Be Careful What You Throw In The Compost Pile!



Oak Leaves are not
 good for compost



The last pumpkin has been picked and the tomatoes are gone, so the final chore in the garden is fall clean-up.  Much of the veggie garden and other landscape debris is great fodder for the compost pile. But before you pitch everything in, consider some dos and don'ts for fall clean-up and composting.

Why remove garden debris in the fall?  Leaves and dead plants left on top of the soil can harbor insects over the winter and perpetuate diseases into the next growing season.  For the sake of the soil and the success of next year's garden, it's best not to procrastinate on the clean-up.  As with many landscape chores, clean-up done at the end of one season builds into the success of the next one.

Tomato plants.  If your plants had problems this year with insects or disease, you'll be better off not putting dead tomato plants into the compost pile.  Not every home compost pile reaches and maintains the high temps needed to kill insects or disease.  In the long run, it's best to play it safe and pitch those plants into the trash.

Squash and pumpkin vines.  The debris from squash and pumpkins will take up to three years to decompose sufficiently to be used as compost.  Again, it's better to discard this debris in the trash. But go ahead and put other plant material like pepper plants into the pile.

Leaves from trees

• Leaves to avoid.  Certain leaves are high in tannins which you want to avoid putting into the compost.  In Colorado, the most common leaves to leave out are oak and cottonwood.  

• Shaken not stirred equals raked not shredded in the compost cocktail.  For leaves that you will pitch into the compost, avoid shredding them before composting.  While it's convenient to mulch the leaves with the lawn mower and collect them in the bag so you can just shake them into the pile, don't be tempted. If you want to use leaves for composting, rake them instead.  Raking keeps leaves fluffy and this helps to aerate the compost.  

Evergreen needles.  Needles from pine, spruce and other evergreens are high in acid and contain sap.  Since these ingredients aren't good for the compost mix, don't pitch needles into the pile.

If you're still going strong after the fall clean-up:  do your garden a favor and till in some compost.  Adding compost in the fall and tilling it well into the soil will give it the time it needs over the winter to break down.  Next spring at planting time, your soil will already be in prime shape to grow early season veggies.  

Tip of the Week reprinted courtesy of Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado (ALCC) of which Foothills Landscape Maintenance, LLC is a member. ALCC is the only professional organization for Colorado's landscape contracting industry statewide. Tip of the Week is copyrighted by Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado and may be forwarded or copied by its members provided proper credit is given to ALCC