What is Green Waste?

The definition of green waste, also known as “biological waste,” is any organic waste that can be composted.

Standard compost bins need a certain amount of carbon to nitrogen to decompose efficiently. These are often referred to greens and browns. Carbon often referred to as browns are the dry materials and nitrogen are the greens, fresh materials. “Green Waste” is most usually composed of refuse from gardens such as grass clippings or leaves, and domestic or industrial kitchen wastes. Greens provide protein and moisture for organisms.

Green waste does not include things such dried leaves, pine straw, or hay. These are considered the “Browns” or the carbon in compost piles.  The browns allow airflow throughout the pile and provide energy for organisms.

Apartment Composting

Even if you don’t have a big yard, or have no yard at all, you can still participate in green waste recycling! When I lived in apartment, vermicomposting, or composting with worms was my favorite composting method. I’ve since found other composting methods that don’t involve worms, such as using an electric composter or bokashi bucket.

Green Cone

For those with a small yard, a Green Cone could be a green waste recycling tool. It uses solar power to concentrate the heat and break materials down faster. These composters can even compost including meat, fish, dairy, and bones. They are sited in yards and gardens, even right next to the house. They don’t even require turning like traditional composters.

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Interested in composting, but don’t know where to start? Subscribe for access to a free quiz and find the best composting option for you.

It’s Free!

Why go out to spend a bunch of money on fertilizers when you have natural resources right in your backyard?! In most cases, you don’t have to do anything at all. You just have to let nature do it’s thing and you’ll have the healthiest lawn in the neighborhood.

Adding Nutrients to the Soil

My number reason for recycling green waste is that it returns nutrients to the soil. Over the years, from runoff or when people bag up leaves or grass instead of leaving it on the lawn, we’re slowing depleting the earth of it’s nutrients. In return, our yards aren’t as healthy and the ecosystem slowly goes with it.

Reducing Landfill Waste

Green waste recycling usually kills two birds with one stone. Not only does it fix our issue of depleting natural resources without replacing them, but also it doesn’t waste precious landfill space. While it doesn’t take that long for green waste to decompose in natural conditions, in a landfill it doesn’t have access to the air and water that’s needed. Therefore, it’s stuck in space and time for much longer than necessary decomposing anaerobically, which releases methane, a potent greenhouse gas, and leachate.

Yard Waste Crafts

There are lots of ways to reuse yard waste, but reusing them can be fun projects for the kids when cooped up indoors, such as leaf garland or leaf suncatchers! I’m not sure about you, but with one tree we’ve had enough leaves to months of entertainment.

Mulch

There are so many benefits to using mulch in the garden. Why go out and buy mulch, when you can have it free from your yard? Recycling green waste is one of the best ways to keep your plants hydrated and to add nutrients to your soil on a consistent basis. Check out this article for more information about mulch and how to use it.

Green Waste

In conclusion, green waste is awesome and to keep the awesomeness around, it’s best to recycle it. These benefits of recycling green waste are just a simplified version, but there the benefits for the ecosystem and health of the earth are in millions just on their own. Do you recycle your green waste? Let us know in the comments!

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