If you are a Middlesex County resident who is concerned about the environment, now is the time to learn how to reduce waste and improve soil, all in your own backyard.
Workshops are being offered to show residents how to cut down on trash and create a natural gardening resource by using yard waste and kitchen scraps as compost.
Three free composting seminars are being held at the Middlesex County EARTH Center in Davidson’s Mill Pond Park, 42 Riva Ave., South Brunswick. Classes run about two hours and feature an overview and explanation of two composting techniques:
Backyard Composting
10 a.m. April 10 6:30 p.m.
Backyard Composting
10 a.m. April 16
Vermi-Composting (using worms)
6:30 p.m. April 19
To register for these free workshops, call the Middlesex County Division of Solid Waste Management at 732-745-4170 or email solidwaste@co.middlesex.nj.us.
Workshop attendees can also pick up prepurchased compost bins at the workshops. Call the Division of Solid Waste before the workshop for a list of available compost bins.
The backyard composting seminar will introduce the basics of collecting kitchen scraps and yard waste in a compost bin, and allowing the natural breakdown to create compost, an earthy, soil-like material. If you do not have a yard of your own, you can still learn about composting and benefit from it at the second workshop, which teaches vermi-composting. In this process, the breakdown of waste is performed by worms in a plastic container.
“I encourage residents to attend one of these informative workshops,” said Freeholder Kenneth Armwood, chairman of the county’s Business Development and Education Committee. “Keeping conservation in mind today will ensure that the County remains a beautiful and healthy place to live.”
“The EARTH Center offers a host of environmental services to the county,” said Freeholder Director Ronald G. Rios. “Not only do the workshops offer knowledge on gardening, they also help residents learn how to safely use pesticides, identify unsafe conditions in their yards, and keep their plants and soil healthy using natural methods.”
For more information on programs offered by the Middlesex County’s Cooperative Extension, call 732-398-5260.
