What Should Not Go Into a Compost Bin?
What should not go into a compost bin?
A compost pile should be an all-natural process where the materials you put in it break down naturally, without any help from chemicals or other additives. This will allow your compost to be safe for your plants, your garden and the environment.
But it can be difficult to know what you should not put into your compost bin, as there are many things that will not break down properly and could actually harm your garden. The following are a few of the most common things that you should not put into your compost:
Plastic – This is a bit of a hard one to avoid, especially if you have children, but plastic wrap and bags are not good for your compost. They can clog up your compost pile, stop it from breaking down and make it difficult for the microbes that are necessary for the compost to work correctly.
Paper – Some paper is fine to compost, but a lot of glossy magazines and receipt/docket paper have been coated in plastic, which makes them not break down properly. They can cause the compost to smell and attract pests, so be careful how much paper you put in your compost heap.
Bread – While it is important to add some of your bread scraps into your compost, the quantity should be minimal as large volumes of bread will throw out the balance of the fungi and bacteria that are required for the compost to break down well. They also have a strong smell which can attract mice and other pests.
Onions – While onions are an excellent source of nitrogen, they can attract pests and other unwanted organisms to your compost. They can even kill the worms that are essential for your compost to work.
Garlic – While garlic can be composted, in smaller quantities it is generally not recommended. In larger amounts, it can stifle the growth of the worms that are essential for your home compost to work properly and may scare away the beneficial insects that are needed to break down the waste material.
Wood – As well as being toxic to your compost, treated wood is not an ideal addition. It contains a lot of sulfur, which is acidic and can dramatically increase the acidity in your compost pile.
Treated wood can also be very expensive, so it is best to use natural materials that do not contain these chemicals. Likewise, charcoal briquets that have been used for fires should be avoided as they are full of nasty chemicals and won’t break down at all in the compost.
Weeds – It is always important to keep weeds with their seeds out of your compost. Weeds can be a great way to add green material to your compost, however they will not decompose quickly or efficiently in a home compost pile and can cause your compost to become overrun by weeds that will then compete with your plants.
