Can I Compost Whole Fruits and Veggies or Just Food Scraps?

by Chris
(United States)

I’ve heard that vegetable and fruit scraps are good for composting but what about whole fruits like grapes and strawberries? I had a bunch that weren’t eaten and have molded and wasn’t sure if this is good or bad for compost.

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Feb 18, 2012
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Moldy Fruit is Halfway There
by: Compost Junkie Dave

composting rotten fruit

Hey Chris,

Yes, please do compost your moldy fruit and vegetables. The way I see it is that these fruits and veggies are already halfway there in terms of becoming compost. Don’t you agree?

If you’re going to do this with larger fruits, like apples, melons, etc. I highly recommend chopping them up when you add them to your compost pile. What I like to do is wait for my kitchen compost container to fill up and then add the entire thing to my compost pile at once. When I do this, I will take out a garden spade and chop up all the larger fruits and veggies into smaller pieces. This will help them break down more quickly. The more surface area on your composting ingredients, the more area for your compost microbes to FEAST!

Let me know if you have any other questions.

D

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