[st0ne5ish]

I have a large apple tree in the back garden and tons of apples, can I chuck them all on a compost bin together? Will it produce anything decent?

[Trillium]

You'd be much better off adding them in layers in between layers of green stuff like pulled bean plants, brassica leaves, etc, and some browns like paper bags, straw,etc so that you get a better heat buildup and then breakdown into compost.

To dump all the apples at once into the compost would create a big stinky mess with thousands of fruit flies and scavenging animals hanging about.

[solway cropper]

I agree with Trillium, don't put them all in at once. last year I dumped several buckets of apple pulp from cider making into the daleks and the fruit flies were unbelievable. Also the apple mess was fermenting so I figure I also got a lot of drunken worms. 

[sunshineband]

My daughter throws the rotten looking windfalls straight into the compost bin, but in a single layer, with other autumn clearup ontop of them, like chopped beans stems & squash leaves etc, togtehr with a good helping of shredded paper.

Works a treat 

[st0ne5ish]

Cool thanks for the replies, I won't put them all on at once, will try and find some other stuff to layer them, having a new plot means I don't have that much stuff available for the heaps at the mo.

[Goosegirl]

I agree that, if you have a lot, that they shouldn't be put in all at once - they are also acidic which can affect the balance of the compost heap. If you don't have too many, then it should be ok - perhaps a sprinkling of accelerator, or some calcified seaweed meal to help with the acidity?

[sunshineband]

Cool thanks for the replies, I won't put them all on at once, will try and find some other stuff to layer them, having a new plot means I don't have that much stuff available for the heaps at the mo.

Is your plot bare then?

If not, you can compost weed tops too 

[st0ne5ish]

Cool thanks for the replies, I won't put them all on at once, will try and find some other stuff to layer them, having a new plot means I don't have that much stuff available for the heaps at the mo.

Is your plot bare then?

If not, you can compost weed tops too 

Yeah it's a new allotment on a freshly ploughed field, I'll just go round cutting random hedges

[sunshineband]

Always difficult without any greenstuff.... don't denude the area of bushes though 

If your land used to be pasture, look out for those orange wireworms when you are digging and pick them out. Saves them munhcing holes in your crops next season