The Basics of Composting for Home Gardeners

Quick and Easy Composting Tips

I keep two small plastic buckets with tight-fitting lids underneath my kitchen sink. I place all my kitchen scraps into these buckets. When the buckets are filled I take them outside and stir the contents into my compost bins. I purchased my two compost bins from my local solid waste authority (SWA). Once a month the SWA travels to one of the county libraries in my area where they sell recycling bin holders along with composting bins. The compost bins came with an under sink compost bucket and a 96-page guide on how to start, maintain and use your finished compost.

I keep my compost bins in the shade on the east side of my house next to my homemade rain barrel. I like to make my own potting soil mix for containers using 2/3 of my homemade compost mixed in with 1/3 perlite. The perlite helps aerate the mixture and prevents it from becoming too compact or clumping together.

Reasons to Compost

compost makes a fantastic soil amendment.
helps clay soils drain better.
compost helps sandy soil retain moisture longer.
up to 30% of a family's garbage consists of organic matter which can be added to your compost bins and piles thus composting is a great way to recycle this garbage which would normally make its way to the landfill.
compost increases the organic matter in your gardens.
compost attracts beneficial organisms such as earthworms to your garden.
compost makes a natural fertilizer to add to your garden plants, vegetables, and herbs.
compost can be used as mulch.

Kitchen Scraps to Compost

You can compost most kitchen scraps including:

eggshells
coffee grinds and filters
teabags and loose tea leaves
vegetable and fruit scraps
pet hair and most vacuum cleaner bag contents
lint from your dryer

Avoid recycling meat, fat, and bone scraps as they will not properly break down in your compost bin and will only serve to attract scavenging wildlife such as raccoons and rats.

Yard Waste to Add to Compost Pile

small amounts of wood ash
non-diseased yard trimmings
grass clippings
pine needles
fallen leaves

Do not add large chunks of material to your compost bins or piles without first shredding them into smaller pieces. I check my compost bins at least once a week to make sure they contain enough moisture. Your compost piles should be as wet as a damp sponge, add water from your garden hose if your pile is too dry. I also stir the contents of my compost bins at least once a week using a compost turner but a small pitchfork or garden shovel would work too.

I avoid adding weeds or any other type of yard waste that produces lots of seeds into my compost bins. My bins never get hot enough to kill off all the seeds. The first time I used my dark and rich homemade compost I ended up with tomato seedlings and purslane plants all over my garden and had a heck of a time pulling all the unwanted seedlings out of my vegetable and herb beds. Learn from my mistakes!

Additions to Your Compost

The additions of these items will help speed up the decomposition process of your compost bins and piles.

bone meal
blood meal
black/white newspaper (do not use the colored inserts)
small pet manure, such as rabbit and guinea pig bedding
if you live on a small farm, you can also add other types of animal manure to your compost pile, such as cow manure
a scoop or two of garden soil or finished compost to help get the composting process started.

When your compost is crumbly, dark brown, and has a sweet, earthy smell it is ready to be used throughout your garden. I like to fill my wheel barrel with compost and take it to the area of my garden where it is needed. I break up any large clumps of compost with a small shovel or trowel before adding it to my garden beds.

Peace, Love, and Light
The White Witch, AKA Lynn Smythe
Founder of Craft of the Wise, the Essential Survivalist, and the Creative Cottage

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