Is burning garden waste outdated in the age of composting?

Flo Headlam on bonfires vs composting. Getty images

You might decide it’s time to get the garden ready for winter. Much to cut back, prune, top lift, deadhead, restrain perhaps. If you’re lucky enough to choose one of those beautiful days, warm sun, high clouds, little or no breeze, you may throw off your hat and scarf and bask in a shower of vitamin D. When you’re finished, surrounded by a tonne of plant material, the question arises of how you take care of it. For some it’s a straightforward ‘pop it in the garden waste bin/compost bin/bag it up and take it to the municipal dump’. For others it’s equally straightforward, ‘stick it in the metal bin and burn it’.

Full disclosure, and no surprises I’m sure, I’m one of the former. I compost/recycle my garden waste. And yet I understand but don’t condone the ‘home burners’.

We have a primal relationship with fire. Throughout our evolution we’ve used it to forge tools, cook, protect ourselves from predators, perform alchemy, employed it in agriculture to return nutrients to the soil. We use it for entertainment too, it’s bonfire and firework season right now. Fire’s mercurial nature fascinates us, even to the point of criminality - but let’s not go there.

Instead, a quick deep dive into two reasons why people choose to burn or compost.

I think the elemental pull of combustion is very powerful and speaks to that primal connection we have with making fire.

There’s the convenience argument, that it’s easier to cut it all up and put it in the brazier than to put the same cut up pieces in a compost bin. Ignoring the fact that the cutting up requires similar effort. There is understandably some concern about attracting rats in your garden with a compost bin. The counter to that is a sealed bin won’t allow the vermin in. And definitely no cooked food. I think the elemental pull of combustion is very powerful and speaks to that primal connection we have with making fire.

But perhaps we need to consider the neighbours who are suddenly confronted with drifting smoke – enveloping their laundry, disrupting their quiet garden time, and possibly the aggravation of any respiratory problems. And let's not forget about the impact on wildlife. It's crucial to dismantle your bonfire before lighting to check for hedgehogs and other creatures that may be using it as a place of shelter.

A hedgehog exploring a pile of garden clippings

So burning waste is a no-no for me. Carbon release is a big one for me. The climate emergency requires us all to mitigate our actions adding to the overwhelming damage already caused. Understanding the primary effect burning has on the environment is the best argument for composting over burning.

Adding lawn clippings to the compost bin in autumn

Your garden is the biggest beneficiary of composting. Known colloquially as ‘black gold’, well-rotted garden compost is the optimum treatment for garden soil. It’s giving back to the soil much needed nutrients and helps improve soil structure. A win-win situation; you feel virtuous for all your efforts in collecting, sizing, cutting, composting. Then finally adding home garden compost to your borders, in turn reducing the amount of material that exits your garden. That simple act of keeping your waste on site, not transporting it or combusting it, is gold star behaviour.

Remember you can put so much into your compost bin. You can even reduce the volume in your council recycling bin: paper and cardboard are essential compost ingredients: a mixture of green (plant) and brown (paper) carbon products is required. Dead cut flowers, as well as vegetable peel, are all good too. Fastidious composters layer their bins but chucking it all in, the smaller the pieces the quicker they decompose, is fine.

Build your own compost bin with some pallets - it's easy to do and looks stylish

People are often put off by the effort of composting. Where to place a sometimes-unsightly structure is a huge consideration. No one wants to be looking at a black, plastic dalek-type bin. It needs to be out of sight but not too far to be prohibitive. Homemade compost bins are an economical way of getting in on the game: pallets make generous sized bins. Just remember to cover them, an old piece of carpet will suffice, to retain heat.

I guarantee the first time you offer up your black gold to your borders and then see the results in production the following year, the only fire you’ll want to light will be a scented candle by way of celebration.