Waste

Waste seems like…well…such a waste.
I see shows like “war on waste” and I marvel.  Big establishments that produce mega waste have, some time later, reduced it to the tiniest little bins.  While ever there are plastic milk containers, I do not know that we could do that.
We are giving sending less waste off a shot though.  When we mow, the cuttings go in the first instance onto our much pile.  That pile has been so good.  It produces great soil.  I’ve just got to be willing to wait.  Any time I have transferred what has broken down to the soil pile, it is really good stuff.  It must be I reckon, because the worms love it.
I am fascinated with the construction of boxes.  I know I am not obsessed because saying “I am not obsessed” thirty times, or the number of times needed, fixes that.  Many boxes are one piece.  Pulling them apart at the join reveals their clever construction.  Doing that is great for making a box take up less space, and I have learned that boxes are good as mulch.  They take longer to break down, but are great as a weed deterrent.
Now having a worm farm takes care of our vege scraps.  In fact we were concerned that we would not produce enough.  A neighbour came to the rescue though.  They give us their vege scraps.  So far so good really.  I know you are dying to know how the worms are.  Too bad if you are not, as I am going to tell you anyway.  The worms are well thank you.
Dealing with bits of trees and the like is harder.  We have a good mulcher for that purpose.  It works well.  I need to resist the temptation to put in something slightly bigger than what it says it can handle.  Still, I have always had that problem with breaking down tree branches.  Push it to the limit.  Save time.  Except in the end it never does.  The machine dies.  I ask too much of it, and it lets me know that by dying.
But I have resisted doing that with the one we have now.  It is just a pity the pile to be cut up is as high as a house and growing.  Using it again though is just a matter of time.  It has been used successfully in the past, and there is no reason why we should not enjoy success in the future.
I was glad to see the end of one-use plastic bags at shopping centres.  Actually, I was glad and sad.  Glad because the plastic takes 400 years to break down.  I was sad because those bags were perfect for putting rubbish in.  Put stuff in, tie the top, put in the bin and never see again.  Now I use newspaper for wrapping rubbish in.  I try to make sure I have read what applies to me though.  If I don’t then I know that at least the ground will be aware of what is happening locally.  Until the newspaper breaks down that is.  By then it will be too late to attend anyway.
We have reduced our waste big time by making use of it.  The guy over the back burns everything.  If I was ever in his yard, I would avoid standing still for too long.
Still, a lot goes into the bin.  There is no doubt it is not as little as it could be, but for sure it is less than it was.