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the inside already has a protective coating. Drill several rows of 1/2 inch holes over the length of the barrel to allow for air circulation and drainage of excess moisture. Place the barrel up,ight on blocks to allow bottom air circulation, and fill it 3/4 full with organic waste material and about one quarter cup of a high nitrogen -containing fertilizer. If needed, apply water until moist. Every few days, turn the drum on its side and roll it around the yard to mix and aerate the compost. The lid can be removed after turning to allow for air penetra- tion. Ideally, the compost should be ready in two to four months. The barrel composter is an excellent choice for the city dweller with a relatively small yard. For largerquantities of organic waste, bin -type structures are the most practical. As an example, a circular bin can be made by using a length of small -spaced woven wire fencing and holding it together with chain snaps (Figure 1). The bin should be about three to rive feet in diameterand at least four feet high. A stake may be driven in the middle of the bin be- fore adding material to help maintain the shape of the pile and to facilitate adding water. With this design, it is easiest to turn the composting material by simply unsnapping the wire, moving the wire cylindera few feet, and turning [lie compost back into it. A very efficient and durable structure for fast composting is a three -chambered bin (Figure 3). It holds a considerable amount of compost, and allows good air circulation. The three -chambered bin works on an assembly line idea, having three batches of compost in varying stages of decomposition. The compost material is started in the first bin and allowed to heat up for three to five days. Next, it is turned into the middle bin for another four to seven days, while a new batch of ma- terial is started in the first bin. Finally, the material in the mid. dle bin is turned into the last bin as finished or nearly finished compost. To make this structure, it is best to use rot resistant woof such as redwood, wood treated with a preservative such as "cop- per green, "or a combination of wood and metal posts. Un. 4 I 4 — 5' diameter _.J I. S. Figure 2 less the wood is treated or rot resistant, it will decompose within a few years. Each bin should be about five feet by three feet, and about three to rive feet high. Using removable slats in the front offers complete access to the contents for turning. There are many other structures for composting, and no one structure is best. Invent your own, or for a more thorough de. scription of different structures, refer to J.I. Rodale's Cor pfete Book of Composting (3). If you don't want to built structure, there are several commercial composting u available through local garden stores or mail-order cata- logues. Most of these are similar to the barrel composterde- scribed previously and are for the citydweilerwhodesires an easy method to make small amounts of compost quickly.