Now I'm starting over.
I`ve found that my cucumbers and pole beans grew perfectly in half composted material in a slightly raised bed about a foot deep with rotting wood chunks as one side of it.
I have an old bin that was damaged on the bottom. I cut the bottom off, settled it directly into my garden bed, filled it up and let it do it thing (occasional turning). When it was done, I lifted it up and spread the compost without have to ‘transport’ around my garden 😃
i have trash can hot composted for years now. i have 10 trash cans for composting but right now there is only finished material in 7 of them with 3 empty. when i am building a bin i add coco coir, shredded cardboard, shredded leaves, kitchen scraps, alfalfa pellets, layer scratchins, biochar that needs inoculation, diy calcium acetate, and a few sardines and alternate moistening with drunk compost or jms. i mix/stir/turn when the temps fall to around 100F but that is surprisingly not very often and they easily will reach 130F plus and will take 3 weeks or so to cool of to mid-mesophilic range. i use a mix of 20 & 32 gallon trash cans, simply because of availability when i got them, and i keep them secured to each other and the first one to my back porch with very short bungee cords. i live 1/2 mi from a wildlife preserve & retired hydroelectric dam and in all the years i have been doing this my bins have never been bothered with hungry neighbors and i have a coyote den 100 feet from my front door. my garden attracts more critters than my compost does. my bins do attract insects because of what i am keeping them moist with - mainly the drunk compost. i also bait the spots that my trash cans sit with drunk compost to attract worms. i usually have beautiful material before the end of month 3 and as the material finishes cooking & matures i just move it to another bin to keep them full and making room for new material. also, making a vent with cardboard, a hack of a johnson-su bioreactor, does seem to help speed along the process in my 32 gallon trash cans but doesn't seem to make a difference in the 20s. i never would have considered trash can composting until i moved into a development with an hoa that prevented open bin composting, they say due to our proximity of the wildlife preserve. btw, my 32 gallons have aprox 70 holes & 20 gallons have about 50 holes per bin. no holes in the tops though to allow methane to escape and allow excess moisture in. from how my garden produces there is no question that i'm getting primo material. when spring comes i just mix my compost with topsoil, perlite & vermiculite and voila i'm ready to plant in my raised beds and grow bags. i have been a victim of grazon in the past & still recovering so i compost my raised bed & grow bag soil over the winter with my amendments to cook & rehab.
Love your videos...I have learned so much.... I saw the first video and bought three trash cans. I have more holes on the side, and they have all worked like a charm. I had a problem getting enough kitchen scraps, so I went to my local farm stand and got their old stuff they couldn't sell. I just used the first one to winterize my raised beds and it was golden. It's January 19th today. I added scraps to another one and there were still hundreds of worms in it, despite it being in the teens and low 20s this last week. I did make one mistake. I drilled holes in the top for air. I had since covered them up and they're working great. Thanks again for all the time you spend helping others and keep up the great videos. See you on your next one.
Pertaining to the animals getting in. I tried this and was surprised I found a vole had crawled in (probably through the bottom.) To stop the vermin I cut a piece of hardware cloth to fit between the bottom of the can and the ground. Worms should still get in and the metal screen should keep out the vole. Haven't had issues since.
I use the same plastic black garbage can from Lowes/HD, but have 1" holes on bottom and sides, no issues with critters. I add scraps from the kitchen, plants from garden, flowers, grass, twigs, leaves, dirt, and Uncle Jim's worms from Amazon...they love the scraps! Has made a big difference in the soil for my garden. Bury the can a little into the ground, at least 3-4", and keep the compost moist. Once I add scraps, at least weekly, I cover them up with grass and leaves, or other material. The worms will hang out toward the top and work their way through the scraps and make some great compost.
Is it possible that it can be converted into other forms (states) of matter? Uhhhh…. How about yes. Next time read a bit more than the first result google gives you. What an ass. Seriously. How do think plants use nitrogen? Only in gas form?
They can still put the drill holes in the bottom. And lay them a piece of screen across the bottom of chicken wire. Across the dirt before putting the barrel back in the hole.
I made 2 of these after watching your 1st video BUT... I use my big urban wormbag as the kitchen scrap collection & once a week I toss in a few cups of coco core as "worm bedding" to help contorl moisture. I empty the worm bag into the trash cans once a month and start over. Even in winter the worm bag stays warm. It's been a fun & succesful experiment 👍👍
Vermicomposting is great and the Urban Worm Bag 2.0 is a great design. Worms actually multiply the nutrients of your source material so IMO it's the best compost you can make.
Every day, I'm so glad I found your channel! I've learned so much, and am applying so many of your tips to my garden this year, thank you, thank you, thank you! I've been wanting to get into composting for years, but have been intimidated by all of the different types, and containers, and just didn't know where to start. This morning, I found your video from last year, and directly ordered the trash can from Lowes, and came back to watch this video. I'll snag another can in a few months, to start a constant supply of compost. I'm SO excited to finally get moving with this, as is my 12 year old daughter - she's learning in the garden right along side of me!
This was a game changer for me once I saw your original video. I also bought some red wiggler worms and they’ve also sped up the decomp while also getting those sweet worm castings. Starting can number 2 right now and plan on rotating between the two. Thanks again!
Outstanding video!!! Learned a lot!!! Thanks so very very much!!! Until your next video and beyond, happy trails, best wishes, take care, be safe and God bless!!! Chuck Knight from Atascocita, Texas. ✝️👨🌾🏈🙏
If a 32 gallon trash can isn't big enough for your plot, then you could get one of those 50, or 55 gallon plastic barrels and do the same exact thing. You can absolutely do hot compost with this method, just make sure to mix it up once a day, and with it being completely enclosed, your not going to need to add water, except maybe once when you first fill it up. This is such cheaper then purchasing bags upon bags of over priced compost every year.
I can`t afford the plastic barrels so I hiked around here in the woods and discovered two huge plastic barrels, a gigantic cooler, half barrels, buckets and other great things I could use that had washed down the creek when it flooded.
We live in the frigid north of Wyoming. We use a huge 80 pound garbage can. We add all of our kitchen scraps, garden debris from the fall, and minimal amounts of water, as well as composting bacteria. We also grow multiple types of mushrooms. After our mushroom buckets stop flushing, we grind the remaining grain spores and straw and add it to our composter. My wife works at a deli, where she gets coffee grounds and overly ripe bananas. During our icy cold winters we bring our huge can full of compost into our garage. We set it beside an oil filled radiator heater so that it stays nice and warm. Every couple of weeks we had about a half quart of composting bacteria with just enough water to make it easy to mix in. Every spring we take our composter outside into the driveway, and we dump it out on a large tarp. We mix it around with a pitchfork. It is always SUPER DARK and rich! There is an amazing smell, like very expensive compost from an upscale garden center! We have had absolutely AMAZING, BUMPER CROPS of tomatoes, hot peppers, cucumbers, squash... Even our flowers love it (important because we need to raise Leaf Cutter Bees to pollinate our plants, at close to 7000 feet in elevation). One more bonus, because we use our mushroom compost, we actually get volunteer mushrooms growing in our grow bags! This is AMAZING for close to 7000 feet in elevation in frosty, short season, Wyoming!
I live in North Dakota and it gets pretty cold up here! Wondering what one should do when winter hits. I don’t think it would work to put the can in the garage for us. Wondering what one should do. Can one leave the compost in the can outside until spring with some compost in it ? Would it be ok over wintering it outside . What happens if it’s only half dissolved ? I would love to try this idea but no knowing how to over winter it outside . I am also going to put hardware cloth on the bottom and we have voles that like to dig underground 😬.
@@mmsdcb9081 Howdy Manitoba neighbour. I'm wondering all the same things. For the voles, I would just drill a bunch of small holes rather than those big holesaw ones he used. Combined with digging that 6" hole that should be no problem. As for what to do in the winter... I'm just gonna leave them out and add to them over the winter. What's the worst that can happen? I'm guessing that by the spring to early summer it'll be back on track. It might be that you'll have to alternate between 2 cans each growing season. I'm just gonna buy 2 and see how it goes.
@@MetalAsFork what we ended up doing was we screwed 1/4” hardware cloth on the bottom outside of the cans and didn’t drill that big of holes on the bottom.. seems to be ok for now. That sounds like a good idea to keep adding for winter or just stop maybe and continue in spring. It will be fun trying anyway!
I think I learned this from Jerra Garden here in FL. Save your eggshells in a plastic bag (crushed) and put in freezer. When you have half a bag, pulverized them and add to your compost.
If people are concerned about something crawling up into their compost or you can get that hardware cloth and just stick it underneath there , excellent composter idea
Have 6 on the go, using 3 different sizes, 10 and 20 litre buckets/bins and 40 litre bins, have been 6 months so far, am very impressed, my reasons for experimenting was to see how much room they would take up and how much I could make, the potato skins insists on growing, but turn them at the beginning of each month tipping into a wheelbarrow, last September (spring in New Zealand)added fresh grass, the little buckets were added to the big bins at the beginning of December(beginning of summer), they are nearly ready, they have had some hay, straw, shredded newspaper, plus a handful of coffee grounds per 10 litre size. Am a experienced cold composter. Once the autumn has arrived will use leaves as well.
I have been saving my eggshells and now I blend them up in my blender to get finer, smaller pieces, they break down much quicker, thanks for this awesome follow up video, I just went out and bought 2 garbage cans!
Awesome design. I made two based on the design. I really enjoy them more than the tumbler style and they work great. I did not sink mine into the ground, but have had zero issues. Thank you for the video and idea!
My bank was giving away 55 gallon rain barrels 5 years ago. I live in NYC so wasn't going to use it for that. I started using it as a compost bin. I throw everything in there besides sticks because it takes too long to break down. I throw things in all winter and stop once spring comes. I let it break down for a month and then it's ready for me to plant my plants and vegetables. Then start again.
If you grind your egg shells in a coffee grinder, into powder, the calcium will become much more available for your plants. This creates more edges for microorganisms to break down the calcium in a way that your plants can utilize it. Love your video! Going to make one for myself! John McHatton
I avoid doing this, because I like to keep composting simple. If you put that level of work into composting, people will not do it. The key is to be as simple and lazy as possible in the design of your system so it does as much for you as possible. Grinding egg shells every day would mean no one will take time to compost.
If you save your eggshells for months in a container that breathes then they get really dry and you can just grind them up by the pound. In other words not often. I just make it a six month long project ( gathering ) then grind them up all at once.
@@TheMillennialGardenerI get that philosophy, but grinding the egg shells takes about 30 seconds every 2 weeks or however long you choose to save them up. Just let them dry in the egg carton and when the eggs are gone grind in a coffee grinder. With all the time-consuming tasks of having a garden it’s one of the easiest things you can possibly do lol.
We would just crush them in a bag and dad used the grindings to ring his tomatoes. Slugs don't like the shard edges on the shells. They dissolve gradually into the soil.
Can you ever have too many compost bins? I had one but got a second... Now that I have two I want a third! It just feels great to turn organic trash into garden treasure
Great idea! Thank you! I will add two to my garden. I had a compost pile held up by a circle of wire fence. My chickens knocked it over and had their way with it, but they enjoyed it so much, I let them have it. This will keep the chickens out. I will still give kitchen scraps to the chickens, but use the composters for the straw bedding and manure from their house and, of course, garden refuse.
This can be my answer. I understimated the cockroaches, they love open composting trash, I can tolerate a few cockroaches but they turned into hundreds 😩
100% call ahead for coffee grounds and cardboard for a place like Starbucks. My local Starbucks goes through 20lbs of cold brew grounds a day (which is less acidic than normal coffee grounds) also my Starbucks gets deliveries (such as frozen pastries) every day and that cardboard will also break down into compost and help neutralize the coffee grounds especially if you do other kinds of composting like using worms. If it’s during the summer months and Starbucks is currently doing “grounds for your garden” they probably already have some used grounds packaged up for you to take.
Been intuitively wanting to turn a trash can I used to use as soil and fertilizer storage before we moved. Now I’m convinced and even more so now that I know I don’t have to stress about the ratio. Thanks so much for all the information! ❤ Happy growing!!! 🌿
This was my first compost bin just with giant cracks . And I left the top off because we lived my a road that gets windy with all the traffic. I'd just sit it ontop of bricks to collect the tea. Then would use a milk crate with fresh compost to get the worms to migrate. And I would've kept it had a relative not gifted me a compost bin last year. Gardening has been such a fun rewarding hobby even with all the local animals eating everything but the asparagus and onions. 😅 There's nothing like growing your own food. And making what I have work till I could buy more aesthetically pleasing garden supplies, just proved to myself my own resourcefulness. Got a greenhouse this year though!
You can also add your organic ash. What I mean by that is burned leaves, plants, and wood, and you can even burn your compost to break it down further. If you burned anything else like paper, newspaper, paper plates, cardboard, really anything other than paper towels, be careful because of the ink and glue used to make some of those things. Dry out your eggshells on a paper towel first and then crush them as you're adding them to your compost. Cackalacky for life!
Now thats how composting is supposed to be, easy and enjoyable , thanks for uploading. I've used a very similar method with an old damaged water butt with fantastic results all thanks to mother nature. Whilst you obviously need a mixture of materials some people just become obsessed with ratios, chemistry and a phobia of insects 🤣 Great video keep up the good work
I made one from a slightly smaller garbage can. I made the mistake of putting too many holes and the holes were too big. Had some good stuff falling out when I would roll the can around to mix it. Lesson learned. I hope. ha
I had the EXACT same problem. What I did was I partially covered the large holes with duct tape - I put a duct tape "X" over each of the big holes on the bottom. Very little leaks out now and rolling worked better for me since my bin was going anaerobic a lot.
Hi there, new to your channel and new to gardening. My question is this? When do you stop adding to your Barrell? You said it had been sitting for 2 months. Do you have several bins going simultaneously?
I love how you handled the Karens with love & grace.... That deserves a follow & a like! And I need an easy way to compost! Gonna get me a trashcan asap.
I was under the impression that PVC is quite a toxic plastic. I read a book (can’t remember the titel right now) where the author pulled up a lot stats about PVC. It releases a lot of toxins, both during production and while in use. I decided to not ever use PVC if I have a choice after reading it. Hopefully there’s affordable bins made from better plastic options. Keep in mind that not all plastic is the same, and just because we’ve been using something in the past doesn’t mean it’s actually safe for something that’s used for food consumption.
I actually made one of these by your instructions last summer. My first time ever trying to compost and it seems to work pretty well, I was expecting it to heat up though when I got enough material so I guess I missed that part from your original video. For most of the summer I didn’t have enough material to fill it up and didn’t get enough until December when I gathered leaves. I live in MI though and I think it might be completely frozen currently. I haven’t checked it in a while… I do look forward to seeing how it turns out in the spring though!
If you are using a lid anyway, compost everything. You will have things that need multiple cycles of composting. But you can compost anything magazines. Serial boxes, amazon box pizza boxes card
@@TheMillennialGardener I agree with you. I was impressed with the first video and even more so with this one. Being able to make my own compost is going help a lot.
The overwhelming majority of decomposition is caused by the microbiome: bacteria and fungi. Worms are not necessary for rapid decomposition. There are holes at the bottom if worms choose to find their way in, but I don't see the value in adding any as it's an unnecessary expense. If you happen to find earthworms roaming around on their own, feel free to add them. They'll appreciate it.
When I saw your first video about this, I decided to give it a try. I quickly filled up the can (this was last fall), so decided to get another can. I am now using it exactly how you described, with one sitting undisturbed, while I actively add to the other. I plan on taking the undisturbed one and mixing it into my growbags this spring. I'll then stop adding to my current can and let it sit through the summer to use with fall veggies. Thank you for sharing this method!
@@FallofftheMap He added coffee grounds and what looks like 1 banana peel towards the end. I’m guessing he doesn’t eat much vegetables because his gallon sized bag of kitchen scraps was literally coffee grounds and 1 banana
@@FallofftheMapit looks like compost from a shop bought bag? You would have various kitchen products ( eggshells, fruit veg skins etc) in various forms of decomp plus some insects. There is nothing here. Not buying it.
I made this after watching the first video! Its working so well, even considering I started late Autumn. I cannot wait to see how it works come spring.
"Any food that you grow in your backyard is better than the best organic produce you could buy from a grocery store." That's exactly why I'm learning to grow my own food. That was golden.
Im so glad I saw this video. Im trying to figure out how to make some compost without having to turn a big ol' pile, since my back would complain too much. Im going to try and make this into a hot composter, as I have all the horse manure I could possibly need to try it. This looks like a great way to try composting. Thanks!
I have to beg to differ about critters getting in. No, you don't have to worry about things that live above ground, but where we live, we have voles, that will indeed come up through the bottom. The easiest solution, smaller holes in a larger number, like you said. That, or 1/4" metal mesh below the can. I was just going to suggest mesh tape to keep out pests, though some can be beneficial, as you also said. Another option other than coffee grounds for hot composting that I've consistently found is alfalfa cubes used for horse feed. This is what folks use as a hot compost starter. You can soak into a mash (I'd wring out the mash of as much water as possible) or put in whole, or so I've seen. Easy to find at feed stores and relatively cheap. Pellets aren't as good because they're so compressed they take longer to break down unless you soak them first. Look at the bag before you purchase and it will tell you if there are binders, which you really don't want. THANK YOU for addressing the "plastic leeching" issue, which is actually a non-issue. Thank goodness for reasonable people.
There is one animal that has gotten into my compost buckets (I do a similar setup but with 5 galon buckets instead) and its Frogs. funny enough some small frogs have made my compost their home, every now and then when I rotate it, I get frogs out. Not only that but fungus, probably very humid in there. wonder if those two are a problem for compost
You don’t really need worms, the material will decompose without them. However, my experience is that the worms in the ground find their way into it and assist in the process.
Hi, I'm experimenting with 4-10 gallon grow bags as composters. I fill 2 bags with leaves, kitchen scraps, and chopped leaves. The other 2 bags go over the filled ones. Each morning, I check the moisture and turn over the contents. Everything seems okay. My experiment is only a few days old. Any suggestions?...I like the trash container idea. 🤗
OK so I built my trash can exactly per your instructions and is getting filed now with grass clippings, a little horse manure, dry leaves and kitchen scraps . QUESTION: Is it OK that I'm getting ants in the mixture? Should I kill them some how? How tovavoid them if I should? Thanks
I run the egg shells through the food processor for a few seconds to pulverize them. I have done trash can composting and it worked well for me. I lived in a situation where an open compost pile was not a good idea.
I am so thankful for all the help you give us beginner gardeners! It's been about 7 months and I followed your instructions in this video and finally have beautiful black gold! The only adjustments I made was using two large storage bins instead of trash cans (strictly for cost purposes)..... Now I do have a follow up question for you. I didn't expect a million pill bugs and earwigs to be in the compost. From what I read online, these bugs are a good sign, but I hesitate, because there are a lot of those suckers... I only garden in raised beds and I'm thinking if I use this compost as is, I will introduce a whole lot of unfriendlies to my veggies. So I added a very thin layer of DE on top of the finished compost to try and reduce the population. What do you think? Also what do you suggest I store the finished compost in? I currently have the finished product in a 2nd storage bin (but it has no holes in it). Thank you in advance for all your help!
I put the same trash can in my backyard for composting. I however put a French drain pipe down the middle of the can. It adds more air flow and everything composts very quickly. The one you showed from Lowe’s had wheels on it and they don’t work well.
I built one when the video first came out and then built a second when I filled the first. The first can has been sitting for about 6 months now I’m about ready to dump it and check as my second can is nearly full. I hear when you said about seed pressure but I I had one germinate near one of the vent holes, the plant came out the hole!
I love your videos so much that I just subscribed! On a different subject; I notice that you are a patriot, (your hoodie with the US flag) have you been in the military? I too am a patriot! Let's go Brandon!
Something I always wanted to try is just put up bee colonies right next to your garden plots because bees will actually leave you alone if they notice you if you visit them every day or they noticed people every day they kind of seemed to get used to you in some odd way
Thanks for the video very informative. I do have a question. Mine got fly larvae but huge, not normal flies and roaches, a few. Am I doing something wrong? I'm actually afraid to open it again. It doesn't smell but notice some scraps are still there. Should I thow it away?. Any suggestions will be appreciated. Thanks!😊
Great video. And a wonderful way to encourage those who may think that composting is too much work. And here is the dirty little secret that most folk don't realize: the best fertilizer for your soil is basically the nutrients that your last harvest of plants have used up, and those nutrients are replaced when you add back grass clippings, leaves, and kitchen waste based on the plants you grew. And the only way for your plants to use those nutrients is when you compost them.
I loved this idea and followed exactly what you did. All was great until I checked the compost and found a huge ants nest. Not sure how to fix this. Suggestions please???
Thank you, I am from Oman 🇴🇲 from the GCC countries, the temperature with us is much higher which ideally should faster the decomposition and makes the compost faster, isn’t it?
Extremely helpful video ... thank you! I'm on my own and don't produce much waste but I do have one trash can. I love being able to feed my houseplants with rich compost.
Re: the (non) issue of flies. House flies aren't attracted to healthy compost. The flies that like compost, and are very helpful in breaking it down for you, are much larger - almost like horse flies - except they also totally leave you alone. You can have a barbeque outside next to the compost and you might see one or two of the large flies, max. The have much larger and dark brown larvae/maggots. The only time i see regular (and disgusting) house fly maggots, is right after we add new food waste. Once the compost starts breaking down, and not rotting, the house flies leave and the large flies arrive. They're actually a very good indicator, along with sight and smell, for the quality and progress of your compost. EDIT: fixed a couple of autocorrect issues.
It's a little extra work, but I dry the eggshells out first and then run them through a coffee grinder, and use the powder in the compost pile or potting mixes. It eliminates the need to wait a year+ for them to break down naturally.
Not all HDPE buckets are food grade. Recycled HDPE can leach chemicals. It may be okay for composting, but don't assume that any HDPE or PP plastic you use for food contact is safe unless it says so.
Aren't people already annoyed with plastic being in the food? With degradation I feel like a stainless steel 50 gallon drum with USDA paint. Little more expensive, but lasts a lifetime (and does not slowly poison me).
Important note regarding Lowe’s: I’ve found they differ from store to store and a manager confirmed this. For instance, you showed a garbage bin in your Lowes store for $18, but I paid $30 for the same identical bin in my store!
Excellent video. In fact i went back and watched your original one, as i have been collecting material for composting but didn't know where to start. I decided to look in your videos and sure enough i found it. I just finished converting an old 32 gal trash can (that had been replaced with larger ones by our trash service, didn't know why, we should be going the other direction to encourage people to compare and recycle). It's up and running. One question: how high a pile should i get to before i stop filling to let the composting process to get completed?
Love it! 🎉🎉 I hope Ivan make three or four. Thank you for sharing and making it so easy and fun. I’d love to know how you made the hoops over your garden. That looks like a great invention for shade and extending growing season. Or temporary green house.❤
So this is 100% kitchen scraps and yard waste? Are you adding additional yard waste as you add your weekly kitchen scraps? Or you are just dumping in your kitchen scraps each week and that’s it? I tried this once before and for some reason, it didn’t work. I have just purchased a couple new trash cans and planning on trying it again.
Plastic does die and break down and end up in the environment. Yeah if I could pick up a few free trashcans on the curb, I would probably use them too. And they do help keep the rats out of the compost. I picked up one freebie tumbler composter which is lovely, but not nearly enough! I have a fairly large wire fenced compost pile which is not working for me: its too big, too hard to turn or use. But now I am thinking of making narrow tower composts out of wire/fencing/hardware cloth kind of thing, because they will compost quicker and be easier to turn and utilize and I can have 3 or 4! This is kind of an equivalent to the trash cans and an alternative if you don't want to use plastic trash cans that will decompose in a few years. You might even be able to pick up some recycle wire fencing type of thing to make the towers. Also things like olive barrels and such might be available at a local salvage yard for less. We have a good one in our area.
I tried this for hot composting and it didn't work. BUT... when I used them as soil factories for my bokashi-fermented kitchen waste, I discovered that they are FANTASTIC for letting Black Soldier Fly larvae process it into frass. So I thank you for this idea, even if it ended up working rather differently than intended.
Ok, I'm new to this. I always saw my pawpaw take fish scraps from his fishing trips, coffee grounds, egg Shells, etc. and put them in a hole in the corner of his garden. Come time to prepare for planting his garden after digging his tomato plant holes he would put a handful of fertilizer and then bout 6 inches of the special dirt from the corner of his garden before putting his plants in. Is compost a type of fertilizer or just really good soil for planting in instead of regular top soil. Please be kind as I'm very very new to this kind of stuff. 😂
I know this is a older video, but I have questions… I don’t know the fastest way to get in touch with you. Yesterday would have been great… Lol I am about to rototill my small garden area. I did over the winter put dried leaves from the grass And hay, not sure if that was a good idea or not, but it did mulch down and rototill and nicely. My question is, should I go get more dried leaves that I have dumped from my trashcan in the woods and add more… I have continued every day to add coffee, grounds, and egg shells. I’m ready to rototill and go by plants and get things started! I did take your advice on my potatoes and got those in the ground yesterday. I also am in North Carolina closer to Raleigh. Can you help and get back to me as soon as possible? I also was looking for something on your channel with the squash worms. I always have a problem with those. If you could send me a link that would be fantastic… You have been my favorite gardening channel I have found throughout the years and I am trying to follow all of your advice :-)
If you enjoyed this video, please “Like” and share to help increase its reach! Thanks for watching 😊TIMESTAMPS here:
0:00 Intro To Composting
0:58 Compost Piles VS Composters
2:47 The Best Things To Compost
4:00 Composter Results
6:56 Frequently Asked Compost Questions
11:48 Where To Buy A Trash Can
12:46 Are Plastic Trash Cans Safe?
13:53 How To Fill The Composter
16:20 Adventures With Dale
Love it ! and perfect for a small household . Yes, my hot one was a nightmare so I started to just straight up burry mine in the yard but can't do in the winter . But with your system 👍 I will be off getting myself a black trash can ! Oh and I use an old thrift store coffee grinder for my eggshells ...
I make my own potting soil,I don't add anything to it such as cow manure or minerals,should I and what should I add.need info.ilive in s.west Mobile al.co.WEY
@TheMillennialGardener I live in southeastern North Carolina and fire ants are a huge problem here. I have a compost bin and they have infested my compost. Do you have any issues with ants?? They seem to be everywhere here… my raised beds, beds on grade, and as I mentioned the compost pile. I live on 3 acres so would be difficult to treat the entire property.
My roommate and I would bring fresh garden greens to the cashiers at the Fast-Mart (Circle-K, whatever) when we exchanged an empty bucket w/ lid for the one they'd filled with coffee grounds. It was a favorable arrangement for everybody with an added dose of community building and education. Thank you for spreading the word along with the homegrown fertilizer!
Great vid. I really like the American apparel. Is that sweatshirt made in the USA? How about a American made hat? 👍🤠
Y'know, I have like 17 of those trash cans that I've been using as rain barrels for the last 10 years. While they work GREAT, I have 3 or 4 that have developed small splits in the last year and no longer hold water above that split. I was gathering materials to repair them over the winter, but now I think I'll convert them to compost bins. I only do cold composting as it is, but this would give me a way to experiment with different compost materials. It's also a lot easier for an old woman like me to manage, lol. Thank you for the idea!
I have fixed some of those on my channel. They are holding frozen water currently.
I think that will work! As long as the trash cans can tolerate the weight of the compost, anyway. I’m sure it is a lot less than the weight of the water, so I guess it’ll be ok. I recommend old pickle barrels for rain barrels. They’re so thick they’ll last a human lifetime.
I have two going and they have done great!! I fill one and then start another. The first is done when I am ready to use. Sometimes I add a compost booster. I bought a gadget that turns the contents ( my husband loves it). I forget the name it is like a big corkscrew. We do add dry, kitchen scrapes and some dirt. We add water only to keep it like a wrung out sponge.
Do you mean an auger? I've got a couple of those and that's a GREAT idea to use that! I'm gonna give it a try.@@jo-annjewett198
@@jo-annjewett198I use a rather large auger bit that goes at the end of my drill to mix things, even plant bulbs in our loosened soil!
I dried my eggshells then used a cheap coffee grinder to make powder for my plants.
My ground eggshells also end up in suet, peanut butter, and bird seed mixes.
@@joanl2057 Mine end up in the worm bin.
@@shaunnichols8170same here. Done that for 15 years... I see them when emptying the compost, but a year or two later i almost never see them where I use the compost. I dont know if birds eat them?
Dont really know why ppl put the egg shells in the oven or grind them, they go away anyway.
@bsod5608 I half agree I still grind them up and put the powder in my worm bin lol.
@@bsod5608 we do the oven & grinding to add calcium to our chicken feed for better eggs.
For the garden I allow them to sit in water to "release some of the calcium and water our tomatoes with it to stop blossom end rot.
My mom grew up on Norway & my grandmother used to drink the liquid for the calcium. Was fairly common when she grew up (my grandmother) in the 1890's.
This is a great idea, composters being sold are WAY overpriced! I'd like to share my small experience- I made a worm bin composter in my garage from 2 nested rectangular tote bins, I think they were 32 gallons. It worked GREAT. However- a mouse DID chew it's way through the outer heavy plastic/rubbermaid tote. My cat was going nuts trying to get to it, which is how I noticed. The other note is: to get the bin going, I obtained some good fresh compost from a friend. Once I put THAT in, the bin took off and was great. Along with the compost came black soldier flies, which really tear through food waste like demons. Super fast. I don't have chickens, but I heard chickens just adore the BSF maggots like treats. The flies themselves are big, very slow, and not interested in buzzing around people, they were NOT a nuisance, they just wanted to go outside if I opened the garage door. Maybe this note will help someone.
TY! This is super interesting. Wow, I guess mice can be desperate if they sniff any food. Will keeo that in mind with my bucket system.
They cost a bit more, but if you get the trash cans with locking lids, you can tip the cans on their sides and roll them to mix them up. I haven't done it yet, but I've been seeing where a lot of people do the trash can composting. Thx for answering questions and concerns.
Great idea!
I created a kitchen scraps composter like this but used a much bigger vessel which was a 300 litre water tank. We actually had rats chew through the plastic and get in. Lessons learnt would be to just wrap it in chicken wire but also the other thing I did was start to layer the material like a lasagne bed. So every time I added kitchen scraps, I covered them with soil from the garden or else grass clippings or leaf litter and just kept doing that which helped to keep the rats away as the scraps were covered. The compost from my digester was used to grow our potatoes and I have never grown such big potatoes before. This method really works very well.
Rats chewed through my trash bin, too. They start chewing at the drill holes and make the holes big enough for them to go through. Like you, I also now wrap my compost trash bin in chicken wire👍
Aromatic herbs like mint or sage can suppposedly help to repel rats because the smells make it harder for them to navigate by acent.
Interesting. Thanks for comment.
Also, I habitually plant mint around by property perimeter and ~ when I had a three bin cold composter ~ around the bins.
I also took care to add NO FAT, no protein, no pernicious weeds and no diseased leaves.
As we have a possibly deranged promiscuous "animal lover" in the neighbourhood (who daily feeds bear, coyotes, crows, squirrels, skunks & racoons...she consequently ALSO FEEDS RATS.
The neighbour kitty corner from my suburbian lot paid an exterminator to remove rats from under his deck (before he moved to another neighbourhood where the bylaws ARE enforced). The exterminators pulled over 500 corpses from under his SMALL 15' X 20' deck...whereas WHEN THE MINT was thriving...not a SINGLE rat was espied on our property.
Do NOT have standing water (in tires or other receptacles) and DO NOT leave your doors open in cool weather.
I can attest mint was incredibly effective for the three decades I had the 3 bin composter.
Good luck with the non human vermin.
Thank You! After I saw the first video, I made 4 of these cold compost bins. I drilled smaller holes in the bottom and did not sink them in the ground. Nor did I turn them. The results looked a lot like yours. Egg shells and some plant matter did not fully break down. I used all four in a new raised garden bed. This was so easy. Now I'm starting over.
A tip I've seen in the comments about egg shells is to blitz them in a blender before adding them to the compost--then they decompose a LOT faster 😁👍
I`ve found that my cucumbers and pole beans grew perfectly in half composted material in a slightly raised bed about a foot deep with rotting wood chunks as one side of it.
I have an old bin that was damaged on the bottom. I cut the bottom off, settled it directly into my garden bed, filled it up and let it do it thing (occasional turning). When it was done, I lifted it up and spread the compost without have to ‘transport’ around my garden 😃
Good call
i have trash can hot composted for years now. i have 10 trash cans for composting but right now there is only finished material in 7 of them with 3 empty. when i am building a bin i add coco coir, shredded cardboard, shredded leaves, kitchen scraps, alfalfa pellets, layer scratchins, biochar that needs inoculation, diy calcium acetate, and a few sardines and alternate moistening with drunk compost or jms. i mix/stir/turn when the temps fall to around 100F but that is surprisingly not very often and they easily will reach 130F plus and will take 3 weeks or so to cool of to mid-mesophilic range. i use a mix of 20 & 32 gallon trash cans, simply because of availability when i got them, and i keep them secured to each other and the first one to my back porch with very short bungee cords. i live 1/2 mi from a wildlife preserve & retired hydroelectric dam and in all the years i have been doing this my bins have never been bothered with hungry neighbors and i have a coyote den 100 feet from my front door. my garden attracts more critters than my compost does. my bins do attract insects because of what i am keeping them moist with - mainly the drunk compost. i also bait the spots that my trash cans sit with drunk compost to attract worms. i usually have beautiful material before the end of month 3 and as the material finishes cooking & matures i just move it to another bin to keep them full and making room for new material. also, making a vent with cardboard, a hack of a johnson-su bioreactor, does seem to help speed along the process in my 32 gallon trash cans but doesn't seem to make a difference in the 20s. i never would have considered trash can composting until i moved into a development with an hoa that prevented open bin composting, they say due to our proximity of the wildlife preserve. btw, my 32 gallons have aprox 70 holes & 20 gallons have about 50 holes per bin. no holes in the tops though to allow methane to escape and allow excess moisture in. from how my garden produces there is no question that i'm getting primo material. when spring comes i just mix my compost with topsoil, perlite & vermiculite and voila i'm ready to plant in my raised beds and grow bags. i have been a victim of grazon in the past & still recovering so i compost my raised bed & grow bag soil over the winter with my amendments to cook & rehab.
how about a video
Love your videos...I have learned so much.... I saw the first video and bought three trash cans. I have more holes on the side, and they have all worked like a charm. I had a problem getting enough kitchen scraps, so I went to my local farm stand and got their old stuff they couldn't sell. I just used the first one to winterize my raised beds and it was golden. It's January 19th today. I added scraps to another one and there were still hundreds of worms in it, despite it being in the teens and low 20s this last week. I did make one mistake. I drilled holes in the top for air. I had since covered them up and they're working great. Thanks again for all the time you spend helping others and keep up the great videos. See you on your next one.
Pertaining to the animals getting in. I tried this and was surprised I found a vole had crawled in (probably through the bottom.) To stop the vermin I cut a piece of hardware cloth to fit between the bottom of the can and the ground. Worms should still get in and the metal screen should keep out the vole. Haven't had issues since.
I use the same plastic black garbage can from Lowes/HD, but have 1" holes on bottom and sides, no issues with critters. I add scraps from the kitchen, plants from garden, flowers, grass, twigs, leaves, dirt, and Uncle Jim's worms from Amazon...they love the scraps! Has made a big difference in the soil for my garden. Bury the can a little into the ground, at least 3-4", and keep the compost moist. Once I add scraps, at least weekly, I cover them up with grass and leaves, or other material. The worms will hang out toward the top and work their way through the scraps and make some great compost.
Nitrogen is an inert gas which cannot be sensed by odor, color, or taste.😂
I call bs, Google isn't always correct..
Is it possible that it can be converted into other forms (states) of matter? Uhhhh…. How about yes. Next time read a bit more than the first result google gives you. What an ass. Seriously. How do think plants use nitrogen? Only in gas form?
They can still put the drill holes in the bottom. And lay them a piece of screen across the bottom of chicken wire. Across the dirt before putting the barrel back in the hole.
I made 2 of these after watching your 1st video BUT... I use my big urban wormbag as the kitchen scrap collection & once a week I toss in a few cups of coco core as "worm bedding" to help contorl moisture. I empty the worm bag into the trash cans once a month and start over. Even in winter the worm bag stays warm. It's been a fun & succesful experiment 👍👍
Vermicomposting is great and the Urban Worm Bag 2.0 is a great design. Worms actually multiply the nutrients of your source material so IMO it's the best compost you can make.
I did one like this that needed turning. The hot kind. It became the biggest ant house on earth. Any advise. Love your videos.
Very interesting! Thanks for the feedback!
@@angelawade1445 I think of them as friends, digesting cellulose and aerating the pile through industrious tunnneling.
Every day, I'm so glad I found your channel! I've learned so much, and am applying so many of your tips to my garden this year, thank you, thank you, thank you!
I've been wanting to get into composting for years, but have been intimidated by all of the different types, and containers, and just didn't know where to start.
This morning, I found your video from last year, and directly ordered the trash can from Lowes, and came back to watch this video. I'll snag another can in a few months, to start a constant supply of compost.
I'm SO excited to finally get moving with this, as is my 12 year old daughter - she's learning in the garden right along side of me!
Post your progress on your channel!
This was a game changer for me once I saw your original video. I also bought some red wiggler worms and they’ve also sped up the decomp while also getting those sweet worm castings. Starting can number 2 right now and plan on rotating between the two. Thanks again!
Outstanding video!!! Learned a lot!!! Thanks so very very much!!! Until your next video and beyond, happy trails, best wishes, take care, be safe and God bless!!! Chuck Knight from Atascocita, Texas. ✝️👨🌾🏈🙏
If a 32 gallon trash can isn't big enough for your plot, then you could get one of those 50, or 55 gallon plastic barrels and do the same exact thing. You can absolutely do hot compost with this method, just make sure to mix it up once a day, and with it being completely enclosed, your not going to need to add water, except maybe once when you first fill it up. This is such cheaper then purchasing bags upon bags of over priced compost every year.
I can`t afford the plastic barrels so I hiked around here in the woods and discovered two huge plastic barrels, a gigantic cooler, half barrels, buckets and other great things I could use that had washed down the creek when it flooded.
I found trash cans on sale at Lowe's for $6.17, so I bought two and will be installing these in my garden.
Ok. You sold me. Lowes is gonna love you!
I put chicken manure and wheat straw in my trash cans from the coop with food scraps. I then add worms in the trash can. Best compost I’ve ever had!
Where do you get worms from?
@@pergal4 Out of my garden. But you also buy them at bait and tackle stores that sell fishing supplies
@@cleverhonky7186 🙏
@@pergal4A lot of worm farms will ship them to you!
We live in the frigid north of Wyoming. We use a huge 80 pound garbage can.
We add all of our kitchen scraps, garden debris from the fall, and minimal amounts of water, as well as composting bacteria.
We also grow multiple types of mushrooms. After our mushroom buckets stop flushing, we grind the remaining grain spores and straw and add it to our composter. My wife works at a deli, where she gets coffee grounds and overly ripe bananas.
During our icy cold winters we bring our huge can full of compost into our garage. We set it beside an oil filled radiator heater so that it stays nice and warm.
Every couple of weeks we had about a half quart of composting bacteria with just enough water to make it easy to mix in.
Every spring we take our composter outside into the driveway, and we dump it out on a large tarp. We mix it around with a pitchfork.
It is always SUPER DARK and rich! There is an amazing smell, like very expensive compost from an upscale garden center!
We have had absolutely AMAZING, BUMPER CROPS of tomatoes, hot peppers, cucumbers, squash... Even our flowers love it (important because we need to raise Leaf Cutter Bees to pollinate our plants, at close to 7000 feet in elevation).
One more bonus, because we use our mushroom compost, we actually get volunteer mushrooms growing in our grow bags!
This is AMAZING for close to 7000 feet in elevation in frosty, short season, Wyoming!
I live in North Dakota and it gets pretty cold up here! Wondering what one should do when winter hits. I don’t think it would work to put the can in the garage for us. Wondering what one should do. Can one leave the compost in the can outside until spring with some compost in it ? Would it be ok over wintering it outside . What happens if it’s only half dissolved ? I would love to try this idea but no knowing how to over winter it outside . I am also going to put hardware cloth on the bottom and we have voles that like to dig underground 😬.
@@mmsdcb9081 Howdy Manitoba neighbour. I'm wondering all the same things.
For the voles, I would just drill a bunch of small holes rather than those big holesaw ones he used. Combined with digging that 6" hole that should be no problem.
As for what to do in the winter... I'm just gonna leave them out and add to them over the winter. What's the worst that can happen? I'm guessing that by the spring to early summer it'll be back on track. It might be that you'll have to alternate between 2 cans each growing season. I'm just gonna buy 2 and see how it goes.
@@MetalAsFork what we ended up doing was we screwed 1/4” hardware cloth on the bottom outside of the cans and didn’t drill that big of holes on the bottom.. seems to be ok for now. That sounds like a good idea to keep adding for winter or just stop maybe and continue in spring. It will be fun trying anyway!
i been wondering what im guna do with all these dried up cakes!! ty everyone
What about the idea of adding worms to help break down the composting material?
I think I learned this from Jerra Garden here in FL. Save your eggshells in a plastic bag (crushed) and put in freezer. When you have half a bag, pulverized them and add to your compost.
If people are concerned about something crawling up into their compost or you can get that hardware cloth and just stick it underneath there , excellent composter idea
Have 6 on the go, using 3 different sizes, 10 and 20 litre buckets/bins and 40 litre bins, have been 6 months so far, am very impressed, my reasons for experimenting was to see how much room they would take up and how much I could make, the potato skins insists on growing, but turn them at the beginning of each month tipping into a wheelbarrow, last September (spring in New Zealand)added fresh grass, the little buckets were added to the big bins at the beginning of December(beginning of summer), they are nearly ready, they have had some hay, straw, shredded newspaper, plus a handful of coffee grounds per 10 litre size. Am a experienced cold composter. Once the autumn has arrived will use leaves as well.
I have been saving my eggshells and now I blend them up in my blender to get finer, smaller pieces, they break down much quicker, thanks for this awesome follow up video, I just went out and bought 2 garbage cans!
Awesome design. I made two based on the design. I really enjoy them more than the tumbler style and they work great. I did not sink mine into the ground, but have had zero issues. Thank you for the video and idea!
My bank was giving away 55 gallon rain barrels 5 years ago. I live in NYC so wasn't going to use it for that. I started using it as a compost bin. I throw everything in there besides sticks because it takes too long to break down. I throw things in all winter and stop once spring comes. I let it break down for a month and then it's ready for me to plant my plants and vegetables. Then start again.
When I listen to you, I feel like you’re the brother I never had!
If you grind your egg shells in a coffee grinder, into powder, the calcium will become much more available for your plants. This creates more edges for microorganisms to break down the calcium in a way that your plants can utilize it. Love your video! Going to make one for myself!
John McHatton
I avoid doing this, because I like to keep composting simple. If you put that level of work into composting, people will not do it. The key is to be as simple and lazy as possible in the design of your system so it does as much for you as possible. Grinding egg shells every day would mean no one will take time to compost.
If you save your eggshells for months in a container that breathes then they get really dry and you can just grind them up by the pound. In other words not often. I just make it a six month long project ( gathering ) then grind them up all at once.
@livesoutdoors1708 That's what I do, except, I bake them in the oven at like 180 for 15 min.
John McHatton
@@TheMillennialGardenerI get that philosophy, but grinding the egg shells takes about 30 seconds every 2 weeks or however long you choose to save them up. Just let them dry in the egg carton and when the eggs are gone grind in a coffee grinder. With all the time-consuming tasks of having a garden it’s one of the easiest things you can possibly do lol.
We would just crush them in a bag and dad used the grindings to ring his tomatoes. Slugs don't like the shard edges on the shells. They dissolve gradually into the soil.
Can you ever have too many compost bins? I had one but got a second... Now that I have two I want a third! It just feels great to turn organic trash into garden treasure
You might like the compost path system i use on my channel. It takes zero space but it's huge!
Great idea! Thank you! I will add two to my garden. I had a compost pile held up by a circle of wire fence. My chickens knocked it over and had their way with it, but they enjoyed it so much, I let them have it. This will keep the chickens out. I will still give kitchen scraps to the chickens, but use the composters for the straw bedding and manure from their house and, of course, garden refuse.
This can be my answer.
I understimated the cockroaches, they love open composting trash, I can tolerate a few cockroaches but they turned into hundreds 😩
100% call ahead for coffee grounds and cardboard for a place like Starbucks. My local Starbucks goes through 20lbs of cold brew grounds a day (which is less acidic than normal coffee grounds) also my Starbucks gets deliveries (such as frozen pastries) every day and that cardboard will also break down into compost and help neutralize the coffee grounds especially if you do other kinds of composting like using worms.
If it’s during the summer months and Starbucks is currently doing “grounds for your garden” they probably already have some used grounds packaged up for you to take.
Been intuitively wanting to turn a trash can I used to use as soil and fertilizer storage before we moved. Now I’m convinced and even more so now that I know I don’t have to stress about the ratio.
Thanks so much for all the information! ❤
Happy growing!!! 🌿
This was my first compost bin just with giant cracks . And I left the top off because we lived my a road that gets windy with all the traffic.
I'd just sit it ontop of bricks to collect the tea. Then would use a milk crate with fresh compost to get the worms to migrate.
And I would've kept it had a relative not gifted me a compost bin last year.
Gardening has been such a fun rewarding hobby even with all the local animals eating everything but the asparagus and onions. 😅 There's nothing like growing your own food. And making what I have work till I could buy more aesthetically pleasing garden supplies, just proved to myself my own resourcefulness.
Got a greenhouse this year though!
Grind your egg shells in a blender or food processor then add them. They will break down faster.
You can also add your organic ash. What I mean by that is burned leaves, plants, and wood, and you can even burn your compost to break it down further.
If you burned anything else like paper, newspaper, paper plates, cardboard, really anything other than paper towels, be careful because of the ink and glue used to make some of those things.
Dry out your eggshells on a paper towel first and then crush them as you're adding them to your compost.
Cackalacky for life!
Now thats how composting is supposed to be, easy and enjoyable , thanks for uploading. I've used a very similar method with an old damaged water butt with fantastic results all thanks to mother nature. Whilst you obviously need a mixture of materials some people just become obsessed with ratios, chemistry and a phobia of insects 🤣 Great video keep up the good work
I was wondering if you were able to get some worms in your composter. Did you add any? Good idea
I made one from a slightly smaller garbage can. I made the mistake of putting too many holes and the holes were too big. Had some good stuff falling out when I would roll the can around to mix it. Lesson learned. I hope. ha
The good news is it’s cheap enough to make another one. The challenge will be throwing away the old can. Trash cans are hard to throw away 😆
I had the EXACT same problem. What I did was I partially covered the large holes with duct tape - I put a duct tape "X" over each of the big holes on the bottom. Very little leaks out now and rolling worked better for me since my bin was going anaerobic a lot.
Hi there, new to your channel and new to gardening. My question is this? When do you stop adding to your Barrell? You said it had been sitting for 2 months. Do you have several bins going simultaneously?
I am glad you said; where does it stop. I agree!
This guy is so resourceful, encouraging, and knowledgeable.
Not to mention, I love that Yankee twang!😊
I appreciate it! Thanks for watching!
"Yankee twang..." You mean proper English
What exactly do you mean by a “twang”? And we aren’t “Yankees”. We’re Americans.
How did you get the cold pile started? Looks like soil mostly to me.
Whats Growin on?!😃💕Love it New Subscriber TY❤❤
I love how you handled the Karens with love & grace.... That deserves a follow & a like! And I need an easy way to compost! Gonna get me a trashcan asap.
The plastic was a concern with people who grow hydro vegetables in buckets and totes. There`s no evidence of leeching...food safe or not.
I turn by rolling it on its side across the backyard (I bungie cord the top on).
I was under the impression that PVC is quite a toxic plastic. I read a book (can’t remember the titel right now) where the author pulled up a lot stats about PVC. It releases a lot of toxins, both during production and while in use. I decided to not ever use PVC if I have a choice after reading it. Hopefully there’s affordable bins made from better plastic options.
Keep in mind that not all plastic is the same, and just because we’ve been using something in the past doesn’t mean it’s actually safe for something that’s used for food consumption.
I actually made one of these by your instructions last summer. My first time ever trying to compost and it seems to work pretty well, I was expecting it to heat up though when I got enough material so I guess I missed that part from your original video. For most of the summer I didn’t have enough material to fill it up and didn’t get enough until December when I gathered leaves. I live in MI though and I think it might be completely frozen currently. I haven’t checked it in a while… I do look forward to seeing how it turns out in the spring though!
What about moles or gophers getting into the large bottom holes?
If you are using a lid anyway, compost everything. You will have things that need multiple cycles of composting. But you can compost anything magazines. Serial boxes, amazon box pizza boxes card
Awesomeness! When we get to North Florida, definitely will be doing this😊
It’s a good system. I’m very happy with it.
@@TheMillennialGardener I agree with you. I was impressed with the first video and even more so with this one. Being able to make my own compost is going help a lot.
After putting the tape in the bottom how about adding red crawlers in there to aid decomposition?
The overwhelming majority of decomposition is caused by the microbiome: bacteria and fungi. Worms are not necessary for rapid decomposition. There are holes at the bottom if worms choose to find their way in, but I don't see the value in adding any as it's an unnecessary expense. If you happen to find earthworms roaming around on their own, feel free to add them. They'll appreciate it.
When I saw your first video about this, I decided to give it a try. I quickly filled up the can (this was last fall), so decided to get another can. I am now using it exactly how you described, with one sitting undisturbed, while I actively add to the other. I plan on taking the undisturbed one and mixing it into my growbags this spring. I'll then stop adding to my current can and let it sit through the summer to use with fall veggies. Thank you for sharing this method!
I didn’t see not ONE worm
Also absent is the obvious things like avocado and banana peels that break down slowly and would be visible if these results were real. I’m skeptical.
@@FallofftheMap
He added coffee grounds and what looks like 1 banana peel towards the end. I’m guessing he doesn’t eat much vegetables because his gallon sized bag of kitchen scraps was literally coffee grounds and 1 banana
@@FallofftheMapit looks like compost from a shop bought bag? You would have various kitchen products ( eggshells, fruit veg skins etc) in various forms of decomp plus some insects. There is nothing here. Not buying it.
I made this after watching the first video! Its working so well, even considering I started late Autumn. I cannot wait to see how it works come spring.
I’m in Texas - Fire Ant country! Do you ever have any issues with ants and if so, how do you prevent it?
In Texas i funnel rain into my can using the upside down lid. The trash can only has a small leak/no drilled holes. It still dries out!
My climate is really wet. We get more rain in July and August than big portions of Texas gets all year some summers 😂
"Any food that you grow in your backyard is better than the best organic produce you could buy from a grocery store." That's exactly why I'm learning to grow my own food. That was golden.
What about adding worms?
Im so glad I saw this video. Im trying to figure out how to make some compost without having to turn a big ol' pile, since my back would complain too much. Im going to try and make this into a hot composter, as I have all the horse manure I could possibly need to try it. This looks like a great way to try composting. Thanks!
I have to beg to differ about critters getting in. No, you don't have to worry about things that live above ground, but where we live, we have voles, that will indeed come up through the bottom. The easiest solution, smaller holes in a larger number, like you said. That, or 1/4" metal mesh below the can. I was just going to suggest mesh tape to keep out pests, though some can be beneficial, as you also said.
Another option other than coffee grounds for hot composting that I've consistently found is alfalfa cubes used for horse feed. This is what folks use as a hot compost starter.
You can soak into a mash (I'd wring out the mash of as much water as possible) or put in whole, or so I've seen. Easy to find at feed stores and relatively cheap. Pellets aren't as good because they're so compressed they take longer to break down unless you soak them first. Look at the bag before you purchase and it will tell you if there are binders, which you really don't want.
THANK YOU for addressing the "plastic leeching" issue, which is actually a non-issue. Thank goodness for reasonable people.
Loving your answer regarding the concern of plastic 😂 so so true but I needed to hear it.
Lowe's trash can pricing by me in Michigan 9/23/2024 (exact model): $29.98 lol *My how pricing changes over time!
There is one animal that has gotten into my compost buckets (I do a similar setup but with 5 galon buckets instead) and its Frogs. funny enough some small frogs have made my compost their home, every now and then when I rotate it, I get frogs out. Not only that but fungus, probably very humid in there. wonder if those two are a problem for compost
Dumb question but…. I thought you needed worms for this to work?
You don’t really need worms, the material will decompose without them. However, my experience is that the worms in the ground find their way into it and assist in the process.
Hi, I'm experimenting with 4-10 gallon grow bags as composters. I fill 2 bags with leaves, kitchen scraps, and chopped leaves. The other 2 bags go over the filled ones. Each morning, I check the moisture and turn over the contents. Everything seems okay. My experiment is only a few days old. Any suggestions?...I like the trash container idea. 🤗
OK so I built my trash can exactly per your instructions and is getting filed now with grass clippings, a little horse manure, dry leaves and kitchen scraps . QUESTION: Is it OK that I'm getting ants in the mixture? Should I kill them some how? How tovavoid them if I should? Thanks
I run the egg shells through the food processor for a few seconds to pulverize them. I have done trash can composting and it worked well for me. I lived in a situation where an open compost pile was not a good idea.
I am so thankful for all the help you give us beginner gardeners! It's been about 7 months and I followed your instructions in this video and finally have beautiful black gold! The only adjustments I made was using two large storage bins instead of trash cans (strictly for cost purposes)..... Now I do have a follow up question for you. I didn't expect a million pill bugs and earwigs to be in the compost. From what I read online, these bugs are a good sign, but I hesitate, because there are a lot of those suckers... I only garden in raised beds and I'm thinking if I use this compost as is, I will introduce a whole lot of unfriendlies to my veggies. So I added a very thin layer of DE on top of the finished compost to try and reduce the population. What do you think? Also what do you suggest I store the finished compost in? I currently have the finished product in a 2nd storage bin (but it has no holes in it). Thank you in advance for all your help!
I put the same trash can in my backyard for composting. I however put a French drain pipe down the middle of the can. It adds more air flow and everything composts very quickly. The one you showed from Lowe’s had wheels on it and they don’t work well.
I don't know how you do it. Every video is so informative. Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and time.
I add alfalfa pellets to my above ground pile. Helps to balance the ground up leaves
I built one when the video first came out and then built a second when I filled the first. The first can has been sitting for about 6 months now I’m about ready to dump it and check as my second can is nearly full. I hear when you said about seed pressure but I I had one germinate near one of the vent holes, the plant came out the hole!
I love how you just shut down all the plastic panickers
I love your videos so much that I just subscribed! On a different subject; I notice that you are a patriot, (your hoodie with the US flag) have you been in the military? I too am a patriot! Let's go Brandon!
Something I always wanted to try is just put up bee colonies right next to your garden plots because bees will actually leave you alone if they notice you if you visit them every day or they noticed people every day they kind of seemed to get used to you in some odd way
Thanks. I haven't had success with composting. These ideas will help.
Thanks for the video very informative. I do have a question. Mine got fly larvae but huge, not normal flies and roaches, a few. Am I doing something wrong? I'm actually afraid to open it again. It doesn't smell but notice some scraps are still there. Should I thow it away?. Any suggestions will be appreciated. Thanks!😊
Great video. And a wonderful way to encourage those who may think that composting is too much work. And here is the dirty little secret that most folk don't realize: the best fertilizer for your soil is basically the nutrients that your last harvest of plants have used up, and those nutrients are replaced when you add back grass clippings, leaves, and kitchen waste based on the plants you grew. And the only way for your plants to use those nutrients is when you compost them.
I loved this idea and followed exactly what you did. All was great until I checked the compost and found a huge ants nest. Not sure how to fix this. Suggestions please???
Thank you, I am from Oman 🇴🇲 from the GCC countries, the temperature with us is much higher which ideally should faster the decomposition and makes the compost faster, isn’t it?
Extremely helpful video ... thank you! I'm on my own and don't produce much waste but I do have one trash can. I love being able to feed my houseplants with rich compost.
Re: the (non) issue of flies.
House flies aren't attracted to healthy compost. The flies that like compost, and are very helpful in breaking it down for you, are much larger - almost like horse flies - except they also totally leave you alone. You can have a barbeque outside next to the compost and you might see one or two of the large flies, max. The have much larger and dark brown larvae/maggots. The only time i see regular (and disgusting) house fly maggots, is right after we add new food waste. Once the compost starts breaking down, and not rotting, the house flies leave and the large flies arrive. They're actually a very good indicator, along with sight and smell, for the quality and progress of your compost.
EDIT: fixed a couple of autocorrect issues.
It's a little extra work, but I dry the eggshells out first and then run them through a coffee grinder, and use the powder in the compost pile or potting mixes. It eliminates the need to wait a year+ for them to break down naturally.
@TheMellennialGardener
Do you put snails you pick off in your compost bin?
I do a hand pick every night. Seems like a lot of wasted protein.
Not all HDPE buckets are food grade. Recycled HDPE can leach chemicals. It may be okay for composting, but don't assume that any HDPE or PP plastic you use for food contact is safe unless it says so.
Aren't people already annoyed with plastic being in the food? With degradation I feel like a stainless steel 50 gallon drum with USDA paint. Little more expensive, but lasts a lifetime (and does not slowly poison me).
Important note regarding Lowe’s: I’ve found they differ from store to store and a manager confirmed this. For instance, you showed a garbage bin in your Lowes store for $18, but I paid $30 for the same identical bin in my store!
Can I use the old wood chips from my chicken coop instead of plants? I live in southern California, and I don't have a garden.
Excellent video. In fact i went back and watched your original one, as i have been collecting material for composting but didn't know where to start. I decided to look in your videos and sure enough i found it.
I just finished converting an old 32 gal trash can (that had been replaced with larger ones by our trash service, didn't know why, we should be going the other direction to encourage people to compare and recycle).
It's up and running.
One question: how high a pile should i get to before i stop filling to let the composting process to get completed?
Love it! 🎉🎉 I hope Ivan make three or four. Thank you for sharing and making it so easy and fun. I’d love to know how you made the hoops over your garden. That looks like a great invention for shade and extending growing season. Or temporary green house.❤
So this is 100% kitchen scraps and yard waste? Are you adding additional yard waste as you add your weekly kitchen scraps? Or you are just dumping in your kitchen scraps each week and that’s it?
I tried this once before and for some reason, it didn’t work. I have just purchased a couple new trash cans and planning on trying it again.
Plastic does die and break down and end up in the environment. Yeah if I could pick up a few free trashcans on the curb, I would probably use them too. And they do help keep the rats out of the compost. I picked up one freebie tumbler composter which is lovely, but not nearly enough! I have a fairly large wire fenced compost pile which is not working for me: its too big, too hard to turn or use. But now I am thinking of making narrow tower composts out of wire/fencing/hardware cloth kind of thing, because they will compost quicker and be easier to turn and utilize and I can have 3 or 4! This is kind of an equivalent to the trash cans and an alternative if you don't want to use plastic trash cans that will decompose in a few years. You might even be able to pick up some recycle wire fencing type of thing to make the towers. Also things like olive barrels and such might be available at a local salvage yard for less. We have a good one in our area.
I tried this for hot composting and it didn't work. BUT... when I used them as soil factories for my bokashi-fermented kitchen waste, I discovered that they are FANTASTIC for letting Black Soldier Fly larvae process it into frass. So I thank you for this idea, even if it ended up working rather differently than intended.
I think this is the video (on my second/horticultural channel) in which I discussed this.
ruclips.net/video/ze37g8L7-1s/видео.htmlsi=0b04h2UmqiFFXiCt
There is always a way to make a system work.
Ok, I'm new to this. I always saw my pawpaw take fish scraps from his fishing trips, coffee grounds, egg Shells, etc. and put them in a hole in the corner of his garden. Come time to prepare for planting his garden after digging his tomato plant holes he would put a handful of fertilizer and then bout 6 inches of the special dirt from the corner of his garden before putting his plants in. Is compost a type of fertilizer or just really good soil for planting in instead of regular top soil. Please be kind as I'm very very new to this kind of stuff. 😂
I know this is a older video, but I have questions… I don’t know the fastest way to get in touch with you. Yesterday would have been great… Lol I am about to rototill my small garden area. I did over the winter put dried leaves from the grass And hay, not sure if that was a good idea or not, but it did mulch down and rototill and nicely. My question is, should I go get more dried leaves that I have dumped from my trashcan in the woods and add more… I have continued every day to add coffee, grounds, and egg shells. I’m ready to rototill and go by plants and get things started! I did take your advice on my potatoes and got those in the ground yesterday. I also am in North Carolina closer to Raleigh. Can you help and get back to me as soon as possible?
I also was looking for something on your channel with the squash worms. I always have a problem with those. If you could send me a link that would be fantastic… You have been my favorite gardening channel I have found throughout the years and I am trying to follow all of your advice :-)