Composting is a way we can divert our food waste, paper waste, and other waste into nutritious soil fertilizer. It is a balance between two key nutrients: carbon (browns) and nitrogen (greens). We use compost to add nutrients to the soil, increase the soil's capacity to hold air and water, and suppress certain plant diseases.

• Wire bin: great for yard waste
• Single-unit bin: great for food waste
• Tumbler bin: great for food waste
• Two- or Three-unit bin: great for yard waste and food waste
• Compost pile: great for a heavy load of "greens" and "browns"
• Pit/Trench compost: great for gardens
• African keyhole garden: great for gardens
• Hugelkultur: great for fallen/chopped trees
• Sheet pile: great for large tracts of land
• Bokashi: great for food waste and if you have no yard
• Vermicomposting: great for food waste and if you have no yard (and fishing!)

What goes in the bin? The ideal ratio between carbon (browns) and nitrogen (greens) is 30:1. This does not mean that if this ratio is not met, you will not have compost. Each compost is different! Greens are your food waste. They hold in moisture and will give your compost the hydration it needs. If unbalanced, this is what makes your compost smelly. Browns are your dry, paper items. They will take in the moisture from the greens. Below is a list of greens, browns, and other items that are acceptable and are not acceptable in your typical compost bin.

*Watch your black walnut intake. They produce a toxin called juglone that can, if numbers are great, affect plant growth.
**An herbivore is a plant-eater, like deer, hamsters, and rabbits. Because they solely eat plants, you can compost it. When you compost poop that is from omnivores, like dogs or humans, or from carnivores, like cats, it can carry harmful bacteria and impair plant health.
***Exoskeletons are not only on insects and spiders - they are on some things we commonly eat! You can safely compost shrimp, lobster, crab, and crayfish exoskeletons.

*These items typically have a layer of plastic to make them appear glossy. Please recycle here instead!
**Omnivore (human and dog) and carnivore (cat) poop carry harmful bacteria that will affect plant health.
***These items contain toxins and known carcinogens.
****Surprisingly, you can't usually compost compostable bags or plastic in your backyard compost. These are specifically designed for large composting facilities with certain types of machinery. Unfortunately, this is not an option in this area at this time.

"While food plays a key role in shaping our identities and it is highly celebrated in American society, each year up to 40% of food in the United States never gets eaten, translating to $218 billion lost, which includes the cost of food wasted on the consumer level, retail, wasted water, energy, fertilizers, cropland and production costs.

In addition to wasting precious resources, nearly all of the food waste ends up in landfills, where it decomposes and releases methane, a form of climate pollution that is up to 86 times more potent than carbon dioxide. In fact, food is the single largest contributor to U.S. landfills today. All this while one in eight Americans don’t have a steady supply of food to their tables.

Consumers are responsible for more wasted food than grocery stores and restaurants combined, so changing household behavior is key to reducing the problem of food waste. The average American family of four spends at least $1,500 per year on food that they don’t eat and each individual toss over 20 pounds of food per month."

— Natural Resource Defense Council

Save the Food Resources