How To Compost In The Winter (Easy Method)

We know composting is good for the garden and the environment but did you know you can save food scraps for composting all year-round—even in a cold climate? Use these tips for composting in winter so nothing goes to waste.

If you’re new to composting, this explains (in simple terms) why it’s smart and essential: Composting 101: Slow & Fast Methods.

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Composting in Winter

Compost is a great and beautiful thing and while I treasure it for the garden, I don’t wish to make composting my life’s work.

I live in a cold climate (Ontario, Canada) and have always kept my food scraps for composting all year-round.

Winters here are long so we would miss out on a lot of good compost if we didn’t keep the bin going in the colder months.

Like many people, we too have animals like racoons, coyotes, opossums, squirrels, and more looking for food year-round, so I design my composting systems to prevent problems.

I’ll show you how I keep it really simple, fast, and efficient, without any stinky mess.

Contents

• How to Keep Compost in Winter
• Frequently-Asked Questions
• Resources

How to Keep Compost in Winter

Winter composting is like summer composting but in slow motion.

In the coldest weather, the process simply stalls and the food scraps freeze.

When temperatures rise above freezing, the process resumes. If your winter is long like mine, the volume of food scraps is considerable and definitely worth saving.

If you are new to composting, I’ve listed the basics as well (below).

1Set Up Winter Compost Bin with Lid

With this method, you set up a bin close to the house where it’s convenient and you won’t need to shovel a path to get to it in the middle of January.

Bin Options

Choose a bin with a lid that is animal-proof if this is a concern. It’s debatable whether ventilation holes should be added. On the one hand, that could attract animals (by scent) but it also helps aerate the contents.

Galvanized Trash Can

• I use a galvanized trash can with a tight-fitting lid: here’s the galvanized steel one I like at Amazon: Garbage Can (20 Gallon).
• Unless you have bears or super-determined raccoons, this should keep prying hands away. Plus, with a locking lid, you can roll the can to stir the contents.

Compost Tumbler

• If you have room, a drum compost bin is another good option. I also have a Mantis one like this one on Amazon.

Food Grade 5-Gallon Bucket

• A five-gallon food grade bucket (with lid) is also a good option, especially if you expect lower volumes of food waste.

2Collect Kitchen Waste

• The greens (nitrogen-rich goodies) include scraps from fruits and vegetables, egg shells, coffee grounds, tea bags (no paper or staples, though). No processed foods, meat, or dairy.

3Freeze The Scraps

If you don’t have time to add scraps to your bin daily, freezing is another option.

I do this step (all year-round) because I don’t like the stink of keeping a scrap bin in the kitchen and it prevents fruit flies.

• Super Lazy Method: Keep one heavy-duty freezer bag dedicated to kitchen scraps (greens) in your freezer.
• Mildly Lazy Method: Chop or blend your scraps into small bits and pieces. Then place in a heavy-duty freezer bag in your freezer.

Small pieces break down faster.

4Add Frozen Scraps To Winter Bin

• When the freezer bag is full, add the contents to your winter compost bin.
• The scraps will freeze and thaw, depending on the temperatures. Decomposition continues during warm spells.
• Remember to add more browns to bin each time you add greens. A warm spell without enough browns will cause the materials to ferment. You don’t want that.
• Wash out the freezer bag and reuse it over and over again.

5Maintenance

• During thaws, when temperatures stay above zero for a few days, check the bin. You can roll it or use a shovel to combine the greens and browns.
  If we get a really warm spell, I keep the lid off until freezing temperatures return.
• If everything is dry, add water. I do it enough to dampen the browns. The goal is for everything to breakdown and combine as decomposition occurs and moisture is definitely a key part of this.

6Spring Time

• In spring, as soon as weather permits, pour the contents of the winter bin into your regular compost bin or pile. Add more browns if needed. The composting materials should be slightly moist (naturally) due to the moisture in the green materials. If it seems dry, you can water when turning the pile.

Frequently-Asked Questions

Can you compost in winter?

Yes, you can definitely save food scraps for composting in the winter. I keep mine in a bin outside as described (above).

How and if the scraps will decompose depends entirely on the conditions and temperature. During deep freezes, everything stops. During warmer spells, it resumes.

Do compost tumblers work in winter?

Yes, compost tumblers are useful all year-round. A compost tumbler (like this Mantis one on Amazon) is a good idea particularly in the winter. An open compost pile may attract vermin and other wild animals while a tumbler should not.

How much the food scraps convert to compost in winter is going to depend on conditions and temperatures. Basically, compost piles naturally heat up with microbial activity which in turn is converting the kitchen scraps to compost (earthy soil for the garden).

During the winter, a full bin with a good mix of greens and browns (see Composting 101) and adequate moisture may still heat enough at the core to continue breaking down.

A bin with a small amount of ingredients and no insulation from the cold will probably just act as a storage bin until you add more scraps and temperatures warm.

Do I need to turn the compost?

During warmer months, it is ideal to turn the pile 1-2 times per week unless everything is frozen solid. Turning the bin helps to aerate the pile, offering fresh oxygen to the aerobic bacteria that are critical to this process. In cold winter, the process will stall, but it resumes during thaws.

In optimum conditions, the pile naturally heats from within, caused by the bacterial activity, and the various organisms convert the materials to earthy compost. This can take weeks or months.

Compost is so valuable and it’s a total bummer to send food waste to landfills where it rots and attracts vermin—and may be illegal. If you have long winters like we do here, that’s a lot of potential compost wasted!

Do winter compost piles heat up?

Whether or not a compost pile heats up in winter will depend on the size, contents, and conditions. The larger the pile, the more likely the inner-most core area will still heat up despite the winter weather.

I saw this with a large compost pile a neighbor had on his driveway last winter. I would pass it each day on my walks. Even on a frigid day, his cat would sleep on it, obviously enjoying some radiant heat as the snow came down. Plus, the snow flakes would melt on it—unless the temperature was far below freezing—so there was definitely some warmth in there.

A smaller pile would have much less insulation from the cold and may just be dormant during the winter.

How can I speed up winter composting?

If you really want to speed things up, first, it’s the same as summer composting: always finely chop anything you add to the pile. The smaller the bits, the faster they can break down.

Next, if you have an open compost pile, a bigger mass of greens and browns is better for heat, so make it as big as you can in winter.

If you have room, an open compost pile at least 6x6x6-feet should have enough mass to counter the winter cold. It’s the warmth within the pile that encourages the microbes (and everything else) to get busy and transform into compost.

A tarp can also help keep heat in and prevent the pile from getting too soggy.

And finally, whenever you get a warm spell, turn the pile as best you can to keep the oxygen flowing. That helps aerate it and further encourage good conditions for decomposition.

Resources

Read More

• How to Compost Without Pests (Sorry, Rats!)
• How to Build a Worm Tower for Composting
• The Most Important Fall Garden Tasks.
• Should I Use Compost Tea?
• Tips for Using Animal Manures to Enrich Your Soil
• Biochar as a Soil Amendment (Pros and Cons)

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~Melissa the Empress of Dirt ♛