Thanks for all the advice.

I actually have found a wonderful source of greens: leftovers from
lunch at the office. My company's fairly small (30 people) and they
provide catered lunch every day (this is their tricky way of getting
us to stay in the office for lunch!). Especially on days when
something super greasy is served, like fried chicken, the salad is
hardly touched. We usually take this home and either eat it or
compost it.

I had no idea this would become such an obsession! Now, when we go to
relatives' houses for dinner, I find myself hoarding the scraps. Of
course, it remains to be seen whether or not this eccentric behavior
will pay off. Who knows... I may have nothing more than a pile of
leaves and moldy food a year from now.

Thanks again,

joseph

Monique Reed wrote in message ...
If you are running short of "green", you can ask the grocer to save
you the lettuce, cabbage, etc. that has gone bad and is to be thrown
away. Beginning in the early spring, look for pre-bloom dandelions,
sow thistles, chickweed, etc. that people will be glad to have you
pull from their yards.

I, too suffer from too much brown, being blessed with lots of oak
leaves. I hurry them along a bit by piling them in the driveway and
going over them with the mower a couple of times until they're rather
shredded. Then, in they go!

So far, the only things that don't compost: coconut husks and
pistachio shells.

Monique in TX

Joseph O'Brien wrote:

I've been itching to start a garden for a few months now. I tried to
curb my appetite by reading books and websites, but I just couldn't
stand it any longer! So, today, I built a compost pile out of wooden
pallets and spent a beautiful fall day raking leaves. Funny to think
that my first step towards growing food is to hasten the decay of it.

Unfortunately, it's not a very proper compost pile. I've read about
putting down layers of green and brown, mixing in compost starters,
cutting it all up into little bits, but I just don't have the time or
resources to do that. So, I just dumped everything in, mixed it up,
and will hope for the best.

What should I expect from this kind of setup in the spring? I plan on
emtpying table scraps throughout the winter and giving it a good stir
every week. Would you have any other recommendations?

I can't wait for spring!

thanks,
joseph