NEED TO KNOW
Martha Stewart wants to be returned to nature after she dies.
During a recent appearance on the 50+ & Unfiltered podcast, the 84-year-old lifestyle mogul revealed that she wants to be “composted” after her death.
“When one of my horses dies, we dig a giant hole really deep in one of my fields — we have a pet cemetery — and the horse is wrapped in a clean white linen sheet and very carefully dropped down into this giant, lovely grave,” Stewart explained. “I want to go there.”
As for whether or not being composted on her own property would even be legal, Stewart expressed that she didn’t see why it would be a problem. As she put it, “It’s not going to hurt anyone. It’s my property.”
According to Recompose, Washington became the first state to legalize human composting in 2019. In the years following, 14 states have followed suit and embraced the green burial trend, including California, New York, New Jersey and Oregon.
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When it comes to more traditional practices, such as burial and cremation, Stewart said she wants nothing to do with them. “These coffin things and all that stuff? No way,” she noted on the podcast.
While the cookbook author has already made up her mind on what she wants to happen after her death, Stewart has previously made it clear that there’s still so much she wants to do during her time here on Earth — and one of those goals is becoming a skincare mogul.
“Warming up to add skincare mogul to my resume,” Stewart, who launched Elm Biosciences in September, wrote over a Nov. 6 Instagram reel of herself stretching and warming up to Cali Swag’s “Teach Me How to Dougie.” She added in the caption, “What can I say? When you have a great idea (and @shopify), you make @elmbiosciences happen.”
Stewart has also been busy spending time with her two grandchildren: Jude, 14, and Truman, 13. “I love my grandchildren,” she recently told PEOPLE at the launch of Resy’s Dream Team Dinners, sharing, “They call me Martha.”
Sean Zanni/Patrick McMullan via Getty
The Yes, Chef! host previously shared a further glimpse into how she spoils her grandchildren — who are the children of her only child, Alexis Stewart — and meets them where they are whenever possible.
“It’s a phenomenal thing,” she told PEOPLE of the time she spends with the pair in October 2024. “Billie Eilish is coming up, and then there’s Jingle Ball and all of those concerts, which I attend very religiously with my granddaughter. We eat at some very good restaurants. The children are quite experienced foodies. Their mother’s a fabulous cook, and they love going out to eat, especially Japanese food and other really good ethnic foods.”
