How to: Continual Composting

Select a composting bin. Use a trash bin or purchase a bin specifically designed for composting. Holding bins require manual rotation of compost material, while you can manipulate turning or aerated units with a handle. Select a size that fits into the available space. For composting in your kitchen, you can use a small, covered trash bin. Opt for a larger bin if you are able to compost outside as it will hold more material. Keep a small temporary collection bin indoors and transfer it outside daily for ease of use.

Place food scraps and yard waste into the bin. Balance woody waste, such as dry leaves, bark, paper and twigs, with green matter, such as fruit rinds, vegetable peels and food scraps in a 1-to-1 ratio to ensure a healthy balance of nutrients in the compost.

Moisten the pile with water so that it is damp to the touch but not soaked; liquid should not pool in the bin. Do not moisten the pile if the liquid in the green matter already makes the pile damp.

Add waste, such as kitchen scraps and lawn clippings, to the bin as it is produced. Rotate material from the center of the pile to the walls of the bin daily to speed up the decomposition of materials.

Check the compost when you rotate it. Continue adding material until it appears that more than half of the material is decomposed and soil-like in appearance. Decomposition can take months since adding new material slows the overall decomposition of the entire bin.

Sift the bin contents to remove the compost from the decomposing material. Place the soil sieve over an empty bin. Scoop and sift compost in small amounts so that you can still operate the sieve. Dump partially decomposed matter back into the continual composting bin and keep adding new material.

Store well-composted material in a secondary bin or use it in your garden immediately.