Malcolm Gorrill
Northern News Services

Inuvik (Aug10/01) - Earth-machine composters are on sale at the Inuvik Community Greenhouse.

Carrie Young, co-ordinator for the Community Garden Society of Inuvik, adds some material into a composter. The society is selling similar composters at the greenhouse. - Malcolm Gorrill/NNSL photo

The Community Garden Society of Inuvik acquired the composters from the Inuvik Recycling Society. Garden society co-ordinator Carrie Young explained that instructions are included, but that layering is key to making the composters work.

She said green matter, such as kitchen scraps (but not meat), is added to a mulch of brown matter, such as grass clippings.

"Then you put a little bit of soil in also, just to introduce the bacteria that's needed to break down stuff," Young said.

"You just layer it and you keep it moist and the sun, because they're black, is attracted to them and they just heat up and break things down fairly fast."

In other garden happenings, Young said that tomatoes will go on sale within two weeks in the commercial (upper) level of the greenhouse.

As well, the greenhouse now boasts a wheelchair ramp at the entrance and another one entering the common plot area. Both were built by Jeff Truscott.

Garden Society chair Effie McLeod said things are going well so far this season, and that later this month members will start making decisions about next year.

Late this month McLeod will represent her society at the fourth Circumpolar Agricultural Conference in Iceland.

"I'm really excited about that," McLeod said. "I'm curious to see how they operate their greenhouses there, and what they've learned. We're just in our second season now and we want to continue developing."