Posts about compost

2022 Healey Gardens

.blog a { text-decoration:none; color:#fb6c30; } .blog p { font-size: 16px; } .blog li { font-size: 16px; } .blog h4 { padding-bottom: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; } .blog img { padding-bottom: 20px; } Healey Urban Garden We are just about ready for another year of gardening at the Healey Urban Gardens! Last year these gardens were built with the help of the U of I's Metropolitan Food Systems program and U of I Extension to give residents a way of growing their own food. The garden has 29 beds, both raised and flat, a water spigot on the south end for watering, and a gate with bunny wire around the perimeter. There is also a compost bin available for residents and gardeners to use. (If you would like to learn more about composting check out our blog post). A volunteer group of residents helped us design the gardens as well as develop rules for the garden: Gardeners should only use the plot assigned to them. Gardeners should prevent their plants from growing into paths, or other gardeners’ plots. They should also prevent plants from excessively shading neighboring plots. Gardeners should not let weeds in their plot go to seed. No one besides a gardener should interfere in that gardener’s plot, except with permission. Other exceptions are to remove weeds close to seeding or parts of plants spreading into paths or other plots. Gardeners are welcome to have guests help with their plots If a gardener does not want to maintain their plot any longer, they should contact Royse + Brinkmeyer and ask to relinquish their claim to the plot. Gardeners should not harvest others’ produce without permission, even if that produce seems at risk of going bad. Gardeners should return the shared tools to the area they got them from after use. Gardeners should not store their personal tools in the public space. Gardeners should check in with Royse + Brinkmeyer before applying any pesticides. The supervisor will ensure that the specific pesticide is safe and acceptable to the gardeners in nearby plots. Gardeners should not leave watering systems on when they are not in the garden. Gardeners should not use lights to work in the garden when the sun is down. Mint should only be grown in containers like pots. Smoking is not allowed in the garden. Pets are not allowed in the garden. Gardeners should wear masks and keep them six feet apart. The maximum capacity of the garden is 15 occupants: if the garden is full more people should not enter. Plots are $30 for the season, we aim to build two more gardens in 2022 that will likely not open until the fall! If you would like to reserve a plot for the 2022 season, fill out this form .

Urban Farm Update!

Winter weather is quickly approaching and work on our Urban Farm project at 611 W. Healey is on hold until the spring, so we thought now would be the perfect time for a progress update! In October we hosted a small group of resident volunteers to give us feedback on the direction of the farm so far. We put together these visuals to to give an idea of where the project is heading, and the University of Illinois Extension gave a talk on how to use the new compost bins! (If you would like to learn more about composting check out our blog post). The currently proposed layout includes 9 6’x9’ ground level plots and 4 raised 3’x15’ plots that would probably be split into 8 to accommodate 17 gardeners. The lot would also include a community gathering area, open to all residents, that includes a fire pit, tables and chairs, and a pergola. We also hope to include an outdoor kitchen space. Residents agreed that this might create a privacy concern for the first floor residents at 609 W. Healey. So we included a vined trellace on the east side of the community area and their windows. Last month, we planted shrubs along the east side of the garden area, as you can see below. We hope to begin construction on this project in the spring. We’re so excited to be able to bring this amenity to our residents. Anyone with feedback or questions (we love to hear them!) can comment on this post below!

Let's Compost!

If you live in our buildings near downtown, you may have seen our shiny new compost bin at 611 W. Healey! We are super excited to be able to offer this new amenity to residents. But what is composting and what do you need to do to participate? What is Composting? Composting is a method of or recycling organic matter (like leaves) and food scraps into a fertilizer that is beneficial for plants. It’s a great way to reduce your households’ impact on the environment by both reducing landfill waste and limiting methane gas! It sounds complicated, but it is a fairly simple process of layering compostable kitchen scraps and grass clippings (greens) and organic matter such as dead leaves or pine needles (browns). You can find more in-depth information on composting, provided by the University of Illinois Extension in our blog post, Composting 101. How Can I Compost? Composting is a pretty simple process. Unless you live at 609 W. Healey you probably don’t want to have to run out to the bin every time you generate food scraps. You probably want to invest in a countertop compost bin, which can store a few days worth of scraps at a time without attracting bugs or smelling up your space. Once you have that you can begin collecting scraps. Not every kitchen scrap is compostable. You’ll want to check out the infographic here to make sure you’re not including anything that won’t decay properly. Things like meat and dairy can cause a smell and attract pests. Once you’ve got a few days worth of scraps saved up it’s time to take them to the bin! All you need to do is dump them in and make sure you add a layer of browns and greens to make sure everything decomposes properly. We recommend topping your kitchen scraps off with a handful of dead leaves or pine needles that can be found around the property, or even some of your recycling (just be careful that you don’t add anything that is not supposed to be in there.) You can see a list of some common browns and greens below: Browns for the Compost Pile Brown materials for composting include dry or woody plant material. In most cases, these materials are brown, or naturally turn brown: Fall leaves Pine needles Twigs/chipped tree branches/bark Sawdust Paper (newspaper, writing/printing paper, paper plates and napkins, coffee filters) Dryer lint Cotton fabric Corrugated cardboard (without any waxy/slick paper coatings) Greens for the Compost Pile Green materials for composting consist mostly of wet or recently growing materials. Green materials are usually green or come from plants that were green at some point. But this is not always the case. Grass clippings Coffee grounds/tea bags Vegetable and fruit scraps Trimmings from perennial and annual plants Annual weeds that haven't set seed Eggshells The Ratio Maintaining a proper ratio for the compost bin is what allows everything to decompose without causing a smell. If the bin begins to smell you should call or email Royse + Brinkmeyer so we can address the problem. Generally, a ratio of three- or four-parts browns to one-part greens is great, but you do not need to be exact about it. If we do not get a good mix of brown and green materials, the compost pile may not heat up, may take forever to breakdown, and may start stinking up the place. These issues can usually be remedied easily by tweaking the ratio. If you find that your compost pile is not heating up, then you may need to add more green material to the compost. If you find that the compost pile is starting to smell, we may need to add more browns. And that’s it! In the end, decomposition happens. It is a natural process. Pile your compostables, turn them (or not), and in time, we will have compost. It really is that simple.

What is Urban Farming?

One of our most exciting projects right now is the creation of an urban farm in the empty lot next to 611 W. Healey St. with help from the University of Illinois’ Metropolitan Food Supply and Environmental Systems(MFST) program within the College of Agricultural, Consumer & Environmental Sciences(ACES) and The U of I Extension . The project is in the early design stages currently, but we thought now might be a good time to explain what an urban farm is and why we’re interested in building one! What Is an Urban Farm? An urban farm is any piece of land gardened by a group of people, using either individual or shared plots on private or public land. Urban farms may be found in neighborhoods, schools, connected to institutions such as hospitals, and on residential housing grounds. The idea is to provide space for farming and gardening in areas where access to those activities may be limited. What Is the Purpose of an Urban Farm? The purpose of an urban farm can vary greatly and is defined by the community members that the garden is meant to serve. The garden may provide a space otherwise unavailable to community members to grow food, flowers, and herbs. It may be used as a way to build or revitalize a sense of community among neighbors or reconnect with nature. Other goals of a community garden can include: educating youth and adults about growing food and associated food system topics (eg. nutrition, health); job and entrepreneurial training in the food sector; improving food access to fresh vegetables and fruits; or therapy gardens. Why Are We Building an Urban Farm? We would like to provide our residents the space, platform, and knowledge to grow their own food, flowers, or herbs at home as well as create a shared community space for people to come together and get to know one another. We believe that your apartment is more than a temporary rental space – it’s your home. And we want to make living in that home, and being a part of our community, the best experience it can be. We know that one of the major pitfalls of apartment living is the lack of personal outdoor space to garden in, so we’re creating one! We also want to help our residents feel more a part of our community. We believe this not only enhances your life but the community as a whole! This project allows us to engage residents and get them involved with local organizations like the University of Illinois and the U of I Extension in a unique and personal way. In addition to all of the great benefits above this project also allows our residents to engage with a more environmentally sustainable lifestyle through composting and rain collection! Why collaborate with the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign on this project? The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign College of ACES and the U of I Extension have the knowledge and skills necessary to help plan and implement the garden in as well as provide opportunities for residents to learn more about gardening, composting, and more! We hope to have them doing regular demonstrations and seminars on site once the space is built. If you want to get a glimpse at this process you can check out the College of ACES webinar series on community gardening , or explore the U of I Extension website for tons of resources on horticulture, energy & environment , and local foods , as well as resources for getting your kids involved!

What is Composting?

We are building a composting center in the empty lot at 611 W. Healey, so we thought we should share some information about composting. We are newbies to this process, as are many of our residents, so we got some help from the University of Illinois Extension Office . Thanks to Amy DeLorenzo, Extension Educator for providing the information below and Maggie Furr for creating our infographic! What is compost? Compost is organic material (typically food scraps and green waste like grass clippings, leaves, sticks, etc.) that is used as a soil amendment. It can be made from material you already have on hand, especially kitchen scraps. It is an alternative to traditional soil amendments like fertilizer and is safe to use on both edible and non-edible plants. Why is composting so important? Typically, food and other natural materials that are thrown in garbage cans and landfills get mixed up with other garbage such as plastic, metal, etc. and do not break down effectively. This decomposing material releases methane gas, which is 30x more powerful than carbon dioxide in contributing to climate change. When you compost the material instead you transform it into a valuable resource instead of waste. How do I compost? There are many ways to participate in composting, and some are more suitable than others depending on your living situation: If you live in a small space without access to and outdoor area, you may wish to participate in a compost collection service, in which people pick up food and yard scraps from your home. Inquire at your municipality to see if this is an option. If you live in a small space and have house plants you would like to fertilize with compost a small worm bin or vermicomposting may be right for you. If you have backyard space and wish to build a compost bin or compost pile, there are options for that as well. Soon, If you are a Royse + Brinkmeyer resident who lives near 611 W. Healey you can add your compostable materials to the compost bin there! The bin is currently being built and should be ready for use in early fall. What exactly is “compostable material”? There are lots of commonly used household items that can be composted. For a detailed guide on what can and cannot be composted check out the infographic created by UIUC student, Maggie Furr, below. Further Resources If you are composting in Illinois, a good resource to check out is the Illinois Food Scrap Coalitio n . This website will assist you in finding services, answer frequent questions about compost, and provide a community of support if you wish to know more.