Composting at Home: A Complete Beginner’s Guide
Composting turns kitchen and garden waste into the best plant food available — completely free. Here's how to start composting at any scale, from a small bin to a full system.
Why Compost?
Composting is one of the highest-impact environmental habits you can develop. In the UK, food and garden waste accounts for around 30% of household waste sent to landfill. In landfill, organic matter decomposes anaerobically, producing methane — a greenhouse gas 80x more potent than CO₂ over 20 years. Composted at home, the same material produces CO₂ (carbon-neutral, since the carbon came from the atmosphere) and creates rich, free organic fertiliser.
What Can Be Composted
Yes: fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds and filters, tea bags (check for plastic seal), cardboard and paper (torn small), garden clippings and prunings (not diseased), fallen leaves, egg shells, hair and nail clippings, natural fibres. No: meat and fish, dairy, cooked food, dog or cat waste, diseased plants, anything glossy-printed.
The Brown-to-Green Ratio
Successful composting requires roughly 3 parts brown (carbon-rich: cardboard, straw, dried leaves, paper) to 1 part green (nitrogen-rich: food scraps, fresh grass, plant trimmings). Too many greens creates a wet, smelly compost; too many browns slows decomposition. If your compost smells, add more browns and turn it. If it’s not breaking down, add more greens and moisture.
Compost Bin Options
Plastic dalek bin: Small footprint, often free from councils, good for typical households. Wooden pallet bin: Free materials, large capacity, ideal for bigger gardens. Tumbler: Faster decomposition (4–8 weeks), contained, suitable for smaller gardens, easy to turn. Bokashi system: For flats — ferments all food waste including meat and dairy in an airtight bucket. Not truly composting but produces a pre-compost for diluting or burying.
Troubleshooting
Smelly compost → Add cardboard/straw, turn thoroughly. Too dry, not breaking down → Add more green materials and water, cover with carpet or plastic to retain moisture. Flies → Bury food scraps under a layer of compost or cardboard. Rodents → Don’t add cooked food or meat; use a compost bin with a secure base.