Easy-to-use composting solution for small spaces

Composting is all good and well when you have a house with a garden. But what happens when you live in a small space? What about flat dwellers or homeowners with a small balcony or a courtyard? 

The system uses a wheat bran infused with molasses and microorganisms - a mixture of bacteria, yeast and mould.

Fortunately for homeowners who live in small spaces, there are some great composting solutions they can explore. One of the more popular methods is a Bokashi Bucket system, which incidentally is great if you have a garden too.  

The bucket system is a fantastic way to deal with household and other organic food waste. Simply add bran to your food waste. This can include cooked food, meat and dairy. Once that’s done, put it in an airtight bucket and leave it to ferment.

Charlotte Amery from GreenHome shares some tips…

Benefits of using a composting bucket system

1. It’s quick. The fermentation process takes one to two weeks, and then you can dig the fermented food waste directly into the ground or add it to a compost heap.

2. Fermentation takes place in an anaerobic environment i.e. a sealed bucket. This means it can happen inside your home if you have no outside space.

3. When composting using the bucket system, there are no bad smells. The Bokashi systems has a sweet, prickly smell. This is not a bad smell, and because all your food waste can be dealt with in this way - your garbage won’t smell as horrible.   

When composting using the bucket system, there are no bad smells and no pests like flies hovering around.

The system doesn’t encourage pests. During processing, the food waste is kept in a tightly sealed bucket. Once it has been fully fermented, flies and rodents are not interested in it.

How does it work?   

The system uses a wheat bran infused with molasses and microorganisms - a mixture of bacteria, yeast and mould.

The microorganisms ferment the food waste and leave it looking similar to its original state, smelling prickly, partly broken down and ready for accelerated composting.

What do I need to set up a bucket system?

Homeowners need two buckets with tightly fitted lids, which are specially designed for a Bokashi system.

These are fitted with a tap near the bottom, which allows you to collect excess liquid from the mixture. The fermentation process takes up to two weeks, so you need one bucket to add your waste to and one bucket to leave to ferment.

What do I do?

1. Start your bucket with ½ cup of bran.

Layer fermented food waste and soil in a bucket and leave it for two weeks until you can no longer recognise the food waste. You will then have a bucket of lovely, rich potting soil that you can use to create a small garden.

2. Add your daily food waste to the bin. The process works best when you chop large pieces into smaller bits. Work to the maximum size of a golf ball.

3. Sprinkle the food waste with bran. Use approximately two tablespoons per 5cm of food waste. Double that if you are adding fatty foods, meat, fish or dairy.

4. Compact the food waste down to eliminate any excess air and keep the lid tightly sealed.

5. If you notice a lot of liquid, siphon some of that off using the tap. This liquid can be diluted to approximately 300 parts water to 1 part liquid to feed your plants or poured down your drain to keep it unblocked.

6. When your bin is ¾ full, sprinkle another ½ cup of bran on top and leave your bucket to stand for two weeks.

What can I do with the finished product?        

1. Find a bit of ground and dig it in and cover it with soil. It will turn into rich, wholesome soil within a couple of weeks. You can your sow seeds on top or leave it for two weeks before planting some established plants in it. 

2. Put it on a compost heap. It will compost quickly and accelerate the composting of the rest of the material in the heap.

3. Make potting soil. Layer fermented food waste and soil in a bucket and leave it for two weeks until you can no longer recognise the food waste. You will then have a bucket of lovely, rich potting soil.