Compost Materials

We will cover, compost materials, composting activators, aerators and everything you need to start your own sustainable compost operation.

Compost Materials

To make composting even easier, we've included this handy list of compost materials to help you remember what's green, what's brown, and what you shouldn't add to your pile at all.

Add Greens To Your Compost Pile

Greens: These Add Nitrogen

Vegetables And Vegetable Peels

Tea Bags + Coffee Grounds (Add the Coffee Filter Too)

Fruit & Peels

Egg Shells

Green Grass Clippings

Hair

Blood Meal

Egg Shells

Grains - pasta, cereal, bread

Wooden Compost Bins Can Be Great Looking

Also Add Browns

Browns - These Add Carbon

Leaves: Make sure they are small or chop them up

Sawdust from untreated wood

Newspaper (shredded)

Dried grass clippings

Paper: Non recyclable, can also use shredded cardboard, boxes, etc.

Yard Waste: Should be chopped into small pieces

Avoid Adding Mature Weeds With Seeds

What Compost Materials to Avoid

Cat/Dog Feces

Weeds with seeds or that sprout from roots

Toxic Chemicals

Meat and Bones

Cheese

Treated Wood

Fats, Oil, & Grease

Plants with Diseases

Compost Plus Activator

Compost Activator

Composting Activator is not necessary for making composting material, but you may want to have some on hand to help your compost pile get started. Some people swear by it and others say it doesn't make any difference.

Yardiac.com - The Ultimate Garden Center

We typically use it at the start of a new pile and it seems to help at least at the beginning. We like the Compost Plus Activator. It's cheap and one box contains enough compost activator for numerous new piles.

Also check out our articles on Indoor Composting, Worm Composting, Composting Troubleshooting, and Backyard Composting for lots of additional great tips.

Also - here are some of our Favorite Books on Composting.

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