It’s been a pretty insane year. Extreme weather events, climate change and now COVID-19, a pandemic that is shaping up to be one of the worst in human history. Almost every day there seems to be an update on how the virus is spreading around the world, disrupting businesses, governments and, most importantly, people’s lives.
So, we wanted to spin something positive about it the best way we know-how. Compost.
The coronavirus is leading to some pretty horrible things, from panic buying to self-isolation to full-on quarantines. Our lives are drastically changing and we need to find new ways to cope. Composting is one of them and here are the big three ways.
1. Forget that cabin fever
While it’s the most appropriate and critical measure to limit the virus spread, no one's denying that self-isolation is boring. People are desperately searching for hobbies, projects and really anything to get away from that third Netflix binge and we’ve got the answer.
If you’ve got a garden or courtyard, you can compost. Especially if you’re also a gardener, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t be using this opportunity to get a top-notch compost operation running. It doesn’t even matter if you’re under 100% strict house arrest - while not as effective, you can literally just use a pile to compost, but we do recommend a base, cover and potentially some enclosure surrounding it.
Even a small balcony can comfortably fit a home worm farm but they can’t take quite the quantity that compost can. So, for all the people who have wanted to start composting or take it up again - this is the time.
2. Grow your own groceries
The grocery stores are becoming increasingly hostile, particularly around the toilet paper aisle. It’s enough to make anyone want to avoid them as much as possible, so you should!
Following on from getting back into gardening, if you’ve ever been interested in growing your own food, thus reducing your exposure to grocery store panic hoarding, this is the perfect time to start.
Of course, as any good grower already knows, your plants aren’t going to bear much without strong, healthy soil to grow in, consistent nutrients and high-quality fertiliser. There’s only one thing that ensures all of that and it’s compost.
3. The best kind of temperature
Why do we get a fever when we’re sick? In brief, our immune system raises our internal body temperature to deactivate or destroy any viruses or bacteria that are infecting it. Typically though we can only really go up to 41-42˚C without serious problems.
Unfortunately, any coronavirus-infected materials will only be 100% destroyed at temperatures of over 70˚C. If only there were some natural way to maintain those temperatures such that those materials can be safely disposed of … oh wait, there is!
When you’re composting effectively and correctly, it can reach up to 80˚ (but be careful it doesn’t get much higher). It’s important to hit at least 70˚C to deactivate weed seeds, plant pathogens and, in this case, any COVID-19 that may be hanging around on your kitchen scraps.
Now if you have no idea what composting is, where you’d start or how you can get it at those toasty temperatures, you’re in the right place! Check out our website to find out how and if you like what you find, make sure to follow our socials - Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Most importantly though, we hope you stay safe and secure in these challenging times.