How Is Composting Done Correctly?

Add

Go green--add grass cuttings and fruit and vegetable peelings to your compost bin. Green refers not only to the color, but to the fact that these items are rich sources of nitrogen. Add browns--generally, browns are dead and greens are living matter. Browns include leaves, straw and cut hay. Even bark, small branches and limbs may be layered into your pile. Household paper and cardboard items, used tea bags, coffee filters and grounds, and eggshells are also good additions. The way you add items will also determine how effectively your pile functions. Leaves tend to compress into one thick, wet layer. Mix them with other material or add them in smaller batches. Layering brown and green materials creates the best environment. Browns help preserve pockets of air and leave openings for an exchange of gases.

Avoid

Think of your pile as a vegan. Do not feed it animal products. No meat, dairy or eggs should go into the bin. These ingredients can attract vermin and nuisance animals. Rats, roaches, raccoons and neighborhood dogs may invade your pile to search out these scraps. Also, no animal or human waste should be included. These items can play host to any number of diseases and parasites. Not all plant matter is acceptable, either. Plants with disease should not be composted because there is a chance the disease causing organism may not be killed in the composting process. If it does not die, you may carry it right out to your delicate new plants. Weed seeds can be transferred to your garden as well. Freshly cut or recently pulled pernicious weeds may take to your pile or bin and start to grow. Treated wood may leach chemicals into your compost and eventually into your garden soil. Creosote, arsenic and chromium may be present in wood products or sawdust.

Environment

Your choice of site matters. If all goes well, your pile will not attract any unpleasant creatures. If things go wrong and your pile begins to smell or draw flies or rats, you do not want it right outside your back door as these creatures may make their way into your home. On the other hand, locate your pile too far from the house and you may soon tire of the extra trips to add household waste. Water your compost during dry periods until it is moist throughout, but not soaking wet. Damp piles yield a faster rate of decay. However, sodden piles tip over into anaerobic breakdown and generate odor. For an odorless pile, you also want to allow air to circulate to keep the aerobic microbes in control of the process. Mixing and turning the pile and taking care to combine browns and greens in thinner layers is key to keeping those microbes working.