Composting browns and greens

Square 1 4/7/2011, 4:17 pm

I was in my Syracuse NY lawn today attempting spring clean up after 180" of snow - UGH! I decided it was a good time to start my first ever compost pile. I put leaves and last year's herbs that were left looking pretty dead. I was reading other posts and saw 'brown' and 'green' - what types of material make up each category and what is a good ratio to have? What happens if I don't put any grass clippings or manure in? Also, I am in the process of cutting down ornamental grasses - can I use them even though they are dead and dried up? My husband and I are building our first ever 4' x 4' boxes this weekend and switching our row gardens to SFGs - exept for the currently growing in the ground garlic. Thanks! Very Happy

nancy 4/7/2011, 4:28 pm

Hi Square 1 and Welcome to the forums! We're glad to have you!

I have no garbage disposal and have to put a $2 sticker on each trash can, so I compost everything I can! The only things I don't add are dairy and meat products. Nothing that has had oil on it, either. I don't add many of my weeds because I just don't want to risk it. I even include dryer lint and shredded newspaper. Starbucks gives away coffee grounds - one of the things I like to add to get things going. I'm sure you will get many more responses. I don't worry about ratios.

Again - welcome & best wishes!

**camprn** 4/7/2011, 4:31 pm

Greetings Square1 and Composting browns and greens 396615

to the SFG Forum!!! there is a ton of information on the forum that has been posted over the course of the past year about composting. You can use the search feature to find the threads. Type composting into the search window and you will find the list of threads. Happy reading. Do ask if after your reading you have more questions!
In the spring I collect then just pile up my winter debris next to the compost area and when my winter pile (kitchen scraps) thaws, then I will layer that with the debris into the compost bin.
Again, Welcome!!

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Composting browns and greens

Composting browns and greens

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Re: Composting browns and greens


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