I'm going to start composting! A Q?

bim38106

Hi ladies, I figured I'd post here since you are the experts I finally took the plunge and ordered a compost bin and am going to start composting! I'm really excited. I know this is nothing new to most of you here, but I don't know anyone IRL who does this (I take that back, I know 1 person. I'm pretty sure all my friends/family will think I'm nuts for doing this

Anyway, I know the absolute basics, but that's about it. I bought a bin because we have a lot of problems w/ raccoons and lots of wildlife here and I wanted a good locking one. I know a good ratio is 75% brown to 25% greens. That I can put in egg shells, veggie/fruit peels, coffee grounds/filters, yard clippings... no proteins or dairy, right?

So what about leftovers? If I cook veggies in butter, can I throw that in or is it tainted from the butter? If I have a mixture of pasta and chicken that DD dumps on the floor , can I pick out the chicken and throw the pasta in? Are starches (bread, pasta, rice) ok to put in there? I'd appreciate any advice!

I'm doing this more to reduce our wastes then to make good soil. So I'm not too worried at that starting point about getting a good balance/mix. TIA!

Cottlefish

So cool you're starting to do this!

My rule of thumb has always been nothing cooked - nothing like bread, rice, pasta, not even cooked veg.

Alternatively, you *can* compost things like paper towels depending on the system you have going. 

A good rule of thumb is that if it smells bad, the chemistry is off, and you need to work out what you have too much of. Or give it a good old fashioned stir.

 Hope that helps!  

bim38106

Cottlefish:

So cool you're starting to do this!

My rule of thumb has always been nothing cooked - nothing like bread, rice, pasta, not even cooked veg.

Alternatively, you *can* compost things like paper towels depending on the system you have going. 

A good rule of thumb is that if it smells bad, the chemistry is off, and you need to work out what you have too much of. Or give it a good old fashioned stir.

 Hope that helps!  

That helps. Thank you for the tips!

SuperGreen

That's awesome that you're starting a compost pile, congrats!  You'll be reducing your landfill impact, and making the best plant food in the world at the same time.

Correct, no protein or dairy.  The other items you listed (eggshells, coffee grinds, etc..) are excellent things to compost.  Each one adds nutrients your plants could really use.  Eggshells add calcium, and coffee adds nitrogen. 

Careful on the yard clippings though.  If you spray your grass, you can't compost it.  Same for if you have a dog, pet waste cannot be composted. As carnivores, they could have diseases/parasites that don't harm them, but could infect your garden soil.

Ditto Cottlefish, I don't compost anything cooked.  So no leftovers.  We compost kitchen scraps, like the tops and bottoms of onions, or the white center of peppers, garlic and carrot skins, etc...  You'd be suprised how much kitchen scraps you'll get from a regular meal.

As far as 75% brown 25% green, to be honest I pay very little attention to our green/brown ratio, and we have great compost.  I compost all our kitchen and yard scraps, and throw in browns when I have them (leaves, brown paper lunch bags, and the occasional WF bag mostly).  Everything breaks down, and our veggie garden loves the compost.  I try not to overthink it.  You're just making a place for organic matter to rot.  That being said, if you do pay attention to your ratios and turn and water it frequently, you will get compost quicker.

CharlottesWeb

This is interesting. Why no cooked foods? I've been composting scraps of bread, leftover cooked veggies, rice etc.  I haven't had any issues so far...

So if anyone can enlighten me, I'm interested to know!

SuperGreen

CharlottesWeb:

This is interesting. Why no cooked foods? I've been composting scraps of bread, leftover cooked veggies, rice etc.  I haven't had any issues so far...

So if anyone can enlighten me, I'm interested to know!

It's cooked in non-compostable things, like butter, oil, or a sauce.  They'll go rancid and smell  It could be that your pile is hot enough that they break down before they go bad, but ours probably isn't.  We're also in a townhouse so we make extra sure that our compost doesn't smell.

CharlottesWeb

SuperGreen:

CharlottesWeb:

This is interesting. Why no cooked foods? I've been composting scraps of bread, leftover cooked veggies, rice etc.  I haven't had any issues so far...

So if anyone can enlighten me, I'm interested to know!

It's cooked in non-compostable things, like butter, oil, or a sauce.  They'll go rancid and smell  It could be that your pile is hot enough that they break down before they go bad, but ours probably isn't.  We're also in a townhouse so we make extra sure that our compost doesn't smell.Ok, that's what I thought. Yeah, I don't compost things cooked in butter, sauces etc.

CharlottesWeb

dangit. What I was going to say! ....Ok, that's what I thought. I don't compost things cooked in a butter or sauce etc.

CDMay2006

I've composted those no-nos before animal products, all sorts of scraps from cooked food, etc), in closed, healthy bins that get stirred daily with no problem. In an open, casual bin, though they can easily mess up the balance (i.e., smell) and attract critters. It's just a good idea to keep them out unless you have a setup and are willing/able to put enough time and energy into it to keep it healthy. ETA: it did stink, and we were out in the woods a bit, so it didn't matter.