Ways of Composting at home

I started my composting journey by the end of year 2013 and the main purpose of why I started was to save $ from buying "organic" compost from stores and make my own at home. 

However later on, I realized the actual need of composting at home was not just to feed the plants, but also that it was my responsibility to manage my kitchen waste at my home itself. This awareness did not come to me overnight, but as and when I started digging deeper into the matter of necessity of composting, the Mandur landfill issues and the importance of segregating waste at home.

It is always a learning experience, which can be never ending. But the more I was successful with it, the more I wanted to make it better and quicker. 

In this post, I discuss the Composting ways I tried, my experience (good or bad) on these ways. You could decide the best way that would go for. 

[Disclaimer : Here, I am mentioning about the products/brands I have used personally. I have no experience on using their competitor's products, hence I am not comparing the different vendor's results here. So, there may be multiple vendors for the same product, which you may research in the net and opt per your wish.]

So, we should first understand that there are two main categories of how microbes decompose organic matter: 

• Those that need air (Aerobic) 
• Those that don't (Anaerobic)

- Aerobic Composting needs the pile to be turned (mixed) often, so that the oxygen reaches it for faster breakdown.

- Anaerobic Composting is quite opposite,where the microbes thrive when there is no oxygen and so we need to press down the pile for the air bubbles to escape. It does need accelerators. I have tried Bokashi Bran.

The ways I have tried

• Aerobic
• Khamba Composting (from Dailydump)
• Vermicomposting (DIY bin and "Leave It Pot (LIP)" from Dailydump)

• Anaerobic 

• Bokashi composting with EcoBin

Differences

Each one has its own setup and maintenance.

Method	Aerobic / Anaerobic	Materials Required	Frequency to dump	How much in the bin per day?	What can go	What cannot go in	References	Troubleshooting
Khamba	Aerobic	1. DIY Bins or Khamba from Daily Dump stores. 2. Rake 3. Accelerators : Sour buttermilk or Microbes powder	Daily	No restriction	All veggie waste	Refer this.	dailydump.org	Click Here
Vermicomposting	Aerobic	1. A dark bin 2. Red Wiggler worms 3. To setup the worm bed: coconut husk, mature cow dung, shredded cardboard/paper	Twice a week	Lesser quantity; Worms cannot eat more than their size. If you feed the bin in excess, it starts stinking.	All veggie waste	- No citrus peels (orange,lemon,lime) - No Onion - No Tomato Worms breathe through their skin, these can get acidic for them and they perish.	Click Here	Click Here
Bokashi	Anaerobic	1. Bins (inplace of your dustbins) 2. Bokashi Bran (microbes)	Daily	No restriction	All veggie waste	Anything, except liquid (water, milk or fruit juice)	http://myecobin.in/	Click Here

Table 1 - Different Procedures to Compost

Method	Time and Effort	Harvest Time	Procedure to harvest
Khamba	Stir once in 4 days	Minimum 3 months	1. After you get an earthy smell, sieve the compost and use it in the garden.
Vermicomposting	No stirring required	1 month	1. Spread out the vermicompost on a tarpaulin sheet in heaps. The worms will settle at the bottom; remove the top portion of compost by hand. [OR] 2. (Easiest) Place mature cow dung in an old fruit basket (with holes) on top of compost pile for about 2 weeks, Maximum worms get into the cowdung basket and you can remove the compost. [OR] 2. Use worm tower
Bokashi	No stirring required	50-60days	1. After STAGE 1, either use the pickle directly as bedding in new pots. [OR] 2. Proceed to STAGE 2 by layering it and harvest after 2-3 weeks

Table 2 : Harvesting Compost

See my Harvesting Vermicompost Pictures and Preparing Vermicompost Bed here.

Harvesting Compost - My Pictures

1. Khamba Compost Harvest

2. Vermicompost Harvest

3. Bokashi Compost Harvest  (After Stage 2)

See Bokashi Compost Video here.

Method	Very Very Common Problems	Cause	Solution	References
Khamba	Stinking and many maggots	Pile is too damp	Some maggots are good. But if in excess, spread out the compost pile and let it dry in shade for 2-3 days. (# of days depends on how much the pile is wet. Put some neem powder or red chilli powder for maggot population to decrease.	Refer my video on Troubleshooting Composting Issues
Vermicomposting	Worms escaping out, perishing	Environment is not suitable - Either too acidic or too dampy. Or Ants attack.	Place the bin on a plate filled with water, to stop the ant movement. Do not put acidic food in the bin.	Refer this article.
Bokashi	Stinking leachate	The leachate is not drained frequently	1. Tilt the bin for leachate to ooze out. 2. Put some jaggery below the filter basket for microbes to be alive in the leachate if draining time is not going to be < 4 days	Refer this.

Table 3 : Very Common Problems Faced.

Additionally, see my article in THE ALTERNATE e-magazine on Composting here.


Feel free to leave a comment below if you would like to know something more apart from what is mentioned in this post!


A question that may interest you :

(Click in the pic above to read the whole thread)

PS : Do check out my friend's blog on DIY Compost Bin too if you are a DIY person!