Can I put coffee grounds in my compost bin?

YES 🎉

You can put coffee grounds into your composting bin!

How to Compost Coffee Grounds: A Detailed Guide

Coffee grounds are an excellent addition to any compost pile. With over 2 billion cups of coffee consumed daily worldwide, recycling used coffee grounds keeps this nutrient-rich material out of landfills. This guide covers everything you need to know about composting with coffee grounds.

Why Coffee Grounds Are Great for Composting

Coffee grounds offer numerous benefits when added to a compost pile:

High in nitrogen: Coffee grounds contain around 2% nitrogen by volume, providing an essential nutrient for healthy microbial activity during the composting process. Nitrogen speeds up decomposition.
Moist texture: The moist grounds help achieve the right balance of wet and dry materials for efficient composting. Their texture also creates air pockets for proper aeration.
Nutrients for plants: The grounds contain nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, and other nutrients that enrich finished compost to nourish plants.
Heat generation: As a "green" compost ingredient, grounds generate heat to accelerate breakdown of materials. Maintaining high temperatures destroys pathogens and weed seeds.

How Much Coffee to Add to Compost

When composting with coffee grounds:

Limit grounds to 10-20% of total compost volume
Mix grounds throughout compost pile, rather than concentrating in one area
Pair grounds with high-carbon "browns" like leaves, straw, or paper
If compost smells ammonia-like, reduce coffee and add more browns

Using Coffee Grounds as Garden Mulch

Applying used grounds directly in the garden as mulch around plants is an easy way to recycle them.

As mulch, the grounds:

Add organic matter and nutrients to the soil as they break down
Help retain soil moisture
May suppress weeds and deter pests like slugs and ants

Rake fresh grounds into the top inches of soil every few weeks to prevent them from forming an impenetrable mat on the surface.

Coffee Grounds FAQs

Can you compost coffee filters?

Yes. Paper coffee filters break down well in compost.

Do worm bins like coffee grounds?

Worms can process modest amounts of coffee. Limit grounds to 1/8 or less of total worm bin bedding.

What about coffee pulp and husks?

The pulp and husk byproducts from coffee processing also make good compost materials. Use in moderation.

Conclusion

Composting coffee grounds enables you to recycle a daily organic waste product into a valuable soil amendment for fertilizing plants. Follow basic guidelines on coffee quantities and browns-to-greens balance to create a well-functioning compost system. Applying grounds directly around plants when possible provides supplemental nutrition and other possible benefits like pest and weed deterrence. Overall, reusing coffee waste through composting contributes to a healthy garden environment.