pencil sharpeners

working in a school there are lots of pencil sharpeners and shavings thrown out--would they be good to add to my compost

Hmmmm.... I can't see why not - wood, graphite... I'm fairly certain the paint is non-toxic (it would have to be for the amount of pencil chewing that goes on....) the texture is nice, it would just take an awful lot to make an impact - but certainly better than dumping it in the landfill, doncha think?

Same here, it couldn't hurt and it's better in your compost than in the landfill as PC says.

thanks--i thought the same but didn't know about the lead--i might have one of the students empty out all the pencil shavings once a week for me-

Maybe the teachers lounge or office would contribute coffee grinds too

i could do that too--i'll get to be known as the school bag lady!

and nothing wrong with that! Kids seem more accepting of oddities with a reason, like this, than adults sometimes.

except for your own kids who just think your odd (-:

Don't forget waste paper to add as a brown....

If you put a clean fairly large sized container in the lounge with a note of explanation, I'll bet you'll get all the coffee ground and other waste on a regular basis. Just a short note about what goes into compost, no meat or dairy. My DH does it at his job, we started with a 3 gal ice cream container with a lid. The boss has now given permission to move it up to a 5 gal covered bucket. Thinks it's a pretty neat idea and DH has everybody hooked. I'll send it fresh veggies as pay back this summer, so we all win!

great ideas! thanks

Here's an article on:
"163 Things You Can Compost":
http://www.plantea.com/compost-materials.htm

I might take issue with:
Tobacco - may contain a virus which can spread to tomatoes
Potato chips, pickles - salt is toxic to plants depending on quantity
Comics - I just don't know if the color inks are safe.
Peanut butter, cheese, salad (if dressed), pie crust - too much fat/oil possibly
Vacume cleaner bag contents, clothes lint, felt - may contain petroleum-based fibers, but OK if just natural fibers such as cotton, wool, flax, etc.)
Elmer's glue - I have no idea if this is safe
Pencil shavings - I have no idea if the resins, paint, and graphite is safe

I guess I err on the side of caution. If the point is to make good pure garden soil, why risk composting something that may be bad for plants, people, the environment? As always, I wish there were more scientists here.

This message was edited Apr 11, 2008 3:11 PM

I take that list with a grain of salt- so to speak. Old leather garden gloves will rot I guess but I bet they'll be popping up a while. Cotton gin trash-have heard cotton uses lots of chems, yes?
But I don't want to get sidetracked.

Elmers glue I think is a simple kind of protein- kids make something like it with household things.

Crayons? Wax and pigment?

Pagancat...please forgive, but this one needs reposting. I down loaded this to my compost files months ago and it has been extreemly helpfull. I'm not sure protocal allows me to do this, and if I offend I'm truly sorry.

Pagancat
Gainesboro, TN
(Zone 6b)
November 2, 2007
6:22 PM
Post #4152156

Okay, here's some ratios of common stuff that can be composted, from the Composting 101 site. ( [HYPERLINK@www.composting101.com])

Remember that what you're shooting for is around a 30:1 ratio. The first number is always the carbon content (and everything seems to contain more carbon than nitrogen, it's just how much that really matters).

Estimated Carbon-to-Nitrogen Ratios
Browns = High Carbon C:N
Ashes, wood 25:1
Cardboard, shredded 350:1
Corn stalks 75:1
Fruit waste 35:1
Leaves 60:1
Newspaper, shredded 175:1
Peanut shells 35:1
Pine needles 80:1
Sawdust 325:1
Straw 75:1
Wood chips 400:1

No forgiveness necessary - thanks for bringing it back up!

Yes, ha ha - garden gloves popping up would be kind of creepy.

LOL I just wanted to say that that is more a list of things that won't cause real problems in compost, as opposed to "things I would actively seeek out to add to compost"