Hello! I know it has been a long time since my last post — 2 months! But now that I am not too busy with homework and exams, I have some time to do what I would like.
To be frank, my family and I have not composted since my last post; my backyard is still filled with plants, and the pickled, yeasty odor that hangs in the air is far from pleasant. Hence, for now and the near future, home composting will be put on pause. However, I am still passionate for composting and helping the environment in any way I can.
Here is what the backyard currently looks like:
The lettuces (doesn't that feel weird to say out loud?) are blooming — to be honest I did not know that lettuces produce flowers, but of course they do since they grow from seeds! Also, the garlic that looks like it's dying below the lettuce are starting to mature into bulbs of garlic. Here is one that we harvested!
Moreover, this absence of composting in my life for the past couple of months has left me feeling a bit guilty as I throw away food scraps that I had previously turned into compost. This has led me to consider an idea that I have had for a long time, and something that seems within my reach as a culinary student council member at school: starting a composting system for my conservatory. From what I have heard, this has been mentioned many times in the past but nothing has been done to further it.
Here is the general plan that I've loosely put together to achieve this goal: contacting a Santa Ana waste management organization, asking them to provide our school with a couple of composting bins, and sending those bins to Santa Ana parks where composting is done. I'm sure there are many steps in between, but with the experiences I have gained from being in this culinary course, I believe I can make this system come to fruition. I share with my peers the experience of scraping plates full of food into garbage bins, binning leftover produce, and feeling responsible for the food waste produced. With this project, I want to spare future generations of culinary students from feeling the same way. I will keep you guys posted on my progress with it (and my backyard)!