Grow inspired with gardening guru Claire Mummery at a free composting workshop this Saturday.

If you’ve never composted before or simply want a refresher, you won’t want to miss the free composting workshop this Saturday 19 August at the Waiheke Sustainability Centre on Mako Street.

From 9am to 12.30pm, composting guru and organic gardener Claire Mummery will focus on bokashi, worm-farm and traditional composting techniques that can be used at home to reduce food waste in landfills while creating nutrient-rich soils.

Claire’s know-how comes from 27 years of organic growing experience, including working as head gardener at two Waiheke vineyards and earning a diploma in permaculture.

“I want to get people out there and experiencing working composting systems. It really is the best way to learn,” she says.

“I have worked in people’s gardens for over 20 years without using chemicals. I believe in making good soil biology for healthy plants and restoring soil using effective micro organisms and bokashi.”

The workshop, organised by the Waiheke Resources Trust’s Compost Collective Project, comes at an opportune time. As part of a hot composting initiative, the Home Grown Waiheke Trust was collecting food waste from more than 100 Surfdale households weekly.

Now that the programme has ended, these households may be wondering what to do with their food waste. At Claire’s workshop, they can learn how to process their food waste at home, just as over 300 Waiheke households do.

 “Thinking of food waste as a resource instead of rubbish is something we all need to do,” says compost collective facilitator Kristin Busher. “Just like recycling doesn’t go in your red bin, neither should your food waste.

 “There are so many benefits to composting: reduced waste to landfill, septic tank health using bokashi juice, and the nutrient rich-soil you create from food waste. Living sustainably is a journey we are all on, and learning to compost is definitely a part of that journey.”

Auckland Council, which funds the collective, is subsidising composting systems for workshop participants. To register, phone 372 2915 or e-mail composting@wrt.org.nz. • Anna Ngo

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