About a third of household waste is food and garden scraps that could become free soil conditioner. A compost pile needs four things: nitrogen-rich “greens”, carbon-rich “browns”, air and moisture.
Greens and browns
- Greens: fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, tea leaves, fresh grass clippings.
- Browns: dry leaves, shredded cardboard, plain paper, straw, wood chips.
- Avoid: meat, dairy, oily food and pet waste in a home pile. They smell and attract pests.
A good starting mix is roughly three parts browns to one part greens by volume.
Fixing common problems
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Smells rotten | Too wet or too many greens | Add browns and turn it |
| Nothing happening | Too dry or too many browns | Add greens and a little water |
| Fruit flies | Exposed scraps | Bury scraps under browns |
The pile should feel like a wrung-out sponge. Turn it every week or two. Finished compost is dark, crumbly and smells like earth, usually after two to six months.
About the writer: Yasmine.H
Yasmine writes Tidibook’s home and garden guides: houseplants, growing food and small projects that make a home work better.
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