| Can I Compost? | Yes/No | Comments |
| Hair, human or animal | Yes | GREEN/NITROGEN but may be slow to degrade |
| Grass clippings | Yes | GREEN/NITROGEN may compact add with bulky items |
| Manure from herbivores (vegetarian)(e.g., horse or cow manure, rabbit droppings) | Yes | GREEN/NITROGEN, but do not use if animal is sick |
| Rotten fruit & vegetables | Yes | GREEN/NITROGEN may compact due to wetness, add with dry bulky brown/carbon items |
| Coffee grinds, including filter | Yes | GREEN/NITROGEN |
| Tea bags | Yes | GREEN/NITROGEN |
| Citrus, e.g. oranges, grapefruit, lemons, tangerines | Yes | GREEN/NITROGEN must cut in ½ or ¼ before composting. Mix with browns & add 6 inch layer of browns on top. |
| Leaves | Yes | BROWN/CARBON |
| Wood chips and pieces | Yes | BROWN/CARBON - a good source of bulky items. |
| Straw | Yes | BROWN/CARBON - a good source of bulky items. |
| Sawdust (from un-treated wood) | Yes | BROWN/CARBON very high in carbon. |
| Newspaper | Yes | BROWN/CARBON must shred it before composting |
| Landscape trimmings (cut to sizes less than 2") | Yes | BROWN/CARBON also a good source of bulky items. |
| Wet paper | Yes | BROWN/CARBON Break up into small pieces, or make a wet slurry and turn it (mix) into the compost |
| Paperboard, e.g. cereal boxes, paper plates, and napkins. | Yes | BROWN/CARBON Break up into small pieces, or make a wet slurry and turn it (mix) into the compost |
| Egg shells | Yes | Adds calcium |
| Banana Leaves | No/Maybe | Very tough to break down, must cut into small pieces to compost |
| Palm Fronds | No/Maybe | Very tough to break down, must cut into small pieces to compost, try drying first, then chipping. |
| Dog Waste | No/Maybe | Composting dog waste must be done with caution. |
| Animal by-products such as meat, chicken, lard, bones, cheese or milk products | NO | This type of kitchen waste can attract vermin. |
| Pet waste (not dog or bird), non-vegetarian animals | NO | Might contain diseases that could be transmitted to humans. |
| Mayonnaise, salad dressing or peanut butter | NO | Hard to degrade |
| Inorganic trash such as plastic, foil or metals. | NO | Will not break down in the compost process, instead recycle these materials |
| Chemicals such as pesticides, gasoline, diesel or oil. | NO | Potentially toxic to human health and the environment |
| Human waste | NO | Might contain diseases that could be transmitted to humans. |
zero landfill status