Custom three-bin compost system a new Garden feature

June 2023

Aaaaaaand it’s here!  Our spanking new 3-bin composting system is complete and we are now composting on site!

The new compost bin, courtesy of the RAID (Recycling And Illegal Dumping) grant from the New Mexico Environment Department (see also March 2023 blog) was constructed on site on May 4, 2023 with the help of Casey Williams of the New Mexico Compost Coalition and owner of Full Circle Soil Health, our Site Facilities staffer Donald Medina, and SFBG volunteer Adrian Vanderhave. Our system is made of cedar, which tends to break down slower than pine so we hope to have these bins for at least several years.

Compost is made from the interaction of organic matter, water, oxygen, and microorganisms, and in some cases, a little management from humans.  There are various ways to help nature create compost, according to Casey.  The process can be faster or slower, depending on how you manage your compost pile, and the final product may be “more or less diverse and packed with beneficial microbes.” It’s important to keep the pile moist and to pay attention if the temperatures in the pile get too high. “The scent of finished compost should be reminiscent of a forest floor….earthy and pleasant. The color of a high quality compost will be a rich, dark brown chocolate color.”

To begin our composting adventure this year we’re using trimmings from our spring garden cleanup, coffee grounds (courtesy of SFBG Program Coordinator Julian Hardage-Vergeer and the Downtown Subscription) and early weeds from our Agricultural Terraces.  As we develop our composting protocols we hope to include more “green” materials, with an eye to community composting in the future.  For this year we’re happy to be sending far less organic material to the city’s greenwaste collection, and with the help of our volunteer Rot Squad we look forward to a season’s worth of excellent decomposing!

Learn more about the New Mexico Compost Coalition here.