Indoor composting made easy

You recycle, you reuse, but do you compost? Even apartment dwellers and those with small yards can make the most of kitchen scraps by composting indoors. Best of all, composting indoors involves no odour or mess.

Indoor composting, also known as bokashi, reduces the amount of waste you throw away, so there is less garbage for the landfill. It's a great way to create organic fertilizer for indoor and outdoor plants. Or, if you don't have a backyard, start a container garden. Your compost will help it thrive.

There are two common types of composting:

• Bio-digester, which converts organic material to solid compost by oxidation
• Bokashi, which ferments organic materials to make both a solid and a liquid fertilizer

Bokashi is an ideal choice for small spaces because it doesn't require oxygen, and therefore the composter is air tight and odour-free. You can make your own, or there are many commercial options. Just make sure to purchase a composter and not a kitchen compost bin, which temporarily holds kitchen scraps to be added to an outdoor, bio-digester compost pile. Most commercial bokashi composters have a spigot on the front to easily drain the liquid, and include the "bokashi bran" for fermentation.

One of the nice things about bokashi composting is that you can add virtually any kitchen scraps. Some things that are great to add include:

• Coffee grounds and tea bags
• Egg shells
• Plate scrapings, including meat and fish
• Fruit and vegetable peels
• Bread
• Dairy
• Drippings and oil

Unlike bio-digester composting, you don't need to add dry items like newspaper or leaves, but you do need to add a couple of tablespoons of bokashi bran between layers of scraps.

Once your bucket is full, it will take about two weeks for your compost to complete fermentation. Your nutrient-rich fermented compost will break down when mixed with soil. The liquid compost can be diluted and used as a plant and flower spray, and you can even pour it down the drain to clean your pipes.