Overheard my landlord say composting is just 'dirt in a bucket'

I was taking out the trash last Tuesday and caught my landlord telling a potential renter that my compost bin was just a bucket of dirt that smells. It kind of stung but then I realized my coffee grounds and eggshells have been going in there for 6 months without any smell issues. I use a 5 gallon bucket with a tight lid and a layer of shredded newspaper on top. Has anyone else had to defend their setup to clueless people?

2 comments

2 Comments

evan29522d ago

I mean, technically he's not wrong if you ignore the whole biology part. My mother in law said the same thing until she saw my lettuce sprouting from last year's melon rinds. Did yours also add that magical mystery smell of what I'm pretty sure is his cigarette butts and last month's mystery takeout? I've found the look on people's faces when I pull a perfect handful of dark soil out of a five gallon bucket is worth more than any compost I've ever made.

shane_wilson22d ago

Started building my first bin last year and got the same exact comments from my neighbor. Said I was just collecting garbage and making the alley smell bad. I opened it up and showed her there was nothing stinky about it, just dark crumbly dirt that smelled like a forest floor. She still looked at me like I was crazy but whatever. I use the same method as you with the brown layer on top and it really does keep the smell down. The best part is when people see me putting scraps in and think it's going to be disgusting, but then they smell it and get confused. Landlords just don't get it unless they've actually tried it themselves. Keep doing your thing, that dirt in a bucket is going to be black gold in a few months.