Just over a year ago, I bought myself an ordinary 60L plastic bin and two plant pots (a small one upside down, a big one right side up). In it I put a bit of soil, a bit of newspaper, and 500 composting worms. Since then all of our fruit and vegetable scraps, including the mysterious items at the back of the crisper drawer that get forgotten and rediscovered, have gone into that plant pot, and been silently and cleanly converted into a fantastic liquid fertiliser by the worker worms within.
I wish I had done this sooner; it's wonderful how much less is going to waste via our kitchen bin. We empty the bin less often without issue, because it no longer smells or attracts fruit flies even in the height of summer. The fertiliser the worms produce is more than enough to cover the regular fertilisation needs of my pot-based garden - there's enough to give away bottles to keen gardener friends too.
Turns out that in this moderate weather at least, it is possible to grow a garden in pots on a small balcony. I'm watering it only with water saved with a bucket in the shower while the water is heating, and saving more than I can use at the moment! So hopefully I won't have to go shopping for lettuce, tomatoes, capsicum or various herbs anymore; and that if they all work out, I'll add more plants to the collection. (By the way, the pots I'm using are either old ones that are in re-use despite looking worse for wear, or new pots that are recyclable.)
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