... that was once living. Lawn clipping. Leaves. Fruit

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Backyard Composting

• Brekke Peterson
• Montana State University
• Plant Science and Plant Pathology
• Graduate Student

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Why Compost

• Creates Organic Fertilizer for gardens,
  houseplants, lawns, etc.
• Recycles waste products from cooking, shopping,
  shipping, mowing, etc.
• Great project!

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What can you compost?

• Anything not meat based that was once living.
• Lawn clipping
• Leaves
• Fruit
• Veggies
• Cardboard
• Paper Shreds
• Saw dust

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Label Reading

• Be aware of what you bring home from the store.
• Recycled packaging
• Can you recycle or compost the packaging of what
  you bought?
• Plastic-New plastics are out on the market that
  do degrade.

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Biodegradable Plastic

• Biopol
• Bacteria are modified to produce plastic.
• Tencel
• Made from wood pulp. Renewable and degrades.
• Zein
• Made from corn protein.
• Has made public worried due to genetically
  modified corn. The protein the plastic is made
  from isnt a direct GMO but does come from a GMO
  plant.
• Plastarch
• Starch based resin.
• Heat, water and oil resistant.
• 70 degrades in 90 days.
• Polylactic Acid
• Starch based resin.
• Degrades quickly.
• Very durable.
• Used in many food containers.

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Is the Biodegradable Plastic Compostable?
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Compost

• Polylactic acid bag
• Compostables-Fruits, veggies, egg shells, coffee
  grounds, paper, wood, leaves, etc.
• Microbes
• Red Wigglers
• Heat and water

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Waste Management

• Community Composting facilities-
• Community Centers
• Womens groups
• Senior Centers
• School projects
• City Composting
• Maintenance crews can compost leaves, lawn
  clippings, and other compostables to provide
  fertilizer for spring flower planting, city
  parks, etc.

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How to Make a Composting Box

• Rubbermaid tub
• A drill or ice pick
• Nylons and batting
• Paper Shreds or Coconut Husk
• Red Wiggler Worms
• One plant pot holder
• Scissors

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Things to Remember

• Worms are not needed but make a better compost.
• One pound of worms can east 1-3 pounds of
  compostables a daystart saving now!
• There is odor involved in composting-keep the box
  in a warm well ventilated area.

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Questions?
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References

• Degradable Polymers Principles and Applications
  by Gerald Scott, Dan Gilead.
• Production of a Biodegradable Plastic Polymer,
  Poly-beta-Hydroxybutyrate, in Transgenic
  Alfalfa. Saruul, Purev, Srienc, Friedrich,
  Somers, David A., Samac, Deborah A. Crop Sci
  2002 42 919-927 .
• Hydrolytic degradation of poly(d,l-lactide) as a
  function of end group Carboxylic acid vs.
  hydroxyl . Wiggins, Jeffrey S. Hassan, Mohammad
  K. Mauritz, Kenneth A. Storey, Robson F. pp.
  1960-1969 .
• Biodegradable Plastic Made from Soybean Products.
  1. Effect of Preparation and Processing on
  Mechanical Properties and Water Absorption Inke
  Paetau, Chin-Zue Chen, Jay-lin JaneInd. Eng.
  Chem. Res. 1994 33(7) 1821-1827.
• A Rubber-Like Protein in Insect Cuticle. Torkel
  Weis-Fogh. Journal of Experimental Biology
  37,889-907 (1960).
• Synthesis and properties of crosslinked
  recombinant pro-resilin. Elvin, C. M., Carr, A.
  G., Huson, M. G., Maxwell, J. M., Pearson, R. D.,
  Vuocolo, T., Liyou, N. E., Wong, D. C. C.,
  Merritt, D. J. and Dixon, N. E. (2005). Nature
  437, 999-1002.
• Process design for microbial plastic factories
  metabolic engineering of polyhydroxyalkanoates.
  IS Aldor, JD Keasling - Current Opinion in
  Biotechnology, 2003

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Contact Information

• Brekke Peterson
• Phone- 406-994-1986
• Montana State University
• Bozeman, MT