I just ordered a composter for the backyard. After reading reviews of several products, I settled on a Tumbleweed Compost Tumbler, an Australian product that:
1. Doesn't require any manual labor
2. Got high marks from consumers, and
3. Is recommended by the National Home Gardening Club
I've never made compost before, so this will be quite an adventure. I like the idea of transforming garbage into free mulch and fertilizer, and I'm excited about adding eggshells, coffee grinds and weeds to my pile. What's more, I recently read that paper (even if there's ink on it!) can be safely composted. I'm targeting all the junk mail I get, especially those unsolicited pre-approved credit card offers that require diligent shredding. Now, I'll just rip them into strips, give them a shot of the hose and toss 'em in with my banana peels, fully assured that identity thieves won't get their grubby little paws on them.
Aside from paper, a lot of surprising items can be added to the compost pile, among them, human hair. For a rundown of what can and can't be composted, visit The NYC Compost Project website.
Compost ingredients fall into two categories: Browns and Greens. Brown materials are rich in carbon and many, though not all, are in fact brown. They include dried, spent perennials, autumn leaves, leather, twigs and hay. Paper also falls into the Browns category. Green materials are rich in nitrogen, and likewise, are mostly green, or at least fresher than browns. Greens include grass clippings, fruit and veggie scraps and freshly picked weeds. Cornstarch packing peanuts and coffee grinds, though not green, also are rich in nitrogen. So even though they defy the color-coding principles set forth here, they are Greens.
Greens help speed the decomposition of your rotting garbage (a good thing,) while browns keep the heap from becoming an olfactory nightmare (a very good thing.) A fifty-fifty mix is ideal, though you can always go heavier on the Browns.
You should never include fats (meat or fish table scraps. dairy products, oils, etc.,) diseased plants or materials that don't decompose, such as plastic or glass, in your pile.
Apparently, bird and rabbit droppings, and horse manure are ok, but kitty litter and dog poop are no-nos. However, Florida's online composting center maintains that under certain circumstances, dog waste can be composted. Read the rules here and proceed at your own risk. For the record, I'm going to continue bagging mine up.
Do you have any composting advice for me? Leave a comment or shoot me an email.
Comments (4)
Welcome to composting! I have a Tumbleweed Compost Maker just like the one you have and I love it. I've only had it a short while, but I've been composting for years! It is fun to keep finding new things to add to the pile (like dryer lint and teabags). When adding your junk mail to the tumbler, be careful about the plastic windows that are on some envelopes.
I am new to your blog, but I really like it so far. I look forward to reading more of your back posts and learning more about your gardens. Thanks for a great blog!
I found several years ago that "regular" composting in a suburban area is difficult--the odors, especially. That's why I worm compost-- an odor & vermin free method you can do year round. In fact, I give a lecture on it each year through the Oceanside Dept. of Community Activities. Check out worm bins-- much more fun and much less offense!
I like the idea of worm composting too, but what I would really love to find is some way to compost cat litter. In a perfect world, there would just be an area like three feet on a side where the cats could go and something would magically make it all go away.
Until I find that, I'm stuck with just doing the leaves and grass clippings.
what do I do if I want to compost but, I only have a few trees, (its a new house)and they are small, for my browns. I have plently of grass but lack the browns.