Composting Made Simple: Turn Waste into Garden Gold

Composting is the single highest-impact garden practice—recycling waste, building soil, sequestering carbon. The rules are few and forgiving.

Bin Options

• Plastic dalek bin: Fill top, harvest bottom hatch. Compact, tidy.
• Wooden slatted enclosure (1m³): DIY or kit. Cover with old carpet for weather protection.

The Yes List (Greens + Browns Balance)

Greens (nitrogen): Raw veg/fruit scraps, tea bags/leaves, coffee grounds, eggshells, dead house flowers, soft prunings, spent bedding plants, grass clippings, old container compost. Browns (carbon): Dry leaves, shredded paper, rabbit/guinea pig bedding. Mix ratio: Roughly 50/50. Too much grass = slime. Too much paper = stall. Fork-turn occasionally.

The Never List

Meat, bones, bread, cooked food (vermin). Pet waste (pathogens). Woody material (too slow). Weeds (seeds survive). Non-biodegradables.

Kitchen Workflow

Lidded countertop bin → empty every 1–2 days. Removes "ick" factor and trips in bad weather.

Timeline & Leaf Mold Bonus

3 months–1 year → dark, crumbly humus. Soil conditioner + mulch. Leaf mold: Bag autumn leaves, wet, fork holes, tie, wait 1 year. Supreme soil builder.

Start today. Your garden—and planet—will thank you.