Compost solutions for the kitchen

"It's your turn to take out the compost." Whether said peevishly or as a gentle reminder, it's a remark heard even in households that are joyful about their compost bucket.

Returning the remains of their meals to the soil in which they were grown, thereby adding to it fertility and good tilth, is a blessed circle. The compost pile is almost like a family member that deserves to be fed.

If the pile is well managed, feeding it is a painless ritual. This means taking out the bucket of kitchen scraps every day or two, before they begin to call attention to themselves. But if a stalemate has gone on for a week and no one has budged, it's tempting to hand the bucket to a guest who's reaching helpfully for a towel to dry the dishes.

"Here, take this putrid thing outside and scrape it, instead."

It's best to choose a receptacle that simplifies the job. I favor a well-made stainless-steel pail you can easily wash out. It should be small enough to promote frequent trips; two quarts is about right. (Lehmans.com, a mail-order purveyor of practical, old-fashioned household stuff, has a good selection.) Trimming vegetables outdoors, near the pile, can cut down on overflow; you can also have a second pail in reserve.

Starting with dry ingredients like old bread that absorb moist ones can keep the bottom layer less gummy and horrible. I also found a way to keep the pail handy and invisible at the same time, by having a hole cut in the countertop, next to the sink. In a drawer underneath sits the pail, for easy removal.

Using a lid might seem tidier, but cutting off air promotes anaerobic decomposition, which is smellier than the aerobic kind.

For a time I used some handy brown-paper pail liners, coated with a water-resistant biodegradable film. Sold by Woods End Laboratories in Mount Vernon, Maine, they could be lifted out of the pail and placed directly onto the pile.

I asked Will Brinton, who heads Woods End, why they were no longer offered. "They're no longer made," he said. "Most paper containers for food are lined with plastics now."

Milk and juice containers once were coated with wax and made great disposal units for kitchen scraps, but now they are lined with polyethylene, he explained. According to a study done by Woods End and EcoCycle in Boulder, Colorado, "microplastics are shed from all plastic-coated paper products during compost" and may pose a significant risk to sea and land creatures, including us. The Federal Trade Commission forbids these from being labeled "biodegradable" or "Earth-friendly," but this info has made me cautious about composting any paper food containers at all.

So here I am with my little pail, as are most of my neighbors. We still laugh about a winter potluck we had some years back, lit by flickering candles and rollicking good cheer, with a bounty of home-cooked dishes lined up on the kitchen counter.

"Who brought this?" someone asked at the table, in a voice edged with anxiety. "And what is it?" It was the hosts' compost collection, kept in a tasteful, locally made crock. There are times when a lid does come in handy.

• Damrosch's latest book is "The Four Season Farm Gardener's Cookbook"; her website is www.fourseasonfarm.com.