It should be as moist as a damp sponge, but no more wet than that. The size of the compost pile also will make a difference in whether it cooks or not. A pile must be at least 3 foot square. Mix Well Just about any pile of yard waste will eventually rot down to compost, but the proper combination of ingredients will get the pile hotter quicker thus giving you the rich fertilizer you want sooner. Browns are such things as straw, wood chips, autumn leaves and sawdust.
Greens are grass clippings, coffee grounds, kitchen scrapes and horse manure.
The ingredients are usually layered to begin. You could start by filling your preferred bin with a six inch layer of brown material such as leaves and then topping that with a three inch layer of green material such as grass clippings or kitchen scrapes. Continue this layering until you have a pile of sufficient size. Now you can sit back and watch your recipe cook. A good way to judge your efforts is with a compost thermometer.