What to Compost?

As Green becomes the way to go more and more people are talking about composting as a convenient & practical way to dispose of yard waste.  I have friends who live in subdivisions who bag 50+ bags of leaves & other green waste every fall and almost that many during their spring clean-up.  Did you know that compost is just decomposing organic matter?  Take a walk in the woods & breathe deeply.  That rich, earthy smell is decomposing organic waste that nurtures new growth in the coming season.  Yes, you can have that same compost whether you live in town, in the suburbs or more rural setting like mine.

My compost bin sits to the left of the park bench. Visitors coming up my driveway would never know I had a compost bin nestled behind the foliage and bench.

What should I compost? What shouldn't I compost?  Let's look a few do's and don't about composting. 

Two sections/compost bin

          Composting Do's

     Grass clippings, most yard waste, leaves, flowers, twigs, dead plants, potting soil, kitchen scraps, coffee grounds, tea bags, egg shells, corn cobs, stale bread & rolls, paper nakins & towels, dryer lint, human or animal hair, straw, hay, shredded paper and the list goes on.

             Composting Don'ts

   Weeds, with seeds, poisonous plants, invasive plants that are not native to your area, dog & cat waste, meat, fish, dairy products, cooking oil

Scraps from your kitchen may be new to most who have not done composting in the past. However I grew up putting most kitchen scraps in the pit as my parents called it. 

      If you have bears that raid your garbage, don't add scraps to your compost                                                  

Using Compost

I add compost to all my flower gardens.  I put it around trees and shrubs.  It's a natural fertilizer for all plants even indoor plants.  I have read articles about compost bin for apartment & condo dwellers.  Small bins that sit on your kitchen counter or under the sink are available for sale.  I simply reuse a sherbert container.