Last month’s Talkin’ Trash blog discussed what and how to recycle in Nosara. This month, let’s talk about reducing the waste stream by using organic waste, which constitutes half of the Nosara landfill, according to a University of Florida study commissioned by Nosara Recicla.

Nosara Recicla has tested different ways to properly dispose of organics. In one word: compost! In addition to doing your part to reduce half the contents of the landfill, using compost on your land will enrich and beautify your gardens. Composting is simple and costs little or nothing to implement.

Method A:
1. Dig a hole 1 meter deep by 1 meter wide.
2. For safety purposes, add poles around the hole when possible.
3. Deposit your organics and cover them with an equal amount of leaves.
Do not include meat, grease, or dairy.

This method of composting produces no odor and eliminates problems with wild animals.

Compost for a better garden and a better Nosara

Method B:
Build or buy a compost tumbler. Cut the bottom off a large plastic bin and bury it about 10 cm in the ground. Get two, so when one fills up, you use the second one. When the second one is full, the first one is ready to use on your trees and plants.

Remember to add leaves on top of the kitchen scraps and mix the tumbler’s contents once in a while. During the dry months you can leave the top open.

For more tips on composting: http://eartheasy.com/grow_compost.html

Here’s another reason to compost: when mixed with ordinary garbage, organic waste creates compounds that pollute our water sources. Let’s keep that from happening while we beautify our gardens.

Buy a tumbler to make your gardening tasks easier