Composting at Home During Quarantine

by Rosanna Lederhausen

We’ve previously written about why composting is important, and now more than ever, it is clear that Earth needs our help! Some people are able to compost with their cities, some in their backyards, and others with their local farmers market. However you compost, the way in which you do so has most likely been affected by COVID-19.

As cities and states have ordered lockdowns or for citizens to shelter in place, our lives shifted almost instantaneously. This shift also has caused some of our sustainable habits to be put on hold or changed altogether. Since the mandate of these lockdowns, many of these composting programs have been placed on pause for the safety of the staff and the communities they are serving. For example, Mayor De Blasio just put composting on hold until June 2021 in NYC.

Below are a few ways we can reuse and “compost” leftover scraps at home (without the stinky mess!):

1. Make Household Cleaning Spray

As a citrus lover, I often keep clementines, sumos, and oranges around the house. Luckily for me, one of my favorite snacks is also a powerful cleaning tool! Over the course of a week or so, I fill a jar with 3-4 peels of my orange snack. Once I have enough peels I fill the jar with enough vinegar to cover them or until the jar is full. You can also add any essential oil of choice, though it smells great without it! I let the mixture sit for 3 weeks to really break down the citrus peels and release all the good oils. One of the most important things to remember is that this is a concentrate. When you are ready to use, combine equal parts concentrate and water in a spray bottle. Shake before use and you’re ready to go!

*This is my concentrate after three weeks of soaking.*

2. Lemon/Lime Sponge

Lemons (or limes if you have them) are amazing cleaning products as they are a natural deodorizer and have antibacterial powers! I most often use them as a sponge to clean my sink after a long day of dishes. It leaves my sink smelling lovely and it allows me to get another use out of the lemon before throwing it out!

3. Plant Fertilizer

Living in a small Brooklyn apartment, I am always looking for creative ways of keeping my plants alive and happy. One interesting find is that eggshells act as a perfect fertilizer. There are a few methods to using eggshells. The first involves boiling them and making an “egg tea” and the other is just to simply crush them up. I prefer the latter as it's easy to save eggshells in a bowl, crush them with a spoon (or pulverize them in a machine if you have it), and feed to the top soil of most plants. Some plants do better with this than others, but the general gist is that eggshells provide added calcium and nutrients. I have noticed that my plants are extra happy these days!

*Place crushed eggshells in soil. To mitigate the threat of bugs and smell, place a layer of soil on top.*

4. Vegetable Broth

When chopping vegetables to roast for dinner, there are always ends that are cut off and unused. In non pandemic times - I would throw these bits in the compost. However, these days I have been keeping them in a jar or a bowl until I collect enough to make a broth with them. The ends of celery, carrots, green onions, the weird parts of the mushroom, and stems of kale simmer fantastically in a soup. I keep the vegetable stock in my fridge and use it in lieu of water to make more flavorful rice, beans, and noodle soup!

5. Stir Fry

As a novice cook, I find that some vegetables don't last as long in my fridge as I would think they would. If I have wilting veggies or find gross patches on others, I cut off the really far gone parts and toss the rest into a hot pan. Making a stir fry, fry up, pytt i panna, or however your culture describes it, is practiced across the world. It’s simple: use old veggies, leftovers, or anything about to go bad in your fridge. Toss it all together over high heat. Add sauces. Voila!