TRUE BLUE Living

Compost: Your Own Organic Fertilizer

Nature recycles. Waste is a human invention.

Half of the solid waste we produce in our homes and yards comes from plants.

Composting changes plants into soil. Decaying plants create an organic fertilizer.

As plant material decomposes, the process changes leaves, grass clippings, wood ashes, and other plant materials into soil.

Composting is like creating a probiotic for our yards – adding microbes to soil like yogurt adds microbes to your gut. Microbes recycle minerals, carbon and nutrients back into the soil.

Image: Texas A&M

What are the Benefits of Composting?

Benefits to You

Saves money on lawn care, because you don’t need to pay for chemical fertilizers
Saves money on waste collection fees
Saves money on yard maintenance
Prevents dangerously high levels of nitrogen in your drinking water

Benefits to the Land

Provides nutrients to build healthy soil
Increases soil’s capacity to hold water
Reduces weed growth in gardens and lawn
Enhances garden plant immune system
Prevents our landfills from filling up
Decreases the amount of methane (a greenhouse gas) being emitted from landfills

Benefits to Torch Lake

Keeps excess nutrients our of Torch Lake
Reduces the algae growing in the bottom of the lake
Helps keep Torch Lake BLUE

Photo: U of Maine

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

We know you want to enjoy the lake for many years (and generations) to come. So, we’ve put together a list of simple steps you can take to reduce the nutrients, sediments and toxins flowing into the Torch Lake and its streams.

Make a better organic fertilizer!

Step 1. Construct a compost bin.

Put 4 stakes in the ground and attach green fencing.
Or construct a wooden bin.
A covered bin will keep wildlife out of your compost.

Step. 2 Compost your yard trimmings (Brown Material) and food scraps (Green Material).

Brown Material

Leaves
Hay
Sawdust
Dryer Lint
Hair
Fur
Egg Shells
Tea Bags
Fireplace ashes (not from Duraflame Logs)

Green Material

Vegetable Scraps
Fruit Peels and Rinds
Corn husks and cobs
Coffee grinds and Filters
Nut shells
Cut grass
Non-invasive Weeds
Plant clippings

Step 3. Use the Torch Lake Watershed Compost Recipe

1. Mix equal amounts of Green Material and Brown Material.

2. DO NOT add animal waste or these other items to your pile.

Dairy Products
Bones and scraps of meat or fish
Fats, grease, lard or oils
Charcoal ash
Treated Wood Sawdust
Pet Waste

3. These items may be harmful:

release substances harmful to plants
attract animals or flies
contain pathogens harmful to humans

Step 4. Add water to produce a damp – moist NOT soggy mixture.

Compost will not smell if it is kept moist not soggy.

Step 5. Stir with a pitchfork routinely to mix oxygen into the pile.

Compost will not smell if it is mixed to add oxygen.

Step 6. Then, use your compost to naturally fertilize your plants and lawn in the spring.

Don't just wish that Torch Lake will stay blue.
Choose a water-friendly lifestyle - make a difference!