I tosse some kitchen scraps into my compost, and suddenly these yellow sprouts appeared – i’m pretty sure they’re squash or pumpkin seeds. At the same time, there’s a greenish/blue mold spreading around them.
Is this normal in a compost pile? Should i just mix it back in, or removed the sprouts? Curious if the is a good sign of activity or if it means something is wrong
by Adventurous-Spite274
12 Comments
Certainly not a bad sign. Just mix them in unless you want some squash plants.
Lots of plant, mold, and microscopic critter food in there. It’s all good!
It’s got a ton of nutrients! Mold is good. It’ll help break everything down faster
All kinds of stuff grows in compost. It’s a soup of living stuff. Even stuff you throw in there that you think you’re getting rid of, can suddenly spring back to life. Potatoes, tomatoes, onions, garlic, et al. It means everything is really good.
If you don’t want volunteer crops in your compost just stir them in and eventually they will become the food for the next thing that wants to grow.
Because that’s what seeds do
Seeds gonna sprout they just need moisture and warmth
The two questions kind of answer themselves, really
Because they can
A regular, un-pushed backyard compost might not get hot enough to kill a lot of seeds. Every year, there are thousands of volunteer squash. Usually the harder gourds, pumpkins and winter squash. Some seeds actually need to be broken open before they will germinate and the decent amount of heat in a typical pile is a positive factor for birdhouse gourds and close relatives.
My Suggestion: make the pile hotter.
What your pile hotter? You’ll usually want to increase oxygen. This means turning daily and using smaller pieces when tearing up cardboard or leaves. You might also have to increase your volume, maybe? It’s a bit easier to achieve higher temps.
Don’t let you pile dry out- to get a higher temp, it’s important to keep your moisture in a reasonable range. Drying out could kill your microbes. Soaking the pile can cause suffocation of the lil’ buggers.
Yeah, that’s totally normal! Compost piles are basically a microorganism party, so seeing mold and the occasional sprouting seed is expected. If you don’t want volunteer plants, just mix everything back in and they’ll break down. The mold is actually a good sign of decomposition happening.
Life finds a way!
Their spirit shall not be squashed.