We love to get reader questions. Laura asks us the following:
“hi, thanks. I wonder about beans….are they like meat? i cook beans for two and inevitably have left over, can i compost? will they attract rats etc I live in the city…up til now i only am using raw fruit and veggie and grass leaves ….thanks (ex: pea soup, no oil, lental soup etc no oil). thank you”
Great question, Laura. The answer is: beans should be fine for composting. Here’s some rules of thumb though: it’s a good idea to bury kitchen scraps and food further down the pile and then put the leaves/grass clippings over them. You might want to follow this tact when composting your beans as well. This will ensure that they will have less of a chance of being subject to rodents and pests.
All in all, you should be fine. Thanks for your question, and hope this helps!
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
can you please tell me your favorite compost bin?
thankyou, theresa
It depends on which type of compost bin.
For compost tumblers, I like the Tumbleweed.
http://www.cleanairgardening.com/patdesaustum.html
For standard compost bins, I like the Soilsaver or the Shepherd Bin — depending on how many leaves I have and whether or not I want to keep the contents covered up.
http://www.cleanairgardening.com/compostbin.html
http://www.cleanairgardening.com/wirecompostbin.html
Standard compost bins usually have a bigger capacity than tumblers, but tumblers can work faster if you load them and use them correctly.