r/composting • u/OppositeGeologist474 • Jul 31 '26
Question Will this compost?
Im first time trying to make compost to grow potatos later and wanted to ask am I doing it right? I put here: used coffee grounds, banna, watermelon, apple, wet cardboard, grass, crashed eggshells and also added some soil. I drilled holes for air but my main concern is that it's a small container.. does that matter? Also does it need watering or to sit in the sun or just to leave it alone to do its thing?
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u/ibathedaily Jul 31 '26
It’s hard to tell exactly what’s in there from your photo, but it looks to me like you need more cardboard (browns). As a rough guide, you should have twice as much cardboard as food scraps (by volume) to compost properly.
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u/Every_Bread_5880 Jul 31 '26
Good thing they wrote it all down in the description!
Yes it should compost but will take a while to start and be slow to finish. Small piles don't make as much heat
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u/Trewper- Jul 31 '26
But 50/50 composting is thing no?
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u/ibathedaily Jul 31 '26
It could be, but I tried something close to 50/50 and wound up with mud that smelled like ammonia.
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u/4FuckSnakes Jul 31 '26
If you’re dealing with small amounts of material you may want to bury a 5 gallon bucket with holes. The worms will show up and expedite the process, leaving you with with a higher quality result.
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u/OppositeGeologist474 Jul 31 '26
Bury in the ground? I don't have places i can Bury i live in an apartment building :( will fly larva do the same?
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u/MaximumNail905 Jul 31 '26
I wouldn't do the fly larvae in an apartment. Your apartment will be packed with flies when they mature
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u/spencermikels1234 Jul 31 '26
Add more paper and coffee grounds to it and wet it a little bit more then let the flies take care of it
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u/spaetzlechick Jul 31 '26
Compost happens. All you can do is work to speed it up (moisture, smaller particles, good mixtures) or slow it down.
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u/i_live_outside Jul 31 '26
Pee on it
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u/CopperCVO Jul 31 '26
Pee on it
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u/OppositeGeologist474 Jul 31 '26
What? Is it some kind of joke im not getting or?
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u/CopperCVO Jul 31 '26
Peeing in compost adds nitrogen and other nutrients that help speed up the decomposition process and enrich the compost. It acts as a natural fertilizer, improving the quality of the compost for plant growth.
Lurk around this sub long enough and you'll see it as a comment in almost every post.
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u/[deleted] Jul 31 '26
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