Materials	Carbon Nitrogen	C:N	Details
Hair	Nitrogen	3:1	Good source of nitrogen. Make sure you scatter, so it doesn’t clump.
Blood meal	Nitrogen
Shrimp Waste	Nitrogen	3.4	Can be smelly – bury to avoid attracting pests
Aged Chicken Manure	Nitrogen	10:1	If dry use as a carbon
Egg shells	Nitrogen	12-15:1	Make sure to crush these before adding. source of calcium
Apples, fallen –aged over W	Nitrogen	7-13:1
Vegetable peels and scraps	Nitrogen	13:1	Kitchen scraps are a great source of nitrogen – bury in pile
Green Grass clippings	Nitrogen	~18:1	When green can be used as a Nitrogen
Kelp (seaweed)	Carbon	19:1	Good source of potassium (perfect for growing potatoes!). Use sparingly.
Algae, seaweed and lake moss	Nitrogen	19:1	Good source of nutrients and minerals.
Manure from herbivores	Nitrogen	20:1	Best if known to come from a herbivore
Clover	Nitrogen	23:1	Add it for a bit of luck! Early is best, before it has seeds.
Coffee grounds (and filters)	Nitrogen	23:1	Great source of nitrogen and worms love coffee grounds!
Tea leaves	Carbon	25:1	Best if shredded to help it break down quicker
Ashes (wood, not coal)	Neutral	25:1	Use only real wood ashes. Use sparingly as a pest deterrent. No Duraflame ashes.
Oak leaves	Carbon	26:1	Shredding or chopping will help it break down quicker
Flowers	Nitrogen		Green use as Nitrogen, dried use as carbon
Hay	Nitrogen	15-32:1	The best kind is hay that is not suitable for livestock and is starting to decay on its own.
Feathers	Nitrogen		Slow to break down, shred if possible to speed up process
Cotton Bur	Nitrogen	30:1	Great to use to jump start your pile or warm it up
Weeds	Nitrogen	30:1	Don’t add if your concerned about spreading the seeds
General Garden Waste	Neutral	30:1	Clippings from plants, stalks, dead flowers, etc. Excellent mix with leaves
Fruit wastes	Nitrogen	35:1	Can attract flies; bury scraps in pile.
Fruit peels (not limes)	Nitrogen	33:1	Best if you cut them up to small pieces. Lime peels are too acidic.
Peanut hulls	Carbon	50:1	Shredding or chopping will help it break down quicker
Dried Grass clippings	Carbon		Make sure they are not too wet and mix with dry leaves for best results.
Leaves	Carbon	~60:1	Shredding or chopping it up will help it break down quicker
Hedge Clippings	Carbon	53:1	Shredding or chopping it up will help it break down quicker
Cornstalks, corn cobs	Carbon	65:1	A little tricky, so shred and/or break down and mix well into pile.
Wheat straw	Carbon	80:1	Best if shredded to help it break down quicker
Oat straw	Carbon	96:1	Shredding or chopping will help it break down quicker
Pine needles and cones	Carbon	60:1 - 110:1	Shredding or chopping will help it break down quicker
Newspaper	Carbon	170:1	Shredding or chopping will help it break down quicker
Cardboard	Carbon	225:1	If you have lots of this, consider recycling it. Otherwise, shred into small pieces in pile.
Sawdust and wood shavings	Carbon	325:1	Preferably not from kiln-dried wood. Pressure treated lumber contains arsenic.
Dryer lint	Carbon		Yum, lint. Make sure you moisten it a little before you add it.
Paper	Carbon	400:1	Shredding will help it break down quicker
Sawdust	Carbon	500:1	Use in moderate amounts. Do not use pressure treated lumber sawdust
Nut shells	Carbon		Shredding or chopping will help it break down quicker