How to Choose Cover Materials for Your Compost Pile

I’d like to review a number of readily available “browns” and show you which ones are best to use in your compost pile.

Cardboard/paperboard: If you have recycling available, do that instead. Otherwise, these are OK to compost but be sure to rip them up first.

Newspaper/paper: This is also best suited for recycling. If you don’t have recycling available, rip up the paper first and avoid adding glossy newsprint if possible.

Shredded Paper: This won’t get recycled due to its size- it’ll fall right through the cracks of the recycling sorting machinery and end up being trashed. Add it to the center of your compost pile in small amounts.

Napkin/tissue/paper towels: These materials are also OK to add to your pile in modest quantities as long as they haven’t come in contact with toxics such as cleaning chemicals. The more you rip them up, the better they’ll break down.

Leaves: By far the best material to use in a compost pile, use them to build a new pile and also for your cover material, too. They’re full of trace minerals and you can never add enough.

If you can’t find leaves, go looking for them. Is there a park nearby? Just a few bags of leaves can last you for months, and if you shred them first (strongly recommended), your compost pile will thank you.

I wouldn’t recommend building a compost pile solely out of the other items mentioned- they just don’t have the spark that a compost pile needs. In other words, you need leaves.

However, the most sustainable option for food-soiled napkins/paper towels/tissues and shredded paper (besides not having them around at all) is to compost them.

If you’re interested in learning even more tips and tricks to make composting super simple, click here.