What Can You Put in a Balcony Compost Bin?

Ready to create your own nutrient-rich compost? Knowing what to put in a balcony compost bin can make or break the quality of the compost that you create. Good quality compost will help plants in your vertical vegetable garden thrive and keep flowering plants happy.

On the other hand, add the wrong things into your compost, and you’ll be left with a soggy mess that stinks out your apartment, and possibly a few neighbors too.

Knowing the right ingredients, and the right amounts will help you create your own crumbly black gold.

What should you put in a balcony compost bin?

All compost bins need a mix of ‘brown’ and ‘green’ items. This doesn’t mean only green and brown colored things. It’s a loose term that categorizes carbon-rich items ‘brown’ and items high in nitrogen ‘green’.

For optimum compost, the recommended ratio can vary between different composting methods, but generally, it’s best to aim for an even mix.

You might find that the majority of your waste is green, as you’re just adding vegetable peelings etc. So occasionally it can help to add extra brown ingredients when you can.

Greens for your compost include:

• Fruit and vegetable peelings
• Grass clippings
• Coffee grounds and loose tea waste
• Eco-tea bags (without plastic)
• Garden clippings and waste (not weeds that have gone to seed)

Greens you can add but in lower quantities

There are a few items that should be added in moderation. These food items can affect compost quality.

• Washed eggshells
• Citrus peels
• Tomatoes
• Pickled foods

Citrus fruits, tomatoes and pickled goods all have a high acidity content. If you add too many you run the risk of making your compost too acidic which can then kill the critical bacteria that break down the waste. They may also be more likely to attract flies, which isn’t ideal on a balcony.

With eggshells, it’s important for them to be washed to stop pests and smells. Eggshells don’t break down in the same way as other food waste as they consist of minerals. 

They will eventually crumble and mix in with your compost, but with an excess, there’s a slight risk that you might inadvertently introduce salmonella from an eggshell not thoroughly washed. The risk is low, especially when you’re hot composting, but it’s best to stay safe.

Browns for your compost include:

• Dried fall leaves
• Small broken twigs, branches and bark
• Paper and cartons without plastic or waxy coatings, e.g. egg cartons, loo rolls, coffee filters
• Cardboard (again without any coating or plastic tape)
• Sawdust
• Straw and hay
• Hair! (good excuse to keep your hairbrush clean)
• Old spices and dried herbs

After adding these ingredients, and following your chosen balcony composting method, you should end up with crumbly, nutrient-rich compost!

According to the EPA, in 2018, Americans composted over 2.6 million tonnes of food waste. That sounds like a lot of compost, but that was only 4.1% of food waste! If we all tried making our own compost at home, it would be a really sustainable way of reducing waste that heads to landfills.

Things you shouldn’t put in a balcony compost bin

To avoid unwanted smells there are certain items to avoid adding to your compost. Diseased plants and food like meat, dairy, and cooked food, in general, should be avoided. This will keep bad smells at bay and create a better quality compost.

If you’re composting with worms (vermicomposting), the list of things you can put in your compost bin changes. So make sure you add the right things into your vermicomposter.