Compost Program FAQ

When can I pick up or swap my bucket?

You can pick up an empty, clean bucket or drop off a full bucket anytime you like. We do encourage swapping your bucket once a week, regardless of how full it is. This keeps the food scraps in the compost pile fresh and helps prevent anaerobic decomposition.

Where are the buckets at the farm?

Buckets are inside the farm at the hoop house. If you walk straight after entering the gate, you will see the compost area with signs showing where to drop your full bucket and which buckets are clean. The gate code is “1977”. Please let yourself in and lock the gate behind you when you leave. Paper bags are provided in a tote for yard waste. 

What happens to my kitchen and yard waste?

We take the organics waste from your home and mix it with other materials to make compost for the farm. Spent crops, weeds, straw, local wood chips, leaves, spent brewing grains, coffee grounds all get mixed at the right ratios to make a rich, plant-based compost for amending soil in the market garden. We do not use animal manures in our compost. This compost improves soil tilth, biological life, and water retention. As an urban farm, compost is essential to successful vegetable and fruit growing.

What can I put in my bucket?

You may have questions about what you can and can't compost with us. Here's a quick guide:

Yes

Vegetable scraps

Fruit scraps

Cooked rice, grains, oats

Coffee grounds and filters

Lawn grass clippings (herbicide/pesticide free)

Leaves (we love leaves)

Newspaper and shredded paper

*Extra points if veg and fruit scraps are chopped into smaller pieces before going in your collection bucket. A chunked carrot breaks down faster than a whole carrot.

No

Meat

Bones

Dairy

Citrus

Yard waste that has been sprayed with herbicides or pesticides

Sticks

Wood chips