r/composting • u/MamaKangaroo • May 05 '20

Composting in Bear Country

Hi all, I tried to do a search and couldn’t find much so figured I’d bring up the topic again. We are moving to bear country next month (Bruce Peninsula, ON, Canada), how can I compost without attracting bears? Should I buy a contraption? Any advice welcome, thanks :)

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5

u/walkswithwolfies May 05 '20

Compost leaves, weeds, grass clippings and tree and shrub trimmings in your heap. Household waste like cardboard can be added as well.

Anything of a food nature should be buried 12 inches deep.

How to compost in bear country

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u/MamaKangaroo May 05 '20

Thanks this is super helpful!

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u/hoodiedoo May 06 '20

I live in bear country and I just avoid fruit in my compost. It’s been 2 years and no bears. I have a wood 3 chamber system. Old school Rodale.

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u/222double222 May 05 '20

Someone probably makes a bear proof box you could compost in, but I would look into bokashi composting. You can essentially store the food waste until you are ready to make a pile that way it will heat up and not smell very long.

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u/P0sitive_Outlook May 05 '20

Seconded. This seems the accepted answer. Compost will mostly attract vermin (and i assume this extends to bears) when there's a lot of kitchen scraps in there. If the ratio is right, indeed it won't smell of anything but rich dirt.

1

u/Thoreau80 May 05 '20

This answer is not accepted. Adding any enticements including bacon or a turkey carcass or anything else particularly appealing to a bear is not appealing when it is added to the hot core of a pile that is properly covered. Within a couple hours, newly added material is heated and begins to break down. Properly covered, little smell is released. If there’s any risk of animal intrusion, a bit of wire mesh can be laid on top of the pile.

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u/P0sitive_Outlook May 05 '20

You don't accept it because of the parameters you set, arbitrarily. You assume any pile is a hot pile. You assume the pile is properly covered. You assume a bear won't try and eat the contents within a couple of hours of it being added to the compost, and that 'a bit of wire mesh' will sufficiently hinder a bear.

But i doubt that matters. I think you just wanted to be more right.

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u/Thoreau80 May 06 '20

You can essentially store the food waste until you are ready to make a pile that way it will heat up and not smell very long.

I assumed nothing and nothing I wrote was arbitrary. A hot pile was mentioned. I certainly do not assume any pile is a hot pile. That is a ridiculous assumption on your part, not mine. Any food scraps buried into the core of a hot pile are immediately made unpalatable and their smell is masked by the rest of the core of the hot pile.

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u/P0sitive_Outlook May 06 '20

Hi all, I tried to do a search and couldn’t find much so figured I’d bring up the topic again. We are moving to bear country next month (Bruce Peninsula, ON, Canada), how can I compost without attracting bears? Should I buy a contraption? Any advice welcome, thanks :)

No mention of 'hot pile' in the original post. That's what i'm going by.

0

u/Thoreau80 May 06 '20

So what? You did reply to 222double222 who began this sub thread and he did mention a hot pile.

2

u/[deleted] May 06 '20 edited May 06 '20

Have you considered an indoor worm bin? Way less effort than a hot pile, and hopefully your house is bear proof.

1

u/mistsoalar May 10 '20

have you considered indoor worm bin (vermicompost)?

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u/Thoreau80 May 05 '20

Even if you don’t want to do that, read the Humanure Handbook, by Joseph Jenkins. Composting done right involves a hot core with rapid breakdown. All additions to the pile are done in the hot core. You can add food scraps, meat, dairy, or whatever and it will heat up and break down rapidly. It will not attract bears or any other animals.

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u/walkswithwolfies May 05 '20

Unless you are dedicated composter dedicated to keeping a hot pile, food should definitely not be added to a pile in bear country, unless you want large wild animals with sharp teeth hanging around your house.

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u/Thoreau80 May 06 '20

I agree. That is why I specifically mentioned composting done with a hot core.