Composting Made Simple
Turn your garden waste into something wonderful
If you’ve ever looked at a pile of vegetable peelings, grass clippings and dead leaves and wondered how on earth they turn into that lovely dark, crumbly stuff we gardeners get ridiculously excited about — welcome to the wonderful world of composting.
And the good news is that it really doesn’t need to be complicated.
Composting is nature’s way of recycling organic matter. Organic material naturally decomposes; all we gardeners do is provide the conditions to make it happen faster and in a way that is convenient for us.
It really is that easy.
Why bother composting?
There are some very good reasons.
It improves your soil. Adding well-rotted compost increases organic matter, helping to improve soil structure. It can help sandy soils retain moisture and nutrients, while improving the structure and drainage of heavier soils. This helps plants get the oxygen, water and nutrients they need from the soil. The result — happier, healthier plants.
It supports soil life. Healthy soil isn't just dirt. It's a living ecosystem containing an extraordinary community of bacteria, fungi and other organisms. Organic matter provides food and habitat for that community. Again — making life better for your plants.
It reduces waste. Vegetable peelings, garden trimmings, dead leaves and cardboard can all become useful resources rather than waste. If you have a big garden, you’ll end up with a lot of garden waste, much of which can go straight in here rather than involving trips to the tip.
It can save you money. Making your own soil improver means buying fewer bags of compost and soil conditioner — and personally, I'd much rather turn my rubbish into something useful for free. Well-rotted homemade compost can also be useful as part of homemade potting mixes, although I wouldn't use it on its own in pots.
And there's something enormously satisfying about spreading beautiful, crumbly compost onto the garden and thinking, I made that.
What do I need?
The good news is: not very much.
You don't need an expensive composting system to make good compost. What works best will depend on how much space you have, how much material your garden produces and, frankly, how tidy you want it all to look!
Buy a compost bin
The familiar plastic compost bins are inexpensive, compact and useful for smaller gardens. You don't need a fancy composting set-up. This is one of mine — a conventional plastic compost bin tucked into a corner of the garden. It isn't going to win a garden-design award, but that's rather the point. Composting doesn't need to be beautiful, expensive or complicated. It just needs somewhere for all that useful garden and kitchen waste to get on with the business of becoming compost. These bins help retain warmth and moisture and keep everything contained. Some local councils also offer subsidised bins, so it's worth checking before buying one
Build your own
If you've got more space, you can buy one or easily make your own from timber or old pallets. Open-sided wooden bays allow plenty of air into the compost and are particularly useful if you generate quite a lot of garden waste.
If you have room for two or three bays, even better: one can be filling while another is decomposing and another contains compost that's ready to use. But that's a luxury rather than a necessity.
Or just make a heap!
You don't actually need a container at all. Choose a suitable corner of the garden and create a compost heap directly on the soil. Covering it with something like cardboard or a tarpaulin can help retain moisture and warmth.
Starting directly on the ground also allows worms and other useful decomposers to find their own way in — no invitation required.
A garden fork is useful if you want to turn the compost, and a lid or cover can help stop it becoming waterlogged, but don't let lack of equipment stop you getting started.
A compost heap can be as simple or sophisticated as you want to make it.
The secret: greens and browns
This is where composting can start sounding more scientific than it needs to.
You'll often hear gardeners talking about greens and browns.
Greens tend to be softer, wetter materials that are relatively rich in nitrogen. Think:
grass clippings
vegetable and fruit peelings
coffee grounds
young weeds
fresh plant material
Browns tend to be drier, more carbon-rich materials such as:
fallen leaves
cardboard
shredded paper
small woody prunings
straw
dead plant stems
The microorganisms doing the decomposition need both carbon and nitrogen. They also need moisture and oxygen.
But nature will eventually cope with a less-than-perfect mixture, so you absolutely do not need to stand beside your compost bin with a calculator working out carbon-to-nitrogen ratios.
Aim instead for a good mixture. If you're adding lots of wet grass clippings, throw in some torn-up cardboard. If the heap is mostly dry leaves and woody material, add some fresh green material.
Think variety rather than perfection.
What shouldn't go in?
Most uncooked fruit and vegetable scraps and ordinary garden waste are fine for a home compost heap.
There are, however, some things I'd keep out — cooked food, meat, fish, dairy products and fats, as they can smell and attract unwanted visitors.
I'd also avoid adding persistent perennial weeds such as bindweed roots unless you're confident your compost gets hot enough to destroy them.
(Watch out for future posts on hot composting and Bokashi composting.)
Diseased plant material can be problematic too. A domestic heap may not reach sufficiently high temperatures to kill all pathogens, so when in doubt, I'd leave it out.
And although something may technically be described as biodegradable or compostable, that doesn't necessarily mean it will conveniently disappear in your garden compost bin. Check the packaging — some materials require commercial composting conditions.
Does compost need turning?
Here's where gardeners divide into camps.
You'll often be told that turning is essential, and there are definitely advantages. Turning introduces oxygen and mixes the materials, so a well-managed, regularly turned heap can decompose considerably faster.
But do you have to turn it?
No.
I think there is room for the decidedly less energetic “chuck it in and let nature get on with it” approach too. 😂
Decomposition will still happen. It will simply take longer.
So if the prospect of regularly turning a cubic metre of compost is the thing stopping you composting at all, don't let it.
When compost goes wrong
Your compost heap is actually quite good at telling you what it needs.
Wet, slimy and smelly?
It may contain too much wet green material and not enough air. Mix in some dry browns such as torn cardboard or dry leaves and introduce some air if you can.
Very dry and apparently doing nothing?
It may need moisture or more green material. Compost organisms need water to function, although the heap should be damp rather than waterlogged.
Lots of grass clippings forming a horrible solid lump?
We've probably all been there. Grass is much better mixed with coarse or dry brown material than added in one enormous layer. Better still, dry it out and use it as a mulch!
Nothing seems to be happening?
Give it time. A small, cold heap can take many months to break down. Chop up larger material, improve the mixture and make sure it isn't bone dry.
How do I know when it's ready?
Finished compost should be dark, crumbly and earthy-smelling, and much of the original material should no longer be recognisable.
Don't worry if there are still a few twigs or tougher bits in there. You can pick them out or throw them back into the compost heap for another go.
Then comes the rewarding bit.
Use your compost to mulch beds and borders, improve your vegetable beds or add organic matter when preparing soil for planting.
You've taken waste from your kitchen and garden and recycled valuable organic material back into your soil.
That's a pretty satisfying circle.
Don't aim for perfect compost — just start
If there's one message I'd like you to take from this, it's that composting doesn't have to be complicated.
Yes, understanding what's happening helps us make better compost. A mixture of greens and browns, sufficient moisture and plenty of oxygen will generally speed things along.
But nature has been decomposing organic material rather successfully for rather longer than we've been writing books about it.
Start with what you've got. Watch what happens. Adjust it when something isn't working.
That's gardening. Frustrating, laborious, and truly joyous!
Now come and join the conversation 🌱
Already a member of the Happy Place Garden Project?
Hop on over to Garden Chat where we're talking about composting — from carefully managed compost heaps to the “bung it all in and hope for the best” approach.
What's your method? What works? What doesn't? And what would you like help with?
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