There really is little that you need to do when cold composting. This is essentially a 鈥渨ait for it to rot鈥 method. Turn the pile or mix it when you add new ingredients. There is no particular temperature to achieve or exceed; let nature take its course. If you make your pile one of primarily food waste, it could be a slimy rotting mess. (Ever seen food rot in a bag or container without benefit of browns or greens?) It would be better to add natural ingredients as you would a hot compost (see the lists above in both the hot/cold sections). Certainly some of it will be 鈥渞eady鈥 before other of it (this might be on the bottom or on the side) simply because the older portions will have had more time to rot. If you have an abundance of compostibles, it might be worth having more than one pile. Then you will have a better track of what’s ready when.
There really is little that you need to do when cold composting. This is essentially a 鈥渨ait for it to rot鈥 method. Turn the pile or mix it when you add new ingredients. There is no particular temperature to achieve or exceed; let nature take its course. If you make your pile one of primarily food waste, it could be a slimy rotting mess. (Ever seen food rot in a bag or container without benefit of browns or greens?) It would be better to add natural ingredients as you would a hot compost (see the lists above in both the hot/cold sections). Certainly some of it will be 鈥渞eady鈥 before other of it (this might be on the bottom or on the side) simply because the older portions will have had more time to rot. If you have an abundance of compostibles, it might be worth having more than one pile. Then you will have a better track of what’s ready when.