It's to die for....
Dumpster diving for coffee grounds
Here you go, Pagan. I think that you need to add your review of your ice cream joint: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/439559
That is too funny - a whole list of people just like me. Whodda thunk?
Hmmmm......if you ladies are going dumpster diving "on the edge", have you considered developing a few strategies to keep the local laddies unconcerned?
Perhaps a tail gate party setup and when the patrol car pulls up to your dumpster you can explain how you accidently dropped something in the dumpster and are trying to retrieve it. Keep a stadium blanket handy to disguise those bags of grounds in the back of the car. Extra cookies probably won't hurt. You'll have to consider what might be passable in your area.
In addition to no trespassing signs posted on all our local dumpsters, there are ordinances against taking anyones garbage from the curb. We midnight leaf nappers need to be quiet and quick. Otherwise all those bags of fallen leaves would never make it to our compost piles.
In our area we better have Coffee and Donuts for our coppers! :)
GM - you sound like a woman of experience! Great ideas!
It's a tough job and mission of mercy to keep those worms (and this planet) well fed and cared for.......but somebody's got to do it. *grin*
Orchard Supply Hardware (OSH) has five gallon buckets with fitted lids that are fairly inexpensive. Many coffee houses will gladly fill these up for you if you leave a couple of buckets. (The new buckets are cleaner looking than the ones leftover from construction sites) We've coordinated bucket pickup brigade with other gardeners from our community garden, so we get lots of grounds these days. Another source of good compostables/worm food are the juice bars like Jamba Juice. The vegetable and fruit pulp goes nicely with the coffee grounds and misbegotten dried leaves.
Speaking of worms......my husband was telling me that some guy he was talking to recently does a combination of a cola mixture and something else that he says the worms love. Has anyone here heard of mixing cola with some other ingredient tto make the little wigglers happy?
If you folks ever decide to have an ice cream tasting get together, please let me know. I will travel for ice cream.
Ruby
Hi, Ruby. In the past, I've read about people dumping cola and beer over their compost piles.
Very interesting thread! I've learned a lot. Thanks!
as far as the using the grounds twice--i think starbucks is afraid who they give the grounds to using them again---and with lawsuits common--well anything you give out can be misused and then come back and hurt--my starbucks is very generous and gives me all i can take
Please folks do not waste good cola and beer by adding them to the garden or compost. Consider staining them through your kidneys first. However if it is stale ale or cola it is still great for the compost.
Largely they simply offer carbs for your micro-herd. Black Strap Molasses (feed grade) average cost is about four dollars a gallon. It can be found any place they make animal food meals and pellets. You need but two ounces per gallon of water to get your compost all excited. Locate Black Strap Molasses (feed grade) and you will have a dandy booster even better than many costing much more.
Garden_mermaid, I had no idea that you were so devious. Ah, the things we learn about folks on these forums.... ha!
But still a great idea. Amazing what great minds can come up with for a common cause.
BTW, if you do the whole clay kitty litter thing, both Sam's and Costco sell it in these great white plastic buckets with locking lids that have *many* wonderful uses. I haven't bought a bucket in years.
wrightie, cola can be a great soil additive and foliar feed due to the phosphoric acid content and the sugar. It also helps acidify overly alkaline soils. The soil and leaf microbes life the sugars. The phosphoric acid will make your plants bloom and fruit. It can be mixed with apple cider vinaegar and molasses and diluted with water to use as a drench or spray on the leaves.
Personally, I'd have to pretty desperate to drink cola myself. The same phosphoric acid that benefits the plants wreaks havoc with human bones and teeth, not to mention the kidneys. docgipe, you can pee on your compost pile without the cola and beer, but I can see where the beer might be handy excuse if the neighbors catch you adding your own personal amendments to the pile.. Just throw in a few more browns (carbons) to offset that concentrated nitrogen. :)
Pagancat, one has to keep the bigger picture in mind. Ordinances often get passed as one size fits all regulations due to a problem incident. If you raid the coffee dumpster as a group, there is someone on hand to help pull you out of the dumpster or call for assistance if you need it, thereby eliminating much of the public safety issue.
Leaf napping was not the event that triggered the "garbage theft" rule, so I figure I'm not causing or repeating a problem. The county offers composting classes to encourage folks to compost their own yard waste and cut down on what the city has to haul. This means we're actually doing a *good* thing by running off with the leaves. Actually, quite a few residents have said we can take their leaves if we want to come and get them. Takes some of the fun out of the midnight manouevers though. LOL!
This message was edited Nov 25, 2007 11:53 AM
My friends are more likely to push me *into* the dumpster, I'm afraid ... lol.
Pagancat, you need new friends!
I hadn't thought about safety as a reason for dumpster no trespass signs, but that makes sense. Of course I wouldn't be crazy enough to actually go IN one or pull something heavy down on me, but I can see someone else doing it. Then there's the ID theft issue.
The target dumpsters in question here are the ones used by coffee houses, so I'm not sure ID theft would be as big of an issue as it would be with a residential dumpster. All the more reason for coffee houses to give their spent grounds to gardeners - they'll cut down on neighborhood misdemeanors!
well, thinking of ID theft as a reason to pass an overall prohibition on trash taking.
Am I the only one who knows the heights of both Sally and Pagancat? LOL One could bend over to grab anything out of the dumpster that her heart desires and the other ... well... couldn't.
I'm not a cola drinker either, but I've read where others do dump the stuff on their compost. On occasions when we have parties, I do pour any leftover drinks on my bins.
Hey now!!!
And I'm probably one of the few who has actually been inside of one of those things - mmm mmm mmm. Smells ... rich....
Well, now that you mention it ... I don't think that I've ever been inside of one. How'd ya get out???
Short people climb *great*!
Actually, I actually climbed in and out of one. It was stinky, dangerous and I don't want to ever do it again. But I was rewarded that time with a tiny ferral kitten that still had it's eyes closed and managed to leave me sctatched up pretty good. Turned out to be the best cat that ever owned me!
very interesting/fun thread...worms must be kept happy at all costs.
And kitties. Especially kitties.
LOL Iwill dig from above for coffee grounds and climb inside for kitties ;~}
I would too, Zanymuse, no doubt about it.
yep, my first intro to dumpster diving 101 was the result of rescuing kitties.
I won't climb in for coffee grounds. A folding step ladder and grasping claw tool got the CG bags within easy reach to haul them out from outside.
just another chapter in "as the worm turns".......(ouch! I know, but I just had to say it.LOL!)
(edited for spelling)
This message was edited Nov 25, 2007 7:48 PM
ROTFL! :)
One of my favorite shows-"As the worm turns"! :)
drat! I don't get the channel!
4paws, it is a very down and dirty story where they just keep piling it on and mixing it up. The heroine/hero is seeking black gold and though the plot is full of wormholes the castings are delightfully fullfilling.
hee, hee, hee Zany! Great synopsis of the plot.
4paws, some episodes are knee deep in bull-puckey, but those mighty worms turn it around.
There is a lot of propagating going on in the story but it is still good clean family fun.
Thanks to all for the chuckles. So very funny...As The Worm Turns.
Dogpipe - I see your point about spending money on the sodas to pour on the compost. I do like the idea of using "flat" sodas though and remains of party drinks. in the past year or so my husband I have become big cola drinkers. I got tired of making enough tea to keep the household satisfied. A good glass of sweet tea sounds pretty good about now though. Might have to stir up a bacth later today.
Yes, this is a great thread and full of good tips. Keep 'em comin'.
Ruby
WOOHOO! DH just picked up an addtional 25 bags of oak leaves. That's enough to play kill the grass out for the spring garden! Do a nice wind break for the bins and I will be planting my taters on the ground this year! Yeah, no digging!!!! Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
doccat5,
Congrats! Where did you get so many leaves? I wish I had more! Your garden thanks you.
Dean_W
It was a friend of a friend deal, Dean. DH was picking up leaves from a friend and they were chatting. The neighbor came over and one thing led to another..DH is very much a plp person. LOL Our buddy wants some custom tilling work done in the spring, so it's a great trade off. I'm trying to talk him to letting DH do it now, since spring is usually a bit insane. Besides, he's still got mondo leaves, we can set him up and turn a bunch under right now.........LOL Throw a good cover crop on top and we can turn it in the spring. He'll be good to go!
Just an update-
I visited 'my' dumpster again. There's no sign of a no trespass sign, so that's OK. All the bags overflowing the top were full of cups, etc, not any good amount of grounds. I left them, but glanced at the cardboard bin. Decided to take one or two for possible gift mailing. Well, the one I grabbed, unbroken-down, had about ten bags of coffee, new sealed pouches, 9 oz each. What's up with this? The box label shows it 'in date' I am tempted to do the ol' kidney filter deal on this. C'mon, it was all perfectly clean like it just went there that AM.
sallyg, that is a strange find. I wonder if it was a blend they discontinued. I say if the box and packages are clean and the seals are still good it should pass the kidney test just fine. One precaution: wash the outside of the packages befor opening to be safe. Then put the used grounds out for the worms later ;~)