Let’s say you live here on the Island, or regularly visit, and don’t have your own compost pile. You now have a way to compost your organic matter at Gathering Ground! “But why is this important? Why should I compost?” you might ask.

Composting is nature’s elegant economy. Nature’s economy doesn’t produce trash, instead everything old and used up is turned back into the stuff of life–soil!

Here are four reasons you should compost:

1. Composting turns your kitchen scraps into great, healthy soil & fertilize our gardens.

2. Composting diverts organic waste from the landfill. This will save you money as you now have to pay for everything you throw at the dump.

3. Composting is the best kind of recycling and it reduces greenhouse gases. Yes, you can help mitigate climate change by composting.

4. To keep resources local. Why buy in topsoil from the garden center when you can make your own right here?

How to participate:

1. Collect your compost in a bucket. (Gathering Ground has some 5-gallon buckets with lids, if you’d like to take one home.)

2. Bring it to Gathering Ground’s 3-bin composter located by the west driveway on Lake View.

3. Find the bin with “Open” sign & dump your compost in.

What goes into your compost bucket:

• Fruit & veggie scraps
• Coffee grounds
• Old flowers, grass trimmings & leaves
• Egg shells

What does not go into your compost bucket:

• NO meat or dairy
• NO grease or oil
• NO “compostable” plastic
• NO fireplace ashes
• NO pet waste
• NO paper or paper towels

What happens next?

Gathering Ground will turn the compost to ensure it gets the air it needs & we will make sure it has the right composition of “greens” & “browns” to break down into rich, healthy soil (nitrogen : carbon ratio).

Got questions about what goes in your bucket? Email us.