The C:N ratio of paper is much greatly higher than that of tree leaves because there is not much Nitrogen, just lots of carbon, in paper. The C:N ratio of tree leaves varies between 40:1 and 80:1, depending on age, because the leaves will have most of the nutrients they had, including Nitrogen, when they stopped making chlorofil and we started to see the true color of the leaves. So is paper a good substitute for leaves? No, because there are no nutrients in the paper, but paper can be a carbon in the compost, provided it is a small part of the total mix.

Just to clarify, newspapers mostly use soya based inks today, simple economics dictate that because the soya based inks are much less expensive that the petroleum based inks. Whether the office paper should be recycled into your garden depends on which copier, printer, etc. the ink came from. Some of those inks have a heavy metal base while others do not, and it may not be easy to determine that.

Terry - 200 roses!!! That will take A LOT of bags!!! You will need about 3 - 4 bags/rose. Yeesh!!!! Rozannadanna - Too funny!!! That's what I was imagining my yard looking like this spring - with my dogs getting into the bags!! Hallelujah - they didn't even touch them!! cindi - this works even with wind because of those nasty, vicious thorns we're always cursing at! Greenhaven - that's what's nice about the bags - the paper stays dry inside! Liane - it is much more labor intensive in the fall - having to shred all that paper (unless you can get it from some business, etc.). In the spring - you just pick up your bags - EASY! Carol :)

So much helpful information here! Mick, I really like your bin. If I can convince myself I can successfully make my own compost, I think I will try to build one like yours next summer. For now, I have chicken wire in a rough square about 3' on a side. We used Romex staples to affix the wire to some old landscape timbers that were laying around the yard just to help it stay standing. It's in the far back of the yard under the evergreens. The spot gets a little sunlight around midday, but pretty much nothing but weed trees grow back there. I still had lots of shipping cartons I hadn't gotten around to folding up to stuff in the trash can so I used all of those. I put two layers of carton material under the grass clippings then added some of the cotton burr compost and the contents of my small paper shredder bin. I wet it down as I put each layer in, although this morning the compost was looking pretty dry so I will spray it again this evening. The yard has a significant slope to it, especially in the back, so any excess water just runs right out the back of it. I had mowed Saturday morning and dumped all the clippings in my spare trash can to hold until I could start putting them out on Sunday. I think it's a 35 gallon can. The very last bunch of clippings wouldn't fit without falling out so I left them in the mower. Sunday morning they had compressed enough to add the last bunch. When I started putting the clippings out Sunday I noticed the stuff in the middle of the trash can was quite hot to the touch. A few weeks ago I went around the flower beds and back yard cutting down all the weed trees. They are just everywhere! To get the trash men to pick up such stuff it has to be broken down and made to fit in a trash can. I piled them all up in a spot by the side of the house where nothing was growing until I could get them all cut down to fit. In the meantime all those leaves have dried out and turned brown. I'm going to start stripping off the dead leaves and small twigs to add to the compost tonight. Since they are brown now will they count as carbon instead of nitrogen? If it works to let cut plants dry and brown out in the sun to provide carbon, I can probably do that on a regular basis. Some of these weed trees have been allowed to stay for so long it's going to be a major digging operation to remove the roots, and I don't want to do that until the plants in the beds go dormant so I can hopefully remove them without losing my flowers. In the meantime, they continue to put out stems and leaves, and I continue to cut them down. I also noticed that dried grass counts as a "brown." Could I, instead of adding green grass clippings, spread them out to dry then add them as a brown? The information I found at OSU says one should mix 3 parts brown to 1 part green. I can come up with grass clippings quite often, but I'm worried about getting too much green and not enough brown, especially since that's the situation that causes bad odors. Dawn, adding sugar sounds like a great idea! I'll throw some of that in, too. I decided to run my own test of what sugar will do for a lawn. I took about a cup of sugar out and scattered it in a part of the front lawn. I dug a bed that "bulges" in one spot to allow for a lilac so I put the sugar in the grass between that "bulge" in the bed and the sidewalk to the front steps. That will be an easy spot to watch, and one I have to see every day as I walk up to the door. Still looking for the dried molasses. This is all a lot of work, but it's very exciting to think I can make my own compost and grow a nice lawn and beautiful flowers without having to use chemicals or poisons! It's been 20 years since I lived in a house (rented) where I could grow things in the ground, and this time they're actually mine to keep! I also started some lasagna in the far end of the area the previous owner used to grow tomatoes. I did buy one tomato plant and started a couple of okra plants I put in the near end. Not counting on any of them doing much this year since I got started with them so late, but come next year the far end at least should not need weeding. While I had forgotten how much work it is to keep gardens and lawns, I'd also forgotten how much fun it is and how satisfying it is to see things grow! I can't wait for next spring! Next year I will get a much earlier start on things. I'm so happy I found Gardenweb! You guys are all so very nice, so willing to help and full of so much good information, and, best of all, you garden in Oklahoma so your knowledge and advice applies to our climate and conditions. I just want to say thank you to all of you! You are a great bunch of folks and a lot of help!