Food waste is a significant problem, leaving many eco-conscious consumers looking for ways to reduce the impact of their kitchen scraps. Compost enthusiasts are popping up all over, and many questions need to be answered regarding compost bin contents. Can you compost lemons? Learn about citrus fruits and their impact on your compost heap.
Lemon is a citrus fruit cultivated for its tangy taste and ability to elevate any meal. Add a squeeze of lemon juice, a sprinkle of lemon zest, or a few lemon slices to almost any dish, and suddenly you feel like a culinary genius. Because lemon goes so well with everything, there’s bound to be a lot of lemon peels left over.
Should you put lemons in compost, and can you compost citrus peels from other popular fruits? There are instances where a little lemon is just what you need for the compost heap and some situations where lemon rind isn’t appropriate. Let’s get right into some helpful information about lemons and your compost pile.
Can You Compost Citrus Peels?
Can lemon peels be composted? This is a great question many home gardeners and DIY composters ask. In fact, many fruits and vegetables can be composted easily, and it doesn’t have to be confusing or time-consuming.
Follow this guide to keep your compost and organic material balanced and healthy. You can even use your old lemon peels to make a cleaning solution as a practical way to reuse citrus peels.
Who Should Compost Lemons?
Can you compost citrus peels left over in the kitchen? Citrus peels and fruit waste provide essential nutrients for your compost heap, like potassium, phosphorus, and nitrogen. Your compost bin thrives on these building blocks.
However, it’s important not to upset the delicate balance of the decomposition process by adding too much of a good thing. Anyone looking for a slight boost to a well-balanced compost can add small pieces of food waste. Melon rind, orange peel, banana peel, and citrus rind are all appropriate additions to the compost pile in moderation.
Composting Lemons: How to Guide
A successful compost pile requires three parts brown material like dry leaves or yard waste and one part green material like a vegetable waste mixture. Lemons are considered green material.
In addition to water and air, these ingredients create the environment necessary for the composting process to occur naturally. Discover how to put lemons in compost safely to avoid disturbing the delicate balance.
Composting lemons is a breeze. Take a handful of lemon peels and cut them into smaller pieces, or grate them into a citrus zest to ensure they break down easily. Add lemon rind to the compost pile with a half cup of water, and leave nature to take over.
The amount of lemon peel you add depends on the size of your compost heap. Lemons are very acidic, and most plants don’t tolerate acidic soil well; citrus food scraps should be used sparingly.
Balance your citrus with grass clippings, wood ash, or other brown material for the ideal mixture. Never put moldy citrus or preserved lemon into the compost pile, and avoid adding other acidic ingredients simultaneously.
Spread finished compost through the top two inches of soil and watch your garden bloom.
Can You Compost Lemons?
Can you compost lemons, and are citrus peels good for compost, in general? It is safe to compost lemons and other citrus rinds. When banana peels and fruit rinds are composted, excessive acid can make the compost heap acidic, disrupting the helpful bacteria decomposing your kitchen scraps.
Lemons contain d-limonene, an antiseptic found in the lemon peel. Many compost worms don’t care for it, and using a lot of lemons might kill helpful compost worms. A little bit of lemon is just fine, but juicing lemonade daily and creating a lot of citrus waste might throw your compost bin off balance.
Can you compost lemons? Absolutely. A lemon peel or an orange peel occasionally does not harm your compost. Stick to small and infrequent doses to avoid disturbing the natural decomposition process. Always balance your green material with appropriate brown material.
Keep your lemons out of the garbage disposal; compost them into organic matter to help amend your garden soil and encourage healthy plant and seed growth. Reduce, reuse, and recycle where you can; sustainability is a series of small steps.
Can you compost lemons? If you love lemons and learning about best compost practices, share this article with your lemon-loving friends on Pinterest or Facebook.