Think Before You Bin It: The Do's & Don'ts of Composting

Avoid common mistakes and get the most from your food scraps with this simple guide.

What is composting?

At its core, composting is just nature’s way of recycling. It’s the process of breaking down organic matter—like food scraps, dead leaves, and wood chips—to enrich soil and plants. Instead of tossing those banana peels or garden trimmings in the bin, composting turns them into something useful by returning essential nutrients to the soil. 

Why compost?

Composting allows us to turn our trash into treasure. Food scraps make up more than half of the greenhouse gas emissions in our landfills. Composting diverts that waste, keeping carbon in the soil and out of the atmosphere.

It also helps restore soil health. Nutrients like nitrogen and magnesium are returned to the earth, enriching the soil and supporting the growth of nutrient-dense crops. With rising CO2 levels, soil erosion, mismanagement of farmland, and declining crop diversity, our soil is under pressure. Composting offers a simple, natural way to rebuild it—reducing our reliance on synthetic fertilizers and helping protect the future of our food. 

How to start composting:

1. If you have a yard

✅ DO: Find space in your yard for your compost pile. The area should be anywhere from 3x3 to 5x5, accessible year-round, and have good drainage. Your pile can be in a barrel or it can be a bay made from wood, wire or cinder blocks.

❌ DON’T: Choose a space in your yard that is right up against a fence, or worry about exposure to sunlight or shade. If using a barrel or bin, don’t forget to reinforce with a lid to keep out rodents.

✅ DO: Learn what to put in your compost pile. There should be a balance of “green”, which are nitrogen-rich materials, and “brown”, which are carbon-rich materials. 

Green materials: Fruit and vegetable scraps, grass clippings, coffee grounds, egg shells.

Brown materials: Dry leaves, plant twigs, shredded non-coloured and non-glossy paper, untreated wood chips, and shredded cardboard. Just make sure that there’s no wax coating, glue, or tape.

❌ DON’T: Put any of the following materials into your compost: Meat, fish, bones, dairy, fats/oils, large amounts of cooked food, aggressive weeds, pet waste, dryer link, stickers, herbicide-treated plants, treated or painted wood, or “compostable” foodservice ware.

✅ DO: Have the proper ratio of green to brown materials. The base of the pile should be made up of twigs, mulch and/or wood chips to encourage air circulation and liquid absorption. Then, layer your green and brown materials, adding a bit of water between each layer to add moisture to the pile. The ratio to remember is two parts brown to one part green. 

❌ DON’T: Absent-mindedly dump your green materials into your compost. There should always be a brown layer above the food scraps. 

✅ DO: Monitor your compost pile. It should be moist and warm. To help, turn and mix your pile from every one to two weeks with a garden fork. If the pile is a bit too dry, add water to moisten. If the pile has a bad odor, it may be too wet or need more air circulation, which you can fix by adding more brown materials. If the pile is not emitting any heat, add more green materials.

❌ DON’T: Neglect your pile. While composting is low maintenance, it does require a bit of support in order to achieve its final form.

✅ DO: Use your compost to enrich your garden. You’ll know your compost is ready when it’s brown, crumbly, no longer generating heat after turning, and free of visible food scraps. At this stage, it’s rich, earthy, and good to go. You can spread it over garden beds, mix it into topsoil in your yard, or blend it with potting soil for your houseplants.

❌ DON’T: Worry if you still need a little fertilizer. Compost is a supplement, not a complete replacement—but it can significantly reduce how much fertilizer your garden needs.

You can learn more about starting your backyard composting here and here.

2. If you do not have a yard:

✅ DO:  Check your local city services website to see if composting is offered in your city. Some cities provide curbside service and will provide specific instructions about recommended storage and collection times. 

❌ DON’T: Assume composting isn’t possible for you! Even if you don’t have a local compost, consider talking to your city representatives about starting a composting program for your community. 

TL;DR: Composting can be a great way to reduce waste & greenhouse gas emissions, while supporting the health of soil and therefore the health of our plants. You can start composting at home, or participate in your community's composting system.

Words by Madeline Peck, Huel US RDN, CDN.