Composting Do’s and Don’ts

Fruit, vegetables and non-food items are among the recommended ingredients, but gardeners should steer clear of meat, fish and other animal products, according to the specialists.

A spokesperson for Gardenbuildingsdirect.co.uk said: “Keen gardeners and environmentally conscious homeowners across the country can cut down on waste and boost the nutrient intake of their plants by making their own compost.

“But the perfect compost recipe can be difficult to achieve if the ingredients aren’t right or easy to avoid mistakes are made.

“So we’ve put together a list of four do’s and four don’ts to help gardeners make the most of their compost heaps.”

Here are the Gardenbuildingsdirect.co.uk composting do’s and don’ts:

Do:

• Use as much fruit and veg as possible

Variety and quantity are both crucial to the perfect compost recipe. Putting a range of nutritious leftovers into the pile will help provide all the goodness plants will need when it comes to using your compost, whilst gardeners should also consistently add to the pile to maximise its potential.

• Remember non-food items

Grass clippings, leaves, dead plants or flowers and most organic garden waste should be suitable for adding to compost piles as they’ll degrade quickly and contain plenty of nutrients to give gardens that extra boost they need.

• Moisturise the pile

Adding a little water to your compost heap occasionally should encourage the process, as moisture aids decomposition. Your organic waste should be damp but not soggy, though.

• Turn it often

Like any good mixture in the kitchen, the garden ingredients green-fingered Brits cook up in their backyard compost heaps should be mixed thoroughly and regularly with a garden fork to allow sufficient aeration and to spread everything out evenly throughout the pile.

Don’t:

• Use animal products

Adding meat, fish dairy products or bones to a backyard compost pile is a bad idea, as they don’t decompose easily and could attract unwanted animals including rodents to your garden.

• Leave it uncovered

A compost pile that isn’t contained by a lid or covering will be exposed to unwanted ingredients getting blown in, wild animals or cats tampering with it, and the weather ruining the balance of the ingredients. It could also stink out your backyard.

• Compact 

Compacting layers of compost will restrict air flow and leave waste under-composted, as air is required for waste to breakdown into nutritious goodness for your garden. If thick layers of leaves, grass or heavy items are causing your compost pile to compact, break them up with a garden fork, moisturise and re-mix the pile.

• Add pet faeces 

Dog poo, cat litter, bird droppings and other animal waste may contain plenty of nutrients and eventually break down into compost, but they’re also full of nasty bacteria that could actually harm your garden if faeces are included in your compost, so don’t be tempted to throw any on your pile.