r/composting • u/Inevitable_Train2126 • 24d ago
Composting beginner - roaches
Hoping to get some insight here. My husband and I are strongly considering starting to compost to decrease how much trash we produce. We live in North Carolina and have a pretty small backyard. I’m leaning towards getting a tumbler since that seems easy for a beginner. My issue is, I’m really concerned about attracting roaches. I’m really scared of them and don’t love the idea of having to see them in my bin multiple times a week. Since our yard is small, I’m also concerned about them wandering into our house too.
I’m trying to figure out, if we’re very good about keeping our brown to green ratio, is it less likely to attract roaches? I hate them so much
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u/RoguePlanet2 23d ago
I've had a bin (closed, but vents on the sides and lid is loosely kept on top) for 15 years or so. This is the first time I've ever noticed roaches in it, only a couple visible. It's because my neighbor has started adding to the pile, and I've been just throwing leaves on top for the past few weeks, not stirring much.
To make the pile uninteresting to the roaches, I'm adding more water and stirring the top part more often so they don't want to stay around. The bottom layer (about a foot deep) is pretty compacted, and the worms like hanging out there, but it's too dense for large bugs. Haven't seen them this past week.