Section 2: How to Become a Garden Partner
Section 3: How the Garden Partner Program Works
Section 4: How to Request Compost
Section 5: Benefits of Being a Garden Partner
We believe that compost has the ability to transform communities. By composting, we are starving landfills, building healthy soil, and feeding people. Our mission at CompostNow is to empower our members to divert their compostables from the landfills and use those nutrients to build healthy soil by composting. We also want to connect the compost made by our members to those who can use it to strengthen our local food system. That’s where you come in!
Compost is an essential part of a healthy food system and a vital part of the success of urban farms and community gardens. By sharing the compost made by our members with local gardens, nutrients found in food scraps are being returned to the soil where they will be best utilized. Our Garden Partner Program was created to connect this important resource (at the direction of our members) with those who can use it to feed our friends and neighbors.
To become a CompostNow Garden Partner, please fill out the application (https://forms.gle/fUz8ZBWdiMynRZHM6). After we receive your application, we’ll be in touch within a few days to accept your application or add you to the waiting list.
Each time we collect compostables from our members, we weigh their bin(s) and track their diversion weight in their dashboard. They are able to earn a percentage of that weight in finished compost in their “Compost Bank” that they can request for their own garden. If they do not want or need the compost themselves, they can choose one of our Garden Partners to share it with. If they choose your garden to share their compost with, we’ll keep track of how much compost you are earning in your “Compost Bank.” In addition, a percentage of the weight of compostables from all of our commercial members is shared evenly among all of our Garden Partners. You can inquire how much compost you have stored in your “Compost Bank” at any time by emailing thedirt@compostnow.org.
You can request as much compost as you have in your “Compost Bank” as often as you want. We will cover the costs of the compost; we just ask that you cover the cost of the delivery fee. The delivery fee is $75 for each delivery.
To ensure that our Garden Partners receive enough compost for their needs in a timely manner, we strongly urge that you order compost before the spring peak season (March-May) and the fall peak season (August-September). We will waive the delivery fee of your first order if you place your order to be delivered before March. As a general rule of thumb, it’s always best to submit your order needs ahead of time so that we can plan out these deliveries.
Our Garden Partner Program was created to provide local urban gardens and farms with compost to be used to grow healthy food. In the spirit of the program, we ask that our Garden Partners refrain from reselling the compost provided by CompostNow members.
To request compost, please fill out this online form. Our Support team will reach out to you shortly after to confirm a delivery date!
Besides all the beautiful, nutrient-rich compost you’ll earn, we’ll also spread the word about your garden via our various network channels. We would also love to explore other partnership opportunities with your garden (workdays, events, outreach, etc).
The more food scraps we capture with our composting programs, the more compost there will be! Here are some easy ways that you can help the compost movement grow:
Updated: December 2022