{"id":25410,"date":"2025-01-27T14:09:40","date_gmt":"2025-01-27T19:09:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/?p=25410"},"modified":"2025-01-27T14:09:40","modified_gmt":"2025-01-27T19:09:40","slug":"can-i-leave-a-tumbler-style-composter-outside-during-the-winter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2025\/01\/27\/can-i-leave-a-tumbler-style-composter-outside-during-the-winter\/","title":{"rendered":"Can I leave a tumbler-style composter outside during the winter?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Question:<\/h3>\n

I have a black plastic tumbler-style composter. Is it safe to keep outdoors in the winter? It has a lot of “debris” inside that isn’t quite ready for spreading in the garden…can I keep all of that in the composter over the winter? Is there a risk of freezing and the plastic cracking? Should I cover with a tarp to insulate it?<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Answer:<\/span><\/p>\n

Jonathan Foster, Home Horticulture Outreach Professional<\/em><\/span><\/div>\n
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You should be fine leaving it outside during the winter. I have a small one myself that has sat in the same place for years now, through all seasons, without problems. It’s pretty tough stuff, so unless it’s crammed absolutely to bursting with soaked material (the ice expansion risk), I wouldn’t stress.<\/p>\n

Happy gardening.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Question: I have a black plastic tumbler-style composter. Is it safe to keep outdoors in the winter? It has a lot of “debris” inside that isn’t quite ready for spreading in the garden…can I keep all of that in the composter over the winter? Is there a risk of freezing and the plastic cracking? Should […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":53,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[199,207],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25410","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ask","category-soil"],"yoast_head":"\nCan I leave a tumbler-style composter outside during the winter? - Cooperative Extension: Garden and Yard - University of Maine Cooperative Extension<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2025\/01\/27\/can-i-leave-a-tumbler-style-composter-outside-during-the-winter\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Can I leave a tumbler-style composter outside during the winter? - Cooperative Extension: Garden and Yard - University of Maine Cooperative Extension\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Question: I have a black plastic tumbler-style composter. 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