Rotten Fruit in My Garden

Apples Happily Rotting Away

I love throwing rotten produce in my veggie garden during the winter. I feel a thrill, a zing, when I do it. Which sounds completely insane. So, I've been contemplating today WHY I like doing this so much.

First, it's like a good omen to me. Like, throwing this produce that actually was grown and made it's way to my fridge (though, not to my table) was a success. And maybe that will norish the garden and give all my seeds that I sow next year the right idea. (Rereading that makes me sound even more batty.)

Second, I'm attracted to composting but I haven't had much luck with it. I had a black compost box in New Jersey that, and I'll be the first to admit, I probably didn't set up correctly. We had it for four years and I never got the good soil they say you should from it. After awhile, it felt like I was just feeding all the neighborhood vermin my kitchen scraps -- because walking near it would produce an ominous rustling sound. Not good.

But I like the natural process of rot and decay, and having that rot and decay help provide nutrients to the soil for next year's crop. This toss of an apple just remove the middle man/pile. (Maybe I'll look into composting again.)

Apples in the Garden

I hate wasting food (even though we do it all the time) and I have landfill guilt. And this is just one less apple that will be taking up space in that garbage pile. This way, their decay is going to enrich the soil -- if only just a little bit -- and offer some use for the money I spent on it.

Sometimes, it's not just the garden but I'll hurl gross pears and rotted onions into the juniper bush or the creeping jenny in the perennial bed. Can't hurt. Though, to be clear, I only do this in the fall/winter, when nothing is actively growing in the bed.

Give it a try!