Weimer, Anissa. Composting Simplified for Beginners: A Complete Guide to Fix Common Compost Pitfalls, Create Fertile Soil and Enjoy a Lush Productive Garden. W4 Publishing LLC, 2024.
Reason read: as a member of the Early Review Program for LibraryThing I often get to read interesting books. This is one such book.
Why I Requested This Book: I have a very modest raised garden and a few containers where I grow tons of herbs, tomatoes, jalapenos, and the occasional tomatillo. I would like to expand the annual bounty.
This book is true to it’s title. Simple and to the point. Despite its beginner language and content I did learn a few things. For example, never heard of Bokashi composting before. I also never considered composting to have its own mythology, but I am glad Weimer separated fact from fiction. Additionally, I appreciated Weimer mentioning browns and greens and making sure there is an even balance of the two, but she mentions this a lot. There is a little repetition to Composting Simplified for Beginners. Weimer mentions landfill methane gas more than once and don’t get me started on how many times odors or smells were covered. She spends a lot of time addressing the potential smelliness of composting.
The most useful section (for me) was the pest prevention information. I currently deal with woodchucks, squirrels, racoons, chipmunks, rabbits, coyotes, deer, bears, voles, mice, foxes, stray dogs and cats, snakes, skunks, opossums, and even a mountain lion has been in my yard once. Knowing how to keep these critters away from my composting is critical.
The second section most useful to me was the 30 Day Checklist. Knowing when and how to start being spelled out makes the process less daunting. Watching for the different colors of mold was also helpful information.
Less helpful was all the information about involving family members. What if the reader is a single male with no children or even roommates? Least helpful were the testimonials by fellow composters. They seem to reiterate the information already given. Despite the book only being 160 pages long, I skipped these sections.
As an aside, I wasn’t sure of the purpose of the QR code to scan for the supply guide. If the information is included in the book, why do I need to download the information as well? The list of supplies looks pretty straightforward and logical: outdoor bin, indoor bin, pitchfork, thermometer, and tarp.
Author fact: Kasey Bayr’s name is on the cover while in the copyright Anissa Weimer “has the moral right to be identified as the author.”
Book trivia: there are some great photographs and illustrations to emphasize the information.
~*LunaSea*~ 