Many gardeners believe that because bananas are not a native fruit, banana peels should not be composted. The shell should also only rot very slowly. However, that is not entirely correct. You can compost banana peels if you keep a few things in mind.

In principle, banana peels can go in the compost

Can banana peel go in the compost?

Even if the banana is not a native fruit, you are welcome to put the peel on the compost. There are even gardeners who swear by banana peels as fertilizer. The peel contains large amounts of potassium and magnesium.

The slow rotting of the peel that is often feared can be accelerated by cutting the banana peel into small pieces beforehand.

However, not every banana peel belongs in the compost.

Compost banana peel

  • Only compost untreated bananas
  • cut into small pieces beforehand
  • mix with other green waste

You can also lay the trays directly on flower beds, especially under roses, and don't necessarily have to put them in the compost.

You should not compost too large quantities of banana peels and other citrus fruits at once. Then the compost later contains too high a concentration of individual nutrients.

Not every banana peel should be composted

Like many other tropical fruits, the banana is often contaminated with pollutants because it was sprayed. It is therefore better not to compost cheap bananas from the supermarket so that you do not enrich the soil with pesticides later.

However, you can safely compost bananas that are organic and have not been pretreated.

If you are not sure whether the bananas are contaminated or not, it is better to dispose of them in the household waste. Under no circumstances should you use compost from treated banana peels for fertilizing vegetable beds.

Prepare banana peels for compost

So that the banana peel rots quickly, you should first cut it into small pieces.

Sprinkle a layer of other compost materials over the trays or bury them a bit in the compost.

Banana peel for roses and other flowering plants

Banana peel is particularly popular with rose gardeners. Roses need a lot of potassium and magnesium, two nutrients found in the peel.

Experienced gardeners do not compost the banana peel, but chop it very small and place it on the ground under the roses. The bits are easily raked into the substrate and will rot there over time. Often the shells are also mixed with coffee grounds, resulting in an even higher quality fertilizer.

As they rot, they slowly release the desired nutrients into the soil. Over-fertilization of the roses, which is more common when using mineral fertilizers, can be avoided in this way.

tips

Basically, green waste and kitchen leftovers rot faster if you chop them up beforehand. Mixing different types of waste also speeds up rotting and also makes for a higher quality fertilizer.

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