composting

by Debra
(Avondale, AZ)

Hi there,
I teach 8th grade science and am looking to start a composting project on my school campus. Although it does not seem extremely expensive, I still would need to fund it. Do you know of any grants available specific for this type of project?

Answer to composting question by Farmer Dave

Compost is great fun and very educational too.
I use composting as a home school science project for my kids and it is a great one. I don't know of any grants for composting but if you keep it simple it is free except for your time. You can spend a lot of money on compost bins, tumblers and materials but you don't really need any of that.
I compost using free standing piles and grass, leaves, manure, and kitchen scraps, it is easy and free. You can probably use food scraps from the school cafeteria, get grass clippings from the school maintenance man or gardener and get local grass and greens from peoples yards or local landscapers when people are cleaning up their yards. If you are at all rural a lot of people are happy to give you manure. If you need to have a compost bin to keep out critters you can build one for close to nothing. Keep it simple. The next step could be a school garden and I have heard of several cases of people getting funding through grants for that.

Glad to hear your interested in composting with your kids, I think learning about making compost and growing food really helps connect kids to the cycle of life so easily missed when all your food comes in plastic wrappers from the store.

Check our my Free "composting instructions" for a good start.

Let me know how your compost goes, hope this helps you and your students out.