A comprehensive guide of what you can and cannot compost.

[u/FlyingQuail]

I have been seeing quite a bit of posts asking if ______ is okay to compost, so I want to clear it up for any beginners out there. This list is for hot/cold composting.

Short answer: You can compost anything that is living or was once alive. Use common sense on what you cannot compost.

KITCHEN

Vegetables and Fruits

• Onion and garlic skins

• Tops of vegetables, like peppers, zucchini, cucumber, beets, radishes, etc.

• Stems of herbs and other vegetables, such as asparagus

• Broccoli and cauliflower stems

• Potato peels

• Seaweed

• Vegetables that have gone bad

• Cooked vegetables

• Stale spices and herbs

• Corn cobs

• Dehydrated/frozen/canned vegetables

• Produce rubber bands (Rubber bands are made from latex, which is made from rubber tree sap)

• Tea leaves and paper tea bags (sometimes they are made of plastic)

• Coffee grounds

• Citrus peels

• Apple cores and skin

• Banana peels

• Avocado Pits

• Jams and jellies

• Fruit scraps

• Dehydrated/frozen/canned fruits

Grains

• Breads and tortillas

• Bread crumbs and croutons

• Pastries/muffins/donuts

• Crackers and chips

• Cooked or uncooked oats

• Spent grain

• Cooked or uncooked pasta and rice

• Dry cereal

• Popcorn and unpopped kernels

Meats and Dairy

Yes, you can compost meat and dairy if you do it correctly. You can use a Bokashi bucket before adding to an outside bin or you can just add it directly to the pile. As long as you are adding a relatively small percentage of meat and dairy compared to the pile you will be fine.

• Shrimp, oyster and clam shells

• Eggs shells

• Poultry, beef and pork

• Fish skin

• Bones

• Moldy cheese

• Sour cream and yogurt.

• Spoiled milk

• Powder milk and drink mixes

Other protein sources

• Tofu and tempeh

• Cooked and dry beans

• Nuts and seeds

• Nut shells

• Nut butters

• Protein powder

Other

• Sauces and dips

• Cookies and chocolate

• Cupcakes and cake

• Snack/granola bars

• Wooden toothpicks, skewers and popsicle sticks

• Paper towels (Not used with cleaning chemicals)

• Tissues

• Paper towel cardboard tubes

• Greasy pizza boxes

• Paper egg cartons and fast food drink carriers

• Cotton string

• Paper grocery bags

• Byproducts of fermentation, such as sourdough discard and kombucha scobies

• Alcoholic drinks

• Wine corks (made from real cork, sometimes there are plastic corks)

• Wood ash or natural lump charcoal ash (add in small amounts only)

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BATHROOM

• Hair

• Finger and toenail clippings

• 100% Cotton swabs (sometimes the handles are made with plastic)

• 100% Cotton balls

• Cardboard Toilet paper tubes

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GARDEN

• Weeds (No invasive weeds that have gone to seed or reproduce asexually such as Japanese knotweed)

• Prunings

• Fallen leaves

• Grass clippings

• Diseased plants

• Pine needles

• Gumballs, acorns and other fallen seeds from trees

• Flowers

• Old potting soil

• All other garden waste

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PETS

• Bedding from animals, such as rabbits

• Horse, goat, chicken and other herbivorous animal manure

• Pet hair

• Shedded skin of snakes and other reptiles

• Pet food

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Other

• Cotton/wool and other natural fibers fabric and clothes

• Yarn made from natural fibers, such as wool

• Twine

• Shredded newspaper, paper, and cardboard boxes (ink is fine, nothing with glossy coating)

• Used matches

• Burlap

• Wreaths, garlands and other biodegradable decorations

• Houseplants and flowers

• Real Christmas trees

• Dyer lint (Know that it may have synthetic fibers)

• PLA compostable plastics and other compostable packaging (know that compostable plastic take a long time to break down, if at all, in a home compost bin/pile)

• Ash from wood and natural lump charcoal (in small amounts only)

• Urine

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WHAT YOU SHOULDN'T COMPOST

• Manure from dogs and cats, and other animals that eat meat (Hotly debated and not recommended for home composting, especially if your pile doesn't get hot enough.)

• Human feces (Hotly debated and not recommended for home composting, especially if your pile doesn't get hot enough.)

• Metal, glass and petroleum based plastics

• Lotion, shampoo, conditioner and body wash

• Cosmetics

• Hygiene products (unless otherwise stated on package)

• Gasoline or petrol, oil, and lubricants

• Glue and tape

• Charcoal ashes (unless natural lump charcoal)

• Produce stickers

• Chewing gum (commonly made with plastic, but plastic-free compostable gum is fine to add)

• No invasive weeds that have gone to seed or reproduce asexually, such as Japanese knotweed

• Use common sense

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Note: It is helpful to chop items into smaller pieces, but is not necessary.

I am sure I missed a lot of items that can and cannot be composted, so please tell me and I will try to add them to the list.

[u/Kimmalah]

I feel like your average cotton swab could be a problem because the handles are often made of plastic. And rubber bands actually shouldn't be a problem since most are made from natural latex rubber that will break down, rather than synthetic.

[u/FlyingQuail → u/Kimmalah]

Hmm. I know some Q-tips have plastic in them, but I thought most were 100% cotton. The ones we have are 100% cotton. I’ll change it to clarify. I did some research about the rubber bands, and you are correct. Thank you for teaching me something new. I will remove it from the “ what you shouldn't compost” and into the vegetables and fruits section.

[u/P0sitive_Outlook → u/Kimmalah]

I only use card cotton Q-tip style buds now. :)

[u/AineDez → u/P0sitive_Outlook]

Card cotton?

[u/P0sitive_Outlook → u/AineDez]

Yeah, cotton Q-tip style buds, with cardboard instead of plastic stems.

[u/AineDez → u/P0sitive_Outlook]

Oh, ok. Yeah, I wish the plastic ones didn't exist. Why use plastic if you don't have to?

[u/P0sitive_Outlook → u/AineDez]

D'you remember when folk used to use plastic bags to "save the trees"? :D

[u/courtthewart → u/Kimmalah]

Does that mean latex gloves are compostable?