What is home composting?

Home composting is an effective way to reduce 70-80% of kitchen and garden waste. The process of home composting includes the use the home composters, in which kitchen scraps are placed and turned into very good quality fertilizer known as compost, which can be used in the garden or in pots of the household.

What materials can be composted?

Peels and stems of vegetables or herbs (e.g., potatoes, eggplants, peppers, tomatoes, courgettes, onions, greens, etc.)

Leftovers from salads, after being drained of liquids

Peels or leftovers from various fruits (e.g., watermelons, melons, preferably cut into small pieces, etc.)

Plant debris such as pruning of plants, dry leaves, shoots from pots, lawn clippings, etc.

Organic fertilizers: manures, brown soil, leaf soil, etc.

Ash e.g., from fireplace

Eggshells preferably crushed

Kitchen papers (e.g. paper towels, kitchen roll, torn soft bags) in small quantities or in larger quantities if the mixture is wet

Sawdust, especially if we have very wet compost and want a more balanced mixture with better aeration

Tea bags, coffee grounds and coffee filters

What materials can’t be composted?

Recyclable materials such as: Metal objects or packaging, aluminum foil, glass, plastics, papers (newspapers, magazines, especially colored ones), thick pieces of wood, etc.

Meats – cheeses: Attract rodents (mice)

Cooked foods i.e., anything containing oil or sauces, (they cause unwanted fermentations, while oil kills some microorganisms and is very difficult to decompose)

Pasta or breads (loaves): They form solid masses, do not dissolve easily, cause unwanted fermentations (blue mold) and attract rodents

What do we need for home composting?

The equipment we need is simple and includes the following:

• A home composter
• A small quantity of garden soil
• Garden tools (digger, watering hose, a long piece of wood or other tool for stirring)
• Small kitchen bin for collecting the leftovers in the kitchen

We throw in the composter the remains that we collect in the small kitchen bin, together with leaves and twigs from the garden and a little soil. We make sure that the mixture contains various materials, for faster decomposition of the organic materials. We continuously feed our composter with a variety of materials and mix from time to time, so that the mixture is enriched with oxygen. If the mixture is too dry, moisten with a little water, while if it is too wet, mix very well more often and add more dry materials (twigs, sawdust, kitchen paper, etc.). The compost matures in about 4 to 6 months and we can use it in the garden or in our pots.

What are the benefits of home composting?

• High purity of recyclable materials due to separate sorting at the source
• Greater recovery of recyclable materials
• Reduction of the cost of transporting waste to the Integrated Waste Management Facilities
• Production of fertilizer with high added value
• Reducing the cost of waste management in Integrated Waste Management Facilities and landfills
• Reduction of waste that ends up being deposited in Integrated Waste Management Facilities and landfills
• Financial benefit for the household
• Improvement of soil quality due to compost