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Why Start Composting at Home?
Composting at home is an eco-friendly way to manage food waste while creating nutrient-rich food for your plants. Here’s why we love it:
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Reduce waste: Divert food scraps from landfill and cut greenhouse gas emissions.
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Save money: Creating your own natural fertiliser is free.
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Improve soil health: Compost acts as a natural soil booster, enriching your soil with essential nutrients and beneficial microbes.
What You Need to Start Composting at Home
Setting up a composting system is easier than you think. Here’s what you’ll need:
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Compost bin: Choose a bin that suits your space — from small indoor composters to outdoor tumblers or homemade pallet bins.
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Browns and greens: Balance your compost with brown materials (like dry leaves and cardboard) and green materials (like food scraps and coffee grounds).
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Air and moisture: Keep your compost aerated and slightly damp for optimal decomposition
Step-by-step guide to start composting at home
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Pick a location: Find a place most convenient to place your compost bin, be it in your kitchen, balcony or backyard.
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Layer your materials: Begin with the browns, and overlay with greens. Aiming to have a ratio of 3:1 -browns vs. greens.
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Add food scraps: Put them in like veggie scraps and fruit peels and coffee grounds. Consider balance- pile everything up you don not want to get crushing down.
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Turn your compost: Turn the compost every so often so it oxidises more quickly and smells less.
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Harvest your compost: Your compost will be ready in a few months in the form of dark crumbly material to use in your garden as an organic soil treatment.
Common Composting Questions
What can I compost?
You can compost fruit and veggie scraps, eggshells, coffee grounds, tea leaves, grass clippings, dry leaves, and shredded paper. Anything that once lived can technically be composted.
Pro tip: If you’re using worms in your compost, you might be wondering what to feed compost worms. They thrive on fruit scraps, veggie peelings, and damp paper – but avoid too many citrus peels or onions.
What should I avoid?
Skip anything that isn’t natural, like coated paper, glossy cardboard, or synthetic materials. Be mindful that even 100% cotton clothing often contains plastic thread.
Check out this quick carrousel that clearly explains the do’s and don’ts of composting.
How do I know when compost is ready?
Finished compost is dark, crumbly, and has a rich earthy smell. If you can’t identify the original materials, it’s ready. Larger pieces can simply go into your next batch.
Take Your Composting to the Next Level
Want to supercharge your compost? Add Food2Soil’s biofertiliser to boost microbial activity. This helps materials break down faster and increases the nutrient content of your finished compost, giving your plants an even better start.
Ready to Start Composting at Home?
There’s no better time than now to make a positive impact on the planet and your garden. With a little effort, you can turn kitchen scraps into garden gold. Explore Food2Soil’s range of sustainable gardening products – from soil boosters to compost-friendly solutions – and grow a thriving garden naturally.