Pallet Compost Bin - A Logistical Error

In early November I relocated our compost pile to the spot where I plan to build the new Pallet Compost Bin near the garden. This seemed like a great idea at the time, as I needed to separate the finished compost from the rest of the compost pile anyway, so it was just as easy to load the material to be hauled away as to set it aside. Also, the compost pile was in the area I'm currently clearing for the future chicken coop, so had I left it there it would have been in the way.

In hindsight, however, the decision to move the compost pile may have been a poorly timed one. The plan, all along, has been to use the new compost bin for waste from the yard and garden, while using a worm bin for the kitchen wastes. The problem, however, is that we have yet to start the worm bin, which means that I've been having to take the compost all the way over to the garden area. That didn't seem like such a big deal at the time, but what I've since realized is that the distance is great enough that I always use the RTV, especially when the creek is flowing, which it pretty much does from fall through spring. Everytime I get the RTV out, though, just to empty the compost bucket, I think about the amount of gas that I'm wasting. It also takes much longer, so the compost doesn't get taken out as often as it probably should.

I wish that that we had made it a priority to get the worm bin ready shortly after relocating the compost pile. With the weather turning cold by that point, however, we were hesitant to start the bin because we worried the worms might not survive. The plan was to put the bin on the front porch, which is partially enclosed with plastic. While the plastic does help keep the porch warmer, it still gets much too cold for the worms. Someone suggested I might insulate the bin with pieces of foam board, which I likely would have tried if we had established the bin earlier in the year. At this point, though, I think that we need to plan to keep it inside for the winter. I have a spot picked out for it, so now just need to construct the worm bin and then acquire some worms.