What Kind of Compost System Is Right For You?

Are you ready to start composting? Regardless of what brought you to the decision (whether smelly trash, a desire to improve your garden soil, or something else), you’re in the right place. Not to mention, it’s never too late to start!

But it can be tricky if this is your first time composting. There are many different methods used to decompose biodegradable materials such as food waste and garden weeds. There are also variations on traditional methods, and it can be confusing to figure out which one is right for you.

Luckily for you, I am incredibly passionate about compost. I’ve tried many different methods—ones that work for apartments, houses with gardens, and even farms. Of the eight methods I’ll tell you about, not all will be right for your particular living situation, budget, or willingness to put in work, so keep reading to find the composting solution that will work for you.

Side by side, it's easy to see how food scraps can turn into compost. Photo by David Silver

8 easy composting methods

Ask ten farmers for their preferred composting method, and you’ll get twelve answers…

There are endless possibilities when it comes to composting, and everyone has different preferences and methods that work for them. However, ultimately you can boil composting down to about a dozen or so tried and true methods that are used by home gardeners and farmers alike.

In this article, I am going to be sharing eight simple methods that can help you start composting today. This is by no means meant to be an exhaustive list, rather an introduction to what many consider the “art” of composting. Of course, there’s also a lot of science to it, and if you’re interested in learning more about what happens during the process, I suggest you start here or here.

The “pile”

By far the simplest and oldest method of composting is with a “pile,” which is exactly what it sounds like. You can literally toss your food waste, garden clippings, etc. in a pile in your yard and let it decompose on its own. 

For best results and to speed the process along, you should turn the compost every few weeks until it has broken down completely. This increases the availability of oxygen and activates the bacteria at work.

You can choose to have an open pile, but if you’d like to keep out animals and children, I suggest you either build or buy some kind of enclosure. This has the added benefit of more height in your pile, meaning more compost in less space, as well as more heat, meaning faster decomposition.

This solution is right for you if you live somewhere with a yard or garden, and if you’re capable of using a shovel or pitchfork to flip the contents of the pile and most importantly, harvest the compost when it’s done. 

This method is probably not right for you if you live in an apartment, if you don’t own the land (or if a landlord won’t let you compost), or if you’re unable to do the physical labor.

This method can be scaled to any level (professionals use a version of the open-pile called windrows), but it’s ideal for anyone with a garden and who produces regular amounts of food scraps.

The “dig and bury” method

This is another age-old method involving digging a hole or trench in the ground and burying the food scraps/garden waste. You can plant in the soil once the compost starts breaking down, although this method can be quite slow unless you chop everything up finely first. 

This method is also known as “Direct Composting” because you are directly providing nutrients to the soil and food for the worms (making it an excellent method if you’re hoping to attract worms to your garden).

You should try this method if you have a garden that you can work in. 

Tumbler

There are many different kinds of compost tumblers in all shapes and sizes. A typical compost tumbler is cylindrical and raised off the ground. You add your materials straight into the compartment and spin or “tumble” the contents to maintain proper aeration. This prevents rotting and also takes away the labor of manually flipping the compost pile.

You can buy a specially designed tumbler or make one yourself (there are many DIY tutorials on YouTube). If you want to buy one, I suggest the Jora compost tumbler. You can choose a size based on the amount of food scraps you think you produce on a regular basis.

A tumbler is particularly useful if you have a small household and garden, but still want to compost at home. It may not be enough as a stand-alone method if you produce more waste than a tumbler can handle.

On the countertop

There are a handful of effective countertop composting devices that you can keep right in your kitchen. You can’t compost everything using these, but they are great if you’re just looking to reduce your waste and get some compost out of it (i.e. for house plants)! If you’re interested, you can check out this electric composter.

Pros: because it fits on your counter, this method is easy, fast, and clean, with minimal effort on your part. It’s particularly useful if you live in an apartment or home with no yard.

Cons: expensive, and can only handle small amounts of food scraps at a time.

Vermicomposting (worm composting)

Vermicomposting, or the art of composting with worms, is one of my favorite composting methods of all time. It’s fun and educational, making it a particularly great option if you have kids that can be involved in composting at home. 

This method can be scaled to any level: from just one plastic bin in an apartment to an entire commercial setup complete with 100ft-long rows of metal runs. Vermicomposting is also flexible because it can be done indoors or outdoors! 

Worms break down the food scraps you feed them and produce beautifully rich worm castings also known as “black gold.” These can then be directly added to your plants as a fertilizer rich in nutrients and bacteria.

Bokashi

Bokashi is one of the lesser known composting methods but it deserves to be on this list nonetheless. It is technically an anaerobic process that ferments rather than decomposes by means of a starter bran, or culture. Because this method relies entirely on the work of microbes, it is an excellent method for culturing a healthy soil microbiome.

Bokashi is relatively inexpensive to start, although it does incur a running cost of buying the bran. However, it takes up very little space and can be done indoors without producing any weird smells or giving off gasses. You can learn more about bokashi here.

City green waste

If you live somewhere where green waste collection is an option, this is by far the easiest and least involved composting method out there. However, it can be expensive if you have to pay for collection fees, so check with your local government for details.

If you are friendly with your neighbors, you might even be able to negotiate sharing a bin, given that most households don’t actually produce that much green waste. In some areas, this may already be the norm, if not the requirement.

Local compost collection programs

If green waste collection is not an option for you but you’d still like to compost with minimal effort, then the easiest way to do so is to find someone or some program that can accept your food waste. Certain programs might even give you fresh compost in return!

If you know someone with a compost system in their yard, like a friend or neighbor, they might be happy to take on more scraps and create more compost for their garden (as long as they can handle the load). Similarly, local farmers may be able to accept your scraps either as food for animals or for their compost. 

Some towns might even have collection bins scattered around town organized by community gardens or other programs, so ask around, keep your eye out, or start one yourself! Lastly, some cities or farmer’s markets have booths where they will collect food scraps for free and turn them into compost at an industrial scale.

Are you ready to start composting? Have any questions you’d like answered? Comment below!