Compost Diary Part 1

Image via Haysagriculture

I must say that I'm pretty good at recycling, so much so, I can't stand the sight of a PET bottle in garbage bin. But, while I recycle my plastics, papers, aluminium and glass regularly, I haven't really tried my hand at recycling kitchen waste. This is rather odd, because I have wanted to compost since I was about 12! Alas, we never had much of a garden, and I didn't know how to start.

Currently I live in a small apartment with very little space, so I never would have thought that I'd start composting now. The answer to my composting prayers came when I discovered a local company called BioSense, and their simple yet ingenious kitchen composting kit. I wasted no time in emailing them to find out how much the kit would cost. Puan Rokiah, the founder of Heritage Biotech (that makes the compost bins), replied almost immediately. It would be only RM70, inclusive of delivery!

Before you knew it, my compost bin had arrived. The kit itself consists of just 3 main things: the bin, the catalyst (a.k.a. bokashi) and a strainer. The others seen here are freebies! Puan Rokiah sent me a bag of soil, a bottle of  organic fertiliser and a gardening magazine. So nice of her :)

Here's the very first kitchen scraps that I'm composting!

As you can see, the compost bin doesn't take very much room at all. I've placed it near my sink for easy access (my kitchen's a mess, I know :P).

My biggest quandary at the moment is - what do I do with the fermented kitchen scraps? Can I take them down to the apartment's communal garden/playground and try to bury the compost there? Hmmm... Anyway, stay tuned to find out how my composting adventure turns out. In the meantime, you can learn more about the importance of composting your kitchen waste via this oh-so educational video: