What not to put in a compost bin

[CurlyhairedAssassin]

Just started one, complete novice. I'm scared of doing it wrong and it going to a smelly putrid liquid mess and attracting flies and rats.

We have just put some shredded small branches, twigs, grass cuttings, crushed egg shells, a small amount of veg and a bucketful of garden soil with 3 worms in for now. Will that do it?

Also, what kitchen waste apart from meat and fish can't you put in? I don't think you can put onions in? What about citrus peel?

Also, what about used charcoal? lumpwood charcoal, not briquettes.

oh and I put some shredded paper in there too?

We put onion skin in ours.
Too much citrus isnt great, but odd bits I throw in. Stones from the middle of soft fruit and avocados and mangos dont rot down as quickly as the rest, so I tend to leave them out.
Nothing cooked goes in ours (except tealeaves and coffee grinds).

Ripped up cardboard of the egg box style goes in.

Mine needs more shredded twigs and stuff, but I I havnt got any.... I also dont put in weeds, as I'm not convinced the seeds wont germinate- tho I think the theory is the heat kills them.

A good mix of carbons (brown dead stuff including cardboard) & nitrogens (green stuff) is what's needed. Worms can help, but they need to the right kind (composting worms are usually red), they need to be either looked after carefully or in a large enough space to escape any activity rotting food (which can get too hot if there are large pockets of it). There are a couple of great Facebook groups that I've found really helpful - keep calm and make compost or worm composting uk have loads of tips on how to get started depending on your setup. Good luck!

I just put garden waste (but not weeds or anything too woody) and vegetable peelings/waste in. No cooked food, no meat or fish. I line our kitchen compost bin with newspaper, and that goes in as well.

We're vegan so our kitchen waste is plant based and that all goes in. Also grass clippings and a bit of shredded paper.

I avoid brambles and anything else woody that takes ages to breakdown. I also avoid adding any weeds that I'm trying to eradicate.

As long as there’s nothing cooked meaty or carbs (no bread pasta etc) the rats won’t want it. Small fruit flies will be attracted by the fruit but just add cardboard or paper and that’ll balance out. Also site it somewhere sunny (assuming you have the big black bin with a lid) if you want it to reach a higher temperature quicker. But slow in the shade will still produce lovely compost

Yes, we have the bog standard black bin with lid and slide out bit on the bottom. We only have a small garden so it's had to go in the corner which is in shade. Feeling mean on the trapped garden worms now which may die.

Garden worms can get out (and in) through the bottom.

I've never had a problem with citrus peel - I stick all mine in. It breaks down fine. I never put anything with thorns in as there comes a point when you need to sift the compost and the thorns can stick around to stab you at the wrong moment

Other than that it's what you already know nothing cooked, no flour, pasta, oil, meat, dairy and you're fine

Barbecue ash is okay in small quantities but it has lime added which can change the acid alkaline balance in your soil and some briquette types have other chemical additives so I personally wouldn't put it in (also any remaining meaty grease might entice a rat)

Garden worms can get out (and in) through the bottom.

I've never had a problem with citrus peel - I stick all mine in. It breaks down fine. I never put anything with thorns in as there comes a point when you need to sift the compost and the thorns can stick around to stab you at the wrong moment

Other than that it's what you already know nothing cooked, no flour, pasta, oil, meat, dairy and you're fine

Barbecue ash is okay in small quantities but it has lime added which can change the acid alkaline balance in your soil and some briquette types have other chemical additives so I personally wouldn't put it in (also any remaining meaty grease might entice a rat)

Have you put it on soil? Worms need to get in and out. We put lots of different things in ours, I think the key is layering. All kitchen fruit and veg scraps including citrus, coffee grinds, tea bags, onions, egg shells Shredded paper. Loo roll cardboard. Grass clippings. Leaves. Weeds if not in flower. A handful of soil now and then which I think I read helps to accelerate it.

If it’s too dry water it. If too wet put cardboard in.

Hi OP. I've been successfully making organic compost now for 13 years. Layer up thinly alternate layers of 'greens' (lawn cutting, weeds, cut flowers, fruit and veg peelings, scrub cuttings etc) and 'browns' (dead leaves, twigs, brown garden debris, paper and cardboard etc) - one part greens to two part browns. Keep watered (as moist as a wrung out sponge) turn regularly. The smaller everything is the quicker it will compost so cut up banana skins etc. I don't put tea bags on as they contain micros plastics (well our brand does and DH refuses to change!) - I do put crunches up egg shells on and all Citrus peelings.
A sunny position is best but it will still work if not. Do all this and sit back and watch the magic black stuff appear! Could take a while if conditions not right. I then use mine as potting compost and I make so much (big garden) that I spread it all over the beds in the autumn. Good luck! I find home composting very rewarding.

Feeling mean on the trapped garden worms now which may die. No they'll be fine.

Worms can multiply really rapidly, so you should find you get the "proper" type really quickly - if not, add some humus-rich soil, eg somewhere that dead leaves have accumulated and started to rot down.

Since you've got a small bin, I wouldn't put in anything woody, or, if you do, chop it into very short lengths. Printed paper can be a problem because of chemical in the inks, but I was told that if it's from food packaging it's likely to be OK. Some teabags rot down, others don't.

The main thing is not to let too thick a layer of any one item build up. If you've got 4inches deep of prunings, before you add any more, put a layer of grass cuttings or soft leafy weeds - or, if you haven't got any of those waiting to go in, a couple of inches of soil.

Charcoal, citrus peel, onions all fine.

Re weeds - I take the view that the seeds are all over the garden, so anything spread with my compost is unlikely to make much difference. Re perennial weed roots - OK, if they've been well dried in the sun first, so they're dead when they go in.

I have two large Dalek bins, as I find that gives sufficient time for the contents to compost. I've never bothered with turning the contents as it's quite tricky with a deep bin and I've not watered them either. When the compost is ready, I just lift the bin off and start again (in a third space). It's easier than trying to use the hatch at the bottom.

From experience, I've learned not to put in weeds and watch the teabags as they don't all compost. I try to crush egg shells slightly before putting them in. I'd leave out all cooked food, meat etc, twigs and branches as well as weeds. Oh, and try to train others to take sticky labels off fruit etc as these don't compost. I add grass mowings, deadheaded flowers, leaves, shredded paper and some cardboard (though watch for plasticised bits, tape, etc.)

Since I extended my vegetable growing I've planted lettuces around the bins and they are thriving as I noticed that weeds grow well next to the containers. I also spotted some tomato seedlings growing when I used my last batch of compost. These were potted on and are now doing well. (I know the heat is supposed to kill seeds but that didn't happen with mine).