Whether it’s piles of fruit and seeds for birds, coffee grounds to boost lawn growth or banana peels to throw in your compost, there’s always something unusual you should be leaving out in your garden pretty much all year round, according to popular garden hacks, tips and tricks.

One piece of unusual advice to boost your garden with this spring involves hair. Actual human hair, although animal fur and hair can also work. That’s not to feed birds with, but in fact is a way to boost the quality of your garden soil through composting.

According to Richard King, Director at Dino Decking and garden expert, there’s more than just teabags and potato peel that can go in your compost bin. 

In fact, hair and feathers can both be added to compost to enrich it with nutrients which will in turn help your garden grow this spring and beyond.

Richard said: “As we start spring coming in with longer days and warmer temperatures, gardeners will now see their compost piles thrive and for those who are just starting theirs, now is a great time to get recycling! 

“Compost heaps or compost bins are great for the soil, feeding plants rich nutrients and are a great way to give back to nature. By composting these often-overlooked materials, you’re reducing waste while enriching your soil with diverse nutrients.

“It may sound slightly gross, but both pet animal and human hair are great for composting. Hair is rich in nitrogen which helps the other materials break down faster and contributes to a fertile final product. 

“Hair can also help aerate compost piles, but too much may lump together in large amounts, and can actually slow decomposition. Mixing the hair with dry materials like straw allows you to integrate it more efficiently.”

If you don’t feel like trimming your mullet into the compost bin, you can also gather up feathers and add these to compost instead.

He continued: “Similar to hair, bird feathers are a fantastic nitrogen source for compost piles, adding protein and enriching the soil’s organic matter.

“However, they can take a long time to break down, so breaking them up into smaller pieces can help them to decompose and contribute to a healthy, diverse compost.”

If you want to keep things traditional, compost will also thrive on fruits like bananas, apples and pears, including potato peel, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and most British crops.

Just be careful adding anything acidic like onions, lemons, limes or grapefruits in large quantities, as these can affect the acid levels of your soil.