*Lyrics from Hungry Eyes from the movie Dirty Dancing. Partly this song is inspired by my previous post about the tree we planted for Bec, where I used another song from Dirty Dancing. Partly it works because I wish both she and Patrick Swayze were still here with us. Partly I couldn’t think of another song that could accompany a post about compost. Can you?

At the risk of boring you all to death with pictures of the yard, I have another update to share with you. And it’s even more boring: it’s the compost area. Ugh, I know, who cares? But, you might care since it looks so nice.

AFTER: There's now about an inch or two of crushed bluestone over most of the area 5' x 15' area.

A few years ago we purchased some compost bins and installed them near the garage, sort of tucked away from the main area of the yard, but still accessible. Our lot isn’t giant – we live in a densely packed area, which is lovely for creating a community spirit with our amazing neighbors – so every bit of lawn space is sort of precious. When Bec was alive, we wanted to preserve as much space for her to run in as possible. But after her passing, we decided that (1) we’d like to bury her in the yard where she spent her happiest years (so we planted a tree over her ashes), and (2) we’d like to finally enclose the little compost area for ease of use, and to be able to better hide the unwanted yard scraps, leaves, sticks and other organic materials that we needed to have on hand to keep the compost area actually working.

I’ve showed you plenty of pictures of Bec’s tree, and of our little yard makeover in the past, but we added some finishing touches that I think complete the thought, and make the space feel finished and functional. After adding a few bags of crushed up stone debris, (the staining of the new fence complete) and a bit of tidying, we have a welcoming, organized little space to continue our composting experiment. (Isn’t composting always like an experiment?) And, since the weather’s been so warm so early we have a healthy start on the composting season. I feel so much better about not just chucking all the scraps from our organic fruits and veggies into the landfill – I mean, we paid for them, they might as well fertilized future herbs and veggies, flowers, shrubs and trees. Right?

Some satisfying before and afters for your hungry eyes. Enjoy! xoxo