What Nutrients Are in Yard Waste Compost?

Composting Basics

• Alternate 3- to 4-inch layers of green and brown material in a compost pile to ensure rapid decomposition. Water any dry layers while building the pile. Compost piles often produce steam; this is a normal result of the heat caused by microbial activity. Turn or stir the compost every week or so and add more water if it becomes dry. You can add food scraps to yard waste compost, but don't add meat or dairy products, oils or pet manure. Compost is ready to use when it is dry and crumbly with a pleasant, earthy smell.

Green Compost Ingredients

• Nitrogen-rich green compost ingredients include fruit and vegetable scraps, weeds, coffee grounds, tea bags, crushed eggshells and garden prunings. Grass clippings are also considered a green material, but it's more efficient to leave grass clippings on your lawn and let them decompose back into the soil. Do not compost invasive weeds, diseased plants or plants that have been treated with pesticides or herbicides.

Brown Compost Ingredients

• Brown compost ingredients, high in carbon, include dead plants, autumn leaves, hay, sawdust, shredded paper, wood chips, pine cones and pine needles. Avoid composting very large sticks or branches, which will take too long to decompose; chipping large pieces of wood help them break down more quickly.

Troubleshooting Yard Compost

• If your compost isn't decomposing, add more green materials or more water. If your compost has an unpleasant, ammonia-like odor, you have too many green materials or too much moisture. Add more brown materials and stir to add oxygen. Prevent flies or fruit flies by covering exposed food scraps with brown material. If your compost pile attracts pests such as raccoons, avoid composting meat or oils or cover your compost bin with a lid.

Compost Advantages

• Compost has many advantages over chemical fertilizers. Compost contains several micronutrients that chemical fertilizers don't include. Compost also releases nutrients more slowly than chemical fertilizers. In addition, compost improves the structure of the soil, boosts soil drainage and introduces helpful microorganisms into the soil, unlike chemical fertilizers, which contribute to pollution and kill microorganisms.