Compost bins and the 7 Unexpected Things You Can Compost!!

Another great and informative site: www.gardenersworld.com

How to choose the best compost bin

When choosing the best garden compost bin for you, there are a number of factors to consider. These include the size of your plot, the design of your garden and the amount of compost you are hoping to produce.

Firstly, how much space do you have available? Compost bins come in a variety of sizes and with a range of capacities. You will therefore also need to consider how much compost you would like to make and how quickly. If you are not prepared to wait a year for your first batch, there are compost bins which can speed up the process, as we explain in more detail below.

The type of ground you are setting your bin on is also important, as some types will ideally need to be placed on grass or earth while others can sit on hard ground.

Types of compost bins

Compost bins come in a variety of shapes and sizes, and are made using different materials. Here, we explain the different types of compost bins along with the conditions and tasks they would each be suitable for.

Make your own compost bin

A compost bin made of corrugated iron and pallet wood.

You can make your own compost bin using wooden pallets or corrugated iron. Enclosing the sides will retain heat, speeding up the rotting process. The larger the pile, the more heat. The ideal minimum size is 1m x 1m and, ideally, make more than one – it makes the compost easier to turn.

See our guide on how to build a compost bin.

Plastic compost bin

Turning compost from plastic compost bins

A plastic compost bin is ideal for a small space. The plastic sides and lid retain moisture and heat to encourage rapid decomposition. They also block out light to stop weeds regrowing. The bin should ideally be placed on grass or earth.

Hot composting bin

Adding green garden waste to a hot compost bin.

Insulated with a close-fitting lid, hot composting bins are designed to allow decomposition at a much higher temperature and a higher speed (30-90 days, compared to around six months for ordinary compost) and result in a finer compost. They are roughly the size of a wheelie bin and can stand on a hard surface.

Wormery compost bin

Adding veg peelings to a wormery compost bin.

Wormeries are designed for the small-scale composting of kitchen waste. Worms mix and break down the compost quickly and produce a nutrient-rich liquid for use as a fertiliser. Compost worms can also be added to larger bins. Not all waste can be composted, so you’ll still need a compost bin too.

Here is an interesting article on composting that I found on one of my favourite sites - Earth 911. They recommend that if you are new to composting that you buy a proper composting bin.

Composting is the best way to get rid of your kitchen scraps without sending them to the landfill. And if you’ve been composting for a while, you may have already started experimenting with composting other items you don’t usually see in a list of materials you can compost. If you’re new to composting, you may be surprised by some of the items we suggest in this list things to compost.

While there are plenty of rules for successful composting, every rule does not apply to every compost bin. Compost acts differently in different climates and in different structures, such as in a bin in contact with the ground versus a rolling bin versus a true pile that animals feed on, as well. Your compost may not get as hot or as much air as your neighbor’s bin.

So, we suggest you experiment with the unexpected items in this list to see if they decompose in your compost pile before adding great quantities of them.

1. Price Tags on Clothing

As long as the tag on your new clothes is paper, paperboard, or cardstock with no plasticization, feel free to send your tags to the compost. These tiny papers are too small to be recycled curbside. In a compost pile, they will act just like shredded paper (see below) and are a nice, brown (carbon-based) addition.

2. Tea, Paper Wrappers, Tag, & Probably the Bag

Teabags have a lot of different little pieces and parts. Tea itself is very compostable as are paper wrappers that don’t have any sort of lining. There are some inconsistencies around the compostable-ness of the bag itself, staples, and the string connecting the tea bag to the paper tag. If your tea bag is made of cloth (cotton) or filter paper, you’re good to go (and compost).

However, if the bag is nylon, it’s unlikely to break down. The same goes for your teabag string. Do your research to find out what your specific teabag and string are made of. Most teabags I use do not have a staple to hold the string to the tag; they are just heat-sealed or sewn on. However, if your bags have that staple, you’ll need to experiment. Mine seem to rust away in my compost pile.

3. Bamboo Skewers, Wooden Chopsticks, Toothpicks, & Matchsticks

These small, disposable, single-use wooden kitchen tools can all be composted. Do break chopsticks in half to lower their surface area and I break off the match head as I never trust that phosphorous sulfide will break down or is a good addition to soil.

4. Tissue Paper

Beause it’s a very low-quality paper whose fibers can’t be reused again, it shouldn´t be placed in the recycling bin. She did suggest that I try to add only white tissue paper (without sparkles or glitter) to my compost bin and see what happens. In my bin, tissue paper has disappeared!

5. Kitchen Single-Use Paper Products

You’re not going to find many articles on Earth911 encouraging you to use single-use paper products but if you’re in a pinch, they can be composted. Paper napkins and paper towels, when unfolded and ripped up a bit, will easily compost. The same goes for uncoated paper plates and cups. Do make sure that your plates and cups have no coating whatsoever and are also ripped up.

6. Spent Potting Soil

If you are changing the soil in your houseplants or outdoor flowerpots, add the soil to your compost bin to add nutrients back to it.

7. Shredded Paper

Shredded paper probably does not belong in your curbside bin as it can tangle up in the machinery at your local material recovery facility. Many communities have shred days where they specifically collect shredded paper for recycling but I never want to wait that long.

Shredded paper can also be recycled in charity recycling dumpsters but I’ve personally seen shredded paper blowing around outside the bins, becoming litter. Instead of recycling shredded paper, I compost it. Talk about secure disposal!

If you’re just getting started with composting, check out our composting cheat sheet for the basics.

This article was originally published on October 16, 2020.