As a kid, I can still remember when recycling became a thing, or at least a mainstream thing, but prior to the garbage man picking it up. We’d have to separate glass, plastic, etc., and then I’d carry a bag of each to the local recyclable center to make a few dollars (for ice cream obviously!). Anyone else remember this??

Of course recycling is now second nature—I actually cringe when I’m somewhere that doesn’t have recycling and I have to toss plastic or glass in with the landfill. It just feels irresponsible, especially when most of our nation’s landfills are close to being full, if not already full.

And though I feel great about how much we recycle, something we haven’t always been conscious about is composting. Did you know 1/3 of what’s in our landfills is stuff that’s compostable? Eeeek! That stat right there hit home for me. So, with that being said….

Wellness Challenge: Start composting

I’m a newbie at this, so I’m starting this challenge right besides you.

First up, a quick list of what’s considered compostable: pretty much all food, coffee grounds, even newspaper. There’s a full list here, but it’s a TON of stuff that you’re likely dumping into your garbage can without thinking about it. But, compostable stuff is extremely helpful for the environment!

For those of you who don’t want to actually compost yourself, it’s super easy to start. All it takes is a quick call to your local trash service to ask for one of their composting bins (if you don’t already have one—it’s actually the same bin that you put things like leaves or other garden/yard “waste” in.) They’ll then transfer all the compost stuff to a company or plant who turns it into useable compost material—which then goes on to build local parks, gardens, and can even be sold as fertilizer. You can buy a compost bucket (like this) to keep in your kitchen, then dump it into the bigger bin outside before trash day.

If you want to physically compost yourself or use it for your own garden (props!), this article is super helpful. I’m not here quite yet, but am definitely interested in learning the composting process for our own garden eventually. Perhaps a goal for later this year?

Here’s to making composting second nature and helping Mother Earth!

Who has been composting for years? Who is starting with me this week?