As a Mumbai resident, I was originally inspired to think on this by a book I read on vermicomposting. In November 2015, I started my tryst with #composting. Little did I know that it will result into a passionate romance of a life time as I became more intimate with her. Here is my first hand experience in #composting.
# Stage 1 A : In my home balcony
I started putting all my wet waste into the 1st earthern pot till it is filled to the rim, which is when I invited the second earthern pot to join in
Wet waste in this stage only included vegetable peels, fruit peels, onion peels (only non-cooked wet waste)
Every day, for 5 – 10 minutes in 24 hours, I stirred the contents of the pot unfailingly
In about 45 days, I was gifted #compost, with its romantic earthly fragrance (it is similar to the rains kissing the parched earth)
# Stage 1 B : In my society common garden
Except for these two differences between stage 1A and stage 1B, everything else in the method remains same :
#1 Wet waste in this stage only included residual cooked wet waste (typically items likes chicken bones, fish bones, anything that is left in your food plate)
#2 In this method, there are more than one family, hence the “common garden” is identified for doing the #composting”.
# Stage 2 : Getting earthworms to participate in #composting (this is yet to be initiated)
# Resources invested in :
8 red clay bricks – to place the earthern pots on pairs of 4 for 1
8 red clay bricks – to place the earthern pots on pairs of 4 for 1 in the common garden
4 Earthern pot
4 plastic lids (with multiple holes punctured in it for the compost to breathe)
2 Bins – one for “Dry” waste and one for “cooked” residual wet waste
Two sturdy Sticks which I sourced from Nature – for stirring the compost and letting it breathe
# Myths shattered and # Experiences earned :
# Myth 1 : Composting is time consuming and is an headache
Reality is #Composting is easy and effortless. My cut vegetable peels, fruit peels went directly into the pot. My wet #cooked residue went into the wet bin. Here is the maths
Putting cut vegetable and fruit peels etc. – 5 minutes
Putting cooked residue waste – 5 minutes
Stirring the compost – 10 minutes
Total – 20 minutes in 24 hours (1.38% of daily time available to each one of us)
# Myth 2 : It is a costly investment
Reality is very different. Here is the maths
16 red clay bricks – Rs. 80/- (USD 1)
4 Earthern pots – Rs. 400/- (USD 5)
4 plastic lids – Rs. 120/- (USD 1.5)
2 Bins – Rs. 200/- (USD 2.5)
Benefits realized :
1. A sense of fulfillment and gratitude to see miracle unfold in front of my eyes. Seeing is believing
2. My whole family having the sense of new found purpose to contribute to reduce our footprint on earth, thereby better bonding as a family, joy, fun and laughter together in so participating.
3. My family turning into #Earth peace warriors, especially my child learning this important lesson early in her life, in turn sharing this with her friends….
4. A sense of civic responsibility to my family, neighborhood and community.
5. Sharing my success story with as many families within our #circle of influence. (at least 4 families have started doing within my network)
6. Giving back to #Nature what truly belongs to her.
7. Heightened sense of awareness on the feminine aspect of #caring within me, thereby helping me develop my emotional sensitivity.
8. As an enterpreneur, direct impact on my consulting practice as it helps me appreciate the deep connect between #organization transformations and #sustaining the transformation.
9. Increased appreciation to continual improvement and continual learning.
Join the #composting experiment & movement with me. Do share with me your learnings on santoshnjois@santoshnjois.com.
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