It seems pretty universal - leave food scraps in a bucket for a week and they start to smell.

The problem with this is that people assume composting smells just as bad. It's logical, right? The same ingredients??

The difference is that in a well-run composting system, the microbes in the soil are getting to work to transform the food scraps into soil.

THAT'S SO CLEVER!

I've been in zoom calls recently learning about biochar, and how biochar can possibly (probably) help mitigate odour issues in food scraps - just add a handful of biochar in with each batch of food waste.

It got me thinking... I wonder if biodynamic compost could do something similar?

Or if the CPP (Cow Pat Pit preparation) could kickstart the composting process while the food scraps are still inside?

All of this is getting tested at the soil farm, and my living space is becoming a sort of composting lab.

Most of the experiments are either tucked into a shelf in the kitchen or are camouflaged with houseplants.

Any excuse to go shopping for more plants makes me a happy soilpreneur!

If you'd like to follow along with these indoor composting projects, then here are some options.

1) MakeSoil

I've registered a second soil site for Whangarata - dedicated to the indoor composting prototypes. I'm not accepting outside donations, but I am recording all my internal 'drop-offs' as a way of tracking the volume of food scraps I can turn into soil inside.

You can register and follow along here:

https://www.makesoil.org/map/site/YaOY8pd-apartment-style-composting-research-project

Two weeks later

I've now got five indoor experiments on the go, each and every one of them a fascinating delight to observe. My impact so far is diverting 10kg of food scraps from my outdoor compost systems, and the MakeSoil app tells me I've got a brand new 1kg of soil being made with this material.

It's ever so satisfying!

Proud mother moment last week - Sophie & Tanmay are going to start their own indoor worm farm in Sydney!

HURRAY!

2) Help fuel the research with a Ko-Fi membership

I would LOVE some help with funding this research, and have set up a special gallery on my Ko-Fi account to show the experiments and the results. For now, the album is set up for anyone to see who has ever shouted me a coffee (some people pay for 'Instagram DM compost consults' on my Ko-Fi page).

Eventually this Ko-Fi album will become available just to regular monthly supporters.

See the gallery here:

https://ko-fi.com/blueborage/gallery

3) Closing the Loop: the Art of Composting

This is the latest online course, a beginner's guide to composting on a small scale. I'll share findings of these experiments within the online course and the accompanying Facebook Group.

Sign up for the course here:

https://blueborage.podia.com/closing-the-loop-the-art-of-composting

Want to read more? Here's a blog post about biodynamic CPP, the cow pat pit preparation.
https://blueborage.podia.com/blog/who-invented-cpp-and-why