If you fall into the category of people who just do not have the time, space or volume of compost-able material to maintain a compost pile or bin, there are several alternatives available to you. These all fall under a heading of passive composting since they require little additional work once the organic waste has been added to the system. Passive composting is the way nature composts and is sometimes considered a lazy mans way to compost. Most proponents of passive composting would probably prefer the term intelligent to lazy.

Sheet composting eliminates the compost pile as the composting materials are spread in layers on top of the ground, usually in a flower or vegetable bed. This process is slow, but if you are willing to wait, you can sit back with your feet propped up and let Mother Nature take its course. As layers decompose, additional layers can be added and the depth of the bed is built up.

This method is ideal for disposing of all the fall leaves that so many people take the time to rake up and bag for removal, you may even end up retrieving some of your neighbors' bagged leaves for additional material. Since sheet composting lends itself to any type of compost-able material, you can leave materials trimmed from your garden laying on the ground and then cover it with leaves and in the spring till this decomposed material into the garden. Why take the time and energy to haul all of your cuttings to the compost pile, only to haul the finished compost back to the garden? Some people go so far as to take their vegetable waste from the house, clear a spot in the garden, spread the vegetable waste on the ground and then cover it with a layer of leaves or mulch. Stepping on the household waste will start the breakdown of the material a little faster. If you attempt this sheet method, just be aware that composting this way may draw unwanted creatures to your yard.

Sheet composting can also be used to make new garden beds without all the usual backbreaking work. All you need is to define the bed area, then cut everything within that space down to the ground. Next, cover the cleared area with layers of newspapers, 8 to 10 pages thick. Wet the newspapers to help keep them in place and cover them with mulch or leaves to a depth of at least several inches. You can continue adding materials, such as grass or garden clippings, to the area. Depending on where you live, in 6 months to a year anything previously growing the the area will be gone, weeds, roots and all. What you have left is soil rich in organic materials ready for planting.

Worm composting (vermicomposting) is growing in popularity in spite of the worms. Worms are the real workhorses in the garden when it comes to turning organic materials into compost and you can easily harness these guys to work for you even if you do not have a yard. Since worm composting is virtually odorless, it can be done in an apartment, though most people opt for a basement or a garage. Worms digest food waste, even peach pits disappear, and leave behind worm casting "vermicompost" which is considered to be some of the best compost available.

All that is required to begin vermicomposting are the worms and a container to hold the worms and the food waste. The worms of choice are red worms (Eisenia fetidae,) also know as red wigglers, that are usually raised for fish bait so are readily available in most areas. If you cannot find them locally, they can be ordered on the internet. The container can be most anything. Originally, wooden boxes were the containers of choice, now many people use commercially available worm composters. Home made bins can be made from inexpensive plastic storage containers readily available at big box stores. Make sure the container has 1/4 inch holes in the bottom for drainage. Add about 8 inches of appropriate bedding materials, the worms and vegetable scraps such as potato skins, coffee grounds, moldy bread. Once set up, the system begins to be self regulating. As the food materials break down, the worms will begin digesting them and turning them in to 'castings'. The more food you supply, the more worms will be produced to consume it. Cut back on the food and the quantity of worms will decrease. If you begin to notice odors, you are probably overfeeding and need to cut back on the amount of food for a while. To harvest the compost, just begin feeding on only one side of the bin. In about a month, all of the worms will migrate to the side of the bin which contains the food, leaving the other half of the bin available for harvesting.

Since worm composting is clean, self contained, and virtually odorless, many apartment dwellers are avid worm composters. Single people have been known to compost on their kitchen countertop using one gallon milk containers, which produce enough compost for maintaining houseplants.

Trench composting is exactly what it infers. Dig a trench about a foot deep and begin filling it with organic waste from the kitchen or the garden, avoid meat, bones and fatty food. As you fill the trench with waste, you cover as you go. This has the advantage of helping to keep unwanted creatures away. One system developed by the English many years ago and especially well suited for vegetable gardens involves laying out three rows. The first row is for planting, the second row is for walking and the third row is for trench composting. Each year, the rows are rotated so the row used for planting the first year becomes the row for composting the second year and the row for walking the third year. This way, the row used for composting the first year will have two years for the waste to breakdown before crops are planted on it.

Post hole composting is a variation of trench composting and probably goes back to when man first began to farm. Everyone is familiar with the Indians showing the Pilgrims how to add a fish to the hole when planting seeds. This was basically post hole composting. In its current form, it just involves using a post hole digger to dig a hole (about 12 inches deep) in your garden area, add your waste and then refill the hole with the removed dirt. Each time you have gathered enough waste, you dig a new hole and 'plant' it. This method can start feeding the surrounding plants as it breaks down. To complete this composting process takes about the same amount of time as with the trench method.

Composting does not need to be labor intensive or time consuming. Incorporating any of these passive composting methods will start you on the way to a greener lifestyle and a smaller carbon footprint.