BLOG: From Combat to Compost—Veteran Compost

Since we were talking about compost last week, I thought I’d introduce you to a wonderful company located in Aberdeen, Maryland—Veteran Compost. I took a trip up there on the first of March and talked with owner, former Army Captain Justen Garrity.

Why is Veteran Compost different from other sources of compost? This veteran-owned company’s goal is to provide a high-quality product and keep useable food waste out of our landfills. Their motto is “From Combat to Compost” and another goal is to hire veterans and their family members because the unemployment rate for young military members returning from combat is 21%!

They go around the Baltimore area to gather food waste from schools, restaurants, hospitals and hotels and are always searching for new partners, so if you work at any of the above types of facilities, please encourage your employer to participate. Veteran Compost is the only “permitted food waste composting site in Maryland”. 

To their food waste, they add fine wood chips that are discarded by companies that make mulch because it’s not “chunky” enough for them. The latest trend is colored mulch, and since the dye is so expensive, they only want the larger pieces. Adding these small wood chips gives Veteran Compost a good ratio of carbon to nitrogen. They lay their ingredients over large PVC pipes with holes in them that are connected to fans and blow air into the pile. Incorporating air in the process is called anaerobic composting which makes sure that the decomposing materials form a nice “soil-like” consistency instead of turning slimy. It also produces compost much faster than usual.

The piles are heated to 140 degrees F for at least 72 hours which destroys harmful pathogens and most weed seeds.  Next they run the compost through several temperature changes that benefits the different beneficial microbes resulting in superior compost.  In only 90 days it’s cured and screened and ready for sale in bulk by the yard or 20-lb bags.   

In addition to food waste compost, Veteran Compost also sells vermicompost (worm castings) which is the ultimate form of compost. In my business I use a combination of their food waste and vermicompost so it’s not unusual to have worms crawling through my growing medium (that soil-less mix we talked about the last couple of weeks) which delights my customers. 

Something you WON’T find in Veteran Compost ... yard waste! Why not? This surprised me until Justen explained it. You never know what chemicals have been sprayed on yards and herbicides like Imprelis and Milestone can end up in yard waste compost that will contaminate the finished compost. Because quality is of utmost importance to Veteran Compost they test all of their products there at the facility and also in a laboratory. 

Let’s compare this to “compost” sold in your local home improvement store and even some nurseries. A friend recently found bagged “compost” at a nursery that was called Five-way Compost and sold as being “compatible with Square Foot Gardening." When she asked for the contents of this stuff, she was told it contained “no more than 90% peat and no less than 10% compost." She then asked what was in their “compost” and was told it was the plant scraps from the previous season. Remember, we’re already adding peat moss to the Mel’s Mix so this would screw up the perfect 1/3 proportions. Another concern is what chemicals (fertilizers or pesticides) were used on these “plant scraps?"

Bulk and bagged Veteran Compost is available for pick-up at their farm in Aberdeen and bagged compost can be delivered and is also available at specific pick-up locations in Media, PA, Columbia and Annapolis, MD. They will also ship worms and vermicompost to your home. For more information, go to their web site veterancompost.com.

Now you can see why I am proud to recommend Veteran Compost and why I use their compost exclusively for my own garden and my business. 

If you are interested in attending a Square Foot Gardening class, you are in luck.  The next class in Glen Burnie will be on March 17. SFG 101 (Intro to SFG) will be from 10 a.m.–noon. SFG 201 (Continuing SFG) will be from 1-3 p.m. You can take one or both classes. Because class size is VERY limited, you MUST register online (sfg4u.com) or call me at 443-995-1288. The same classes will be offered on April 21, May 19 and June 16.