Composting in Salem

City of Salem offering discounted home composting bins, curbside composting; Q&A event May 4, 10am, Salem Common

It’s easy to make compost and the City of Salem makes it even easier by offering rodent-resistant Earth Machine home composting bins for $25, more than half off the retail price. The Earth Machine has a capacity of 11 cubic feet, the equivalent of about four bags of leaves, with a sliding door at the bottom for removing compost and a locking lid. The bin is made from 50% post-consumer recycled plastic.

To obtain a discounted compost bin, please fill out this form(https://www.salem.com/sites/salemma/files/uploads/2019compost_bins_orderl_flyer.pdf) and bring it to the Department of Public Services at 5 Jefferson Avenue. You can also fill out and submit the forms at a composting Question and Answer session on May 4th at 10:00 a.m. on Salem Common during the SalemRecycles Swap N’ Drop Event

Composting is a great way to recycle organic “waste” into a beneficial soil amendment for yards and
gardens. Composting at home can also help reduce methane production at landfills. Using compost in landscapes helps store carbon in the soil instead of releasing it to the atmosphere. You can also reduce your trash by 50% or more by composting leaves, grass clippings, garden debris, fruit peels, vegetable scraps, tea bags, coffee grounds, egg shells, paper towels, napkins, and even paper bags. 

The compost bin helps hold in heat and moisture, keep animals out, and looks more attractive than open compost heaps. Organic material will start to turn to compost in the bins in three to six months. Compost, known as "black gold" to gardeners, replenishes nutrients in the soil, helps retain moisture, makes the soil easy to work, and helps plants resist disease. Compost makes plants healthy so they can overcome adverse conditions without pesticides or chemical fertilizers.

Fill your compost bin using three parts “brown” material and one part “green” material. This provides food for the compost organisms in a recipe that will not create odors. “Brown” ingredients include leaves, straw, dried grass clippings, wood chips, sawdust, pine needles, and paper products such as paper towels, napkins, bags, plates, coffee filters, tissue, and newspaper. “Green” materials include fresh grass clippings, weeds, fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, tea bags, eggshells, manure, and seaweed. Make sure the materials are damp as you build the pile, especially the “browns.” As you build the pile, sprinkle on several shovelfuls of rich garden soil or finished compost after every 12” of fresh material. 

Leaves are an important ingredient of a compost pile. Without them, a compost pile may become too wet and create odors. If you have leaves available, use them to start your compost heap and save the rest to add during the summer. Compostable food scraps and grass clippings should be buried under about 6" of leaves, where they will decompose odorlessly. If leaves are in short supply, add plenty of paper towels, napkins, and torn up paper bags to provide the necessary carbon, and always bury your food scraps under this material.    

Most of the composting work is done by soil organisms that convert organic material to humus. They need oxygen, just as we do. Lack of oxygen will slow down the composting process and cause odors. Turn your pile, fluff it with a hoe or turning tool, or build air passages into the pile to keep your compost pile aerobic and odor-free. You can also use a compost bin that allows air to penetrate the pile. In about three months the material will start to turn to compost. The material at the bottom of the pile will be ready first. As more time goes by, the level of compost in the pile will rise until it is easy to access just below the surface. You will know your compost is ready to use when it looks like rich, brown soil and no longer resembles the original materials. 

Compost benefits all plants and there are many different ways to use it. Add a handful of compost to each transplant hole when planting seedlings or potted plants. Spread another handful on the surface of the soil around the newly planted seedling, making sure that the compost is not touching the stem or trunk of the plant. Spread compost as a mulch around perennials, shrubs, and other existing plantings. If you are planting seeds, apply one-half to three inches of compost and mix it in with the top four inches of soil in the seedbed. To rejuvenate lawns, screen your compost using ½” screening. Sprinkle the screened compost on the lawn about ¼” deep. Screened compost is also excellent for reseeding lawns. Sprinkle it ½” deep over the bare spots and distribute new grass seed on top. You can even make excellent potting soil with compost by mixing equal parts compost, sand, and loam.  

At-home composting isn’t the only option in Salem. You can also sign up for curbside composting with Black Earth Compost for just $9.99 a month. For curbside composting you will be provided with a 13-gallon animal proof bin with locking lid and wheels. You can compost a lot more with Black Earth than you may be able to do on your own including meat, dairy, napkins, paper towels, compostable take out containers/cups/utensils, and pizza boxes. Black Earth will also pick up textiles that you no longer want – just leave them out in a plastic bag next to your compost bin on pick up day. Every spring you will receive a bag of finished compost from Black Earth for you to use in your garden. Click here(https://blackearthcompost.com/salem-ma/) for more information about curbside composting with Black Earth Compost. There is also a drop off bin for compost available at Mack Park starting May 1^st. Please only put food waste in brown bags or compostable bags in the bin.

For more information visit www.greensalem.com/programs/compost/ or contact Micaela Guglielmi, Waste Reduction Coordinator at mguglielmi@salem.com or 978-619-5672.