I'm pretty inconsistent, but occasionally, out of convenience, I toss weeds I've pulled around the yard into the compost bin. Should I be getting rid of these completely? What about leaves of weeds, such as dandelions, are those o.k.? I'm worried I'll be planting weeds the next time I harvest my compost.

It is my understanding that if your compost is balanced correctly, the heat that is generated should kill most weed seeds. If you have any really nasty weeds that are trying to take over your garden , I would skip adding those to the pile just to be safe. I learned the hard way to pick out walnuts when my tree added them to the pile. They threatened to take over the yard!

Hi ........ weeds in compost can be a tricky thing. The best solution is this: Cut off the root ends (usually with scissors), and make sure to cut off any seeds or flowers which may contain seeds. With this method you can be reasonably sure not to encourage any weed growth in your garden. Do NOT put in any Thistle weeds..... their roots are not destroyed by the compost.

If the weeds have gone to seed DO NOT put them into the compost pile unless it is very hot and then only into the middle, same goes for roots of sorrel dock, thisle. You need a pile of 140 degrees for a week to kill seeds of many weeds....remember a lot of weed seeds will survive fire, and sprout at the first rain.