Composting at home, explained
Short, practical answers to the questions people ask when they start a compost heap or when one goes wrong. Work out your mix below, then pick a guide.
Compost mix calculator
Count your material in buckets (or bags of the same size). Greens are fresh, moist scraps and clippings; browns are dry leaves, straw and cardboard.
Guides
- Compost bins compared
Open heaps, closed bins, tumblers, worm bins and bokashi buckets side by side, with what each is good and bad at.
- Composting in winter
Why heaps slow down in the cold, what to keep doing, and how to be ready for spring.
- Fixing common compost problems
Smells, slime, flies, a heap that will not break down and unwanted visitors, each traced to its cause with a fix.
- Greens and browns: getting the mix right
Which materials count as greens and browns, why the balance matters, and how to judge it by eye.
- Hot or cold composting
The difference between actively managed hot heaps and leave-it-alone cold heaps, and how to choose between them.
- How composting works
What actually happens inside a compost heap, which living things do the work, and what a gardener controls.
- Composting in a small space
Worm bins, bokashi, compact bins and community schemes for flats, balconies and small yards.
- Using finished compost
How to tell when compost is ready, and how to use it on beds, lawns, pots and around trees.