Can paper boxes be recycled?
cameragirl21 wrote: For instance, say you buy a kraft frozen entree...the paper box it comes in, can that be recycled? What about those plastic containers that strawberries and other berries come in? I think both are recyclable and I put both in recycling bins instead of the garbage but I'm wondering if that is wrong...anyone know?
Mollie, where are you when i need you...?  
Also, Mollie, if you are reading this, any suggestions on disposing of kitty litter in an earth friendly manner? I just switched from clay based to feline pine as I think it is more earth friendly and *hope* the pine comes from by products of already cut trees as opposed to trees being cut down just for kitty litter but anyway, the litter is not flushable and dumping it around town with urine and feces in it is not a good option either. I generally put it in a plastic bag and throw it away which I'm sure is not the ideal option...any suggestions for something more earth friendly? My cat did not like the flushable kind and she is strictly indoor so going outside to do her business is not an option. I know I generate a lot of waste from kitty litter so I'm open to ideas. She is not likely to be toilet trained as she just turned 13 and you know what they say about old dogs...it applies to cats too. Any ideas?
Thanks!
redchief replied: Boxes of the sort you describe are not considered recyclable in our part of NJ, but that may not be so in other locales.
msoulz replied: In our neck of the woods all plastics (food containers anyway) and those boxes are recyclable. The only thing that they don't seem to want is the little plastic caps from milk, water, and soda bottles but the bottles are OK.
Our city publishes specific guidelines about it - maybe yours does too? Perhaps you can check their web site?
Jamison'smama replied: All paper products, cereal boxes, frozen food boxes etc. are recyclable here. Not sure about the berry boxes.
PrairieMom replied: All those boxes are recyclable here, I think all areas are different. They can also be composted, and I believe some pet litters can be composted too, although, I don't know about kitty litter. I have a indoor worm composer and a outdoor compost pile I put all my cardboard and shredded mail in.
My3LilMonkeys replied: Where I live, the plastics like berry baskets would be considered recyclable, but the paper boxes would not if they are from food products. They'll take just about any plastics but the cardboard/paper cannot be from food products at all - they won't take pizza boxes or anything.
cameragirl21 replied: thanks for the answers, everyone, wow, I had no idea that it changes based on the area...how can I find out what is recyclable in miami?
And Tara, you put me to shame with your composting and whatnot...I don't have room in my yard for a vegetable garden...I have a pool instead  this is florida afterall. I imagine compost is only good for veggie gardens, no? And if not, how can I make a compost box that doesn't smell bad?
Never thought about using the kitty litter in the garden, it smells just like wood chips but at some point I'd have nothing but pine sawdust all over the yard if I did that I think....
MommyToAshley replied: I am pretty sure everything that can be recycled has the triangle with a number on the bottom of the box/bottle/container. I would call your trash company and ask them what numbers they accept for recyclables. The numbers that are accepted by our trash company is printed right on the recycle bin they provided.
coasterqueen replied:
Tara,
Do you also compost your grass clippings, etc? We have too much acreage to bag our grass, but we are in the process of redoing one area of our backyard which means having to push mow and bag grass. We have an area (which we call the burning pile ) where everyone in the area dumps grass, etc. It's right next to our property. I started dumping our grass clippings there, but Ryan and I talked yesterday about building a compost bin and composting the clippings.
PrairieMom replied:
You can use the dirt for potted plants too, or sell it to someone who needs organic dirt.
i have a worm composting box, that is about 16 inches by 16 inches and stacks 4 trays high, and as long as you maintain the proper mix of greens ( like food waste, all but meats and dairy) and paper waste like shredded cardboard and paper I swear it doesn't stink.
PrairieMom replied:
I do a little, but I use worms in my composting, and if you use to many clippings than it gets to hot and cooks the worms. Plus, I have found that using just grass is a bit stinky. so I throw my kitchen waste on the top of the pile all week, and at the end of the week I shred all my junk mail and papers dump that on top of the kitchen waste and dump just one bag of grass on top of that. My pile doesn't stink so far this year, so I think its working.
cameragirl21 replied: wait wait wait...you are talking about making organic dirt? ohhh, i would like to do that...or are you adding it to potting soil? and how do you keep it from smelling? do you keep it in the fridge or outside? would you please post the mixture components? i am totally into the idea, what a great way to reuse waste. wonder if i could add in the sawdust from the kitty litter? it has cat pee in it but the pine absorbs it well so it doesn't smell but i wonder if it is suitable for planting stuff, as far as ph goes? it's very basic and most fertilizers lean toward the acidic side i think....
wow, Tara, you really know a lot about this, where have you been all this time when i was trying to find the perfect fertilizer for my blooms?
PrairieMom replied:
 OMG. you are too funny. The point of composting is to get dirt. If you put orgainic things into it and don't add chemicals you get organic dirt. When you use worms, they eat the stuff you put in, and make "casts" (worm poo) which is basically fertilizer, (organic) and is super gentle and really good. It is so cool to start out with lettuce and banana peels and in a few weeks have dirt for my plants.
This is what I use:
http://www.composters.com/vermiculture-wor...-tower_49_4.php
you have to buy the worms separate, and they are a little spendy, but they mate and multiply, I think each one lays an egg a month and those give you 1-3 worms a piece. (I think) I'm not so hot on worm biology. LOL I read that they eat their weight in food a day!
This is where I got my worms
http://www.unclejimswormfarm.com/
I started my bin in January and harvested my first crop of dirt a week or so ago, it gave me enough to fill a few small pots, and top off a larger planter I have. Once you get it started it becomes a cycle, so I will have more dirt before you know it. 
Oprah had a segment on it for earth day, here is a link:
http://www.oprah.com/world/enviro/green/ac...e_350_204.jhtml
So basically, you can compost just about anything. (except plastics and metal)
All food scraps except dairy and meat / bone
So, all veggi's grains and all that.
plant / grass clippings
paper products
You may want to read up on what types of paper you want to use, apparently some of the inks used aren't to good, like magazines / high gloss stuff, I personally just shred everything and dump it in.
Between recycling and composting I keep my families garbage down to 2 kitchen size bags a week, and That is with using disposable diapers.
I do outdoor composting too tho, so that helps a lot.
Cece00 replied: I know the strawberry things can be. Pretty sure the boxes can be too...I put them in my recycling bin.
Brias3 replied: The boxes you mentioned are considered recyclable in our area. The cartons I'm not sure about. I've actually never tried to recycle those In my defense though, the kids often take those to play with outside or to use in art projects etc. (why again do I buy toys? ) You may want to check your local community website though- I know ours has recycling instructions and information.
I get so frustrated with recycling in our area- they have such specific and strict requirements (ones that are changing all the time to boot!) on how to package everything that half the time, the garbage men leave the stuff in our bins! 
cameragirl21 replied: ok, i can't believe i'm actually thinking of buying worms but now you have me intrigued. what is the compost box made of? and you just drop stuff in and for real, it doesn't rot and smell? it gets very hot here...i find it hard to believe the heat won't make stuff rot and smell but i am open to the idea. what about my sawdust kitty litter...will the worms eat it, along with the cat pee? if so, that would be great, i could stop worrying about the waste i generate just from kitty litter. did you buy the worm nursery and if so, do you take the worms out and let them loose in the compost box? i really don't entirely understand how this works yet. but c'mon, i'm tree hugging city girl, what do you expect?
eta--thanks, everyone for your input, i'm gonna have to find this list for miami's recyclables. 
Cece00 replied:
You dont need worms to compost. I compost too, and I dont use worms. Its working out very nicely.
PrairieMom replied:
the links I posted have a lot of good info, I don't know if you looked into them or not, Esp. the uncle Jim's site where I bought my worms, there is a whole long thing about what they can and can't have, and specific temps they live in and all that.
When I ordered my worms I bought 1000 of them, they came in a small paper bag, with peatmoss in it, and the bag was rolled closed and placed into a small cardboard box. I just opened the box, and turned the bag upside down over my bin, and they fell right out. I didn't have to touch a single one. You can see them crawling around in there when you open the lid, but they don't like light, so they hide pretty quickly when the lid is opened.
I know that they don't like to be to hot, so I wouldn't put them in direct sunlight or anything, but if you put the bin in your pantry or closet or something they should stay cool enough.
The bin I have is made of plastic, I believe it is recycled, I know there is a terracotta colored model and a black model and one of them is made from recycled plastic.
I'm tellin ya, it doesn't stink. As long as you keep the green / paper levels equal, and not to wet, when you open the lid it smells like dirt and that is it. the worst smell I got out of mine was just a little sour smell, like when you leave wet clothes in the washer to long, i think it was because my bin was to wet. I left the lid off for a day or so so it could dry out, and it got better, and NO, the worms do not crawl out.
I should just take a pic of my bin... where is my camera? 
PrairieMom replied:
very true.
although, worms speed up the process A LOT. you can have compost in a quarter of the time.
PrairieMom replied: Okay, here is my box, please dissreguard my messy floor, this is my laundry room, and I don't make a habit of mopping in there like I should.
Okay, here are my worms, turn back now of you are squeamish!
All the black in there is the dirt the worms have made, this box is about 1/4 done.
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