Composting in a small yard

[DancingLady]

I live in a town house with a tiny yard, so my gardening space is very limited, but I am working to make the most of what I have. What are some good options for composting in my situation. My landlord does not want any food scraps left outside overnight because of racoons, which are a potential big problem in our neighborhood if food is available to them. I hate to waste things like banana peals and carrot tops. Is there any way I can compost these without a terrible smell issue or leaving something for the coons?

 

[ACSAPA]

If you look on a shopping site like Amazon, they actually make tiny composting canisters that you can keep under your kitchen sink.
They have a charcoal filter to prevent bad odors. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MNSZH1O?psc=1
Eventually your compost will have to go outside but these little composting bins let you start your compost indoors and the filter is supposed to keep gnats away by preventing bad smells.

 

[ChanellG]

I compost in a small yard with a lidded storage bin. Raccoons are a bit tricky because they have little hands that allow them human dexterity. Do they ever get in your trash can when you put the garbage out? My compost bin doesn't have a smell and nothing has ever tampered with it.

 

[leftylogan]

You could try a smaller one made out of wood pallets and covered with chicken wire to keep the raccoons out. It would take up maybe a 3 ft. x 3 ft. space and would be very cheap to build as you can sometimes get pallets for free from a local supermarket or similar.

 

[headfullofbees]

If you turn your compost occasionally, it will rot down aerobically, and there shouldn't be much smell.

 

[DancingLady]

I like the sound of the under the sink one. I will definitely look into that. I hope I can afford it, money is so tight right now, but I know this would be a good investment to help me grow veggies come next season.

 

[bellahpereira]

I have a similar issue at my house! I live in a basement and share the backyard with the people upstairs. It's hard to make choices about a whole yard when 4 people are making decisions. I also feel like just throwing out scraps is a waste, and would love to be able to save them! Lately, I've just been throwing my compost right onto my dirt and moving it around a bit whenever possible. It's probably not the best idea but it's the easiest solution I have at the moment. But, as it's starting snow up here, I'm going to need to find another solution as well. I'm also going to look into that 'under the sink' option, thank you in advance ACSAPA I think it becomes complicated to compost when the weather becomes colder though, at least in Canada, because I know that there are those days where it is really so cold that stepping out, even for a second, would freeze your nose hairs LOL. Does anyone think that a plastic storage bin would work? I've been considering it, as they are cheap and easy to store, but I'm not sure if it would work as I want it to.