A new garden hack hit the subreddit r/composting, explaining how commonly trashed or recycled newspapers could actually be used for the betterment of plant life.
The scoop
A composting Reddit user shared in the post, "I have put newspaper in my compost and it works very well."Â
Composting is a known way to turn excess meal scraps into a gardening superfood. By combining "greens" — such as leftover or rotting fruits and vegetables, and other food items — with "browns" — such as leaves, hay, and woodchips — you can create well-balanced, nutrient-rich soil.
Turns out, the newspapers that the OP mentioned actually make for a perfect addition to the "brown" side of the compost equation.
According to an article by the Sierra Club, "Except for colored and glossy paper, which might contain some toxic heavy metals, newsprint and other paper is safe to use as mulch or in compost." The article continued, "One study revealed that paper had less toxic material than straw or grass!"
How it's helping
While composting alone provides incredible benefits for both the Earth and the people whose food comes from the compost soil, this hack goes the extra green mile.
By adding newspaper to your compost, its reusability skyrockets. Rather than going on the harrowing journey of being taken to a recycling plant, you can integrate the product into an act of recycling in your own backyard.
What's better, the soil created via the compost costs you nothing, and has benefits that store-bought soil does not, including a lack of harmful chemicals. Compost soil is both better for the planet and for gardeners' wallets.
What everyone's saying
With the OP's success with the newspaper, they asked the composting forum, "I'm wondering if people put paper towel cores and toilet paper cardboard cores in their compost? And how it works out."
Some users explained their success with cardboard products but explained the importance of cutting the material up before placing it in the compost.
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If you compost your food scraps, what's your primary motivation?
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Improving my garden's soil 🌱 One commented, "I run all clean paperboard/cardboard through my crosscut shredder. As long as it's not glossy. This provides my worm bin with clean bedding and is free 'browns' for my compost bin to offset the large 'greens' I produce with a large vegetable/fruit garden."
Another user said, "Some of the best browns! Also use cardboard and thin cardstock, like cereal boxes. Just make sure there's no glue or tape and the worms eat it UP."
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