Lyn The garage is the only place for me without upsetting the neighbours, young ladies on both sides and low fences at their request. Should I consider the compost heap direct supply method, the lady over the road who has already put a label on me, although living in a bungalow, can by climbing on the wardrobe in her bedroom and using binoculars see over the bushes to my heaps. As my physical appearance appears to entrance her now, what would happen if she saw more of me, I shudder to think.
Back to compost I often scattered a hand full of granular fertiliser as I turned the heap and found it a bit too damp, that increased the heat as well.
All the above plus teabags (I tear them in half) .....crushed egg shells. ...veg peelings .....cut up banana skins.....Apple cores. I don't add anything which has been cooked....no meat .....bread or dairy as I gather they can draw rats.
I’ve got access to bags of pure horse poo, no straw or bedding, that gets its steaming. I also get cardboard boxes, food packaging and junk mail from others so have lots. Ask your neighbours for any peelings or paper.
Lovely post Frank? if the binoculars don’t pick it up then nothing will?
I dont put egg shells on or paper from tea bags, dry them on the window sill or radiator then tip leaves out, they don’t rot down as quick as the heap.
Put a couple of shovels of garden soil in, that will contain lots of bugs to get it started.
Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor.
I, well, Hubby, collects egg shells in a tub then puts them on a baking tray when there's something in the oven then bash them to crumbs when they're dry.
Lyn, " back in the day" it was advised to add soil, but ( AND I MIGHT WELL BE WRONG ) I think "they" reckon there's enough " stuff" on the roots of weeds etc to get things going. The soil doesn't warm up and , as such, lowers the temperature .
I repeat, I might be wrong.
I don't add meat, but I do add the end bit of a loaf and also kitchen towel ( depending on what it's been used for )
Lyn Binoculars were not needed when we arrived at the edge of the Suez Canal and found the bridge at Kantara closed whilst the ship convoy passed. Three weeks on water rationing hot and dirty I climbed out of my vehicle stripped naked and dived in. Coming back up to loud female cheers I panicked shot out of the water and my shorts flew on while looking around for the afore said females. The Canal was just a bit wider than the ships using it and on the other side was a bus load of WAAF's waiting to cross the other way. Comments across the water were loud and various, my face a sunburned brown and crimson mixed positively Khaki, Another memory Lyn some you never forget.
Can I just make the argument for NOT turning your compost piles?
Compost is a wonderful habitat for many creatures, and turning the pile a lot will disturb them. If you're especially lucky, slow worms or grass snakes will hibernate or lay their eggs in the pile!
I just make sure I add a good mix of material - not too much wet (grass cuttings, annual weeds, hedge trimmings, kitchen waste) or dry (chopped up twigs, dead leaves, cardboard, paper) stuff all at once. As long as wet and dry go in at roughly the same rate, it'll all rot down beautifully without turning at all. Having two heaps means you can start on the second when the first is full.
Then, in spring you can spread the resulting goodness over the garden! If you wait until it's warmed up a bit then you won't disturb anything hibernating but it'll still be too early for breeding.
Oh, and whenever I empty an egg carton, finish a toilet roll or get a delivery in the post, the cardboard goes straight on the pile. Adds much-needed carbon and provides little air pockets which aid decomposition.
Andy, we all have our own thoughts and opinions on Compost making, The problem with wild life is how far do we go? Buddhism, never lift our heads in case we step on something or let everything take its chance. I saw slow worms and Adders when living in Hampshire never ever seen one up here in the N.E. Do we never dig the garden in case we kill something, tidy away rubbish because something may be under it? in my case it is usually snails.
I found with three piles turning one pile into the next one along gives the best results for compost, coming from farming stock where hard decisions must be made you have to make choices we are down to earth people who know sometimes those choices will hurt. A tidy garden of our choice or something handed over to nature which is it. Some prefer one way others another it is personal choice. I turn my compost.
You're right of course, there's a balance to be found. In fact, managed gardens are often better for wildlife than an area just left alone, due to the much higher plant biodiversity than would be naturally sustainable, so just by doing some gardening we're often helping!
I don't turn my compost (much), just try to construct it well to start with (which I can do as I have a small garden and so only have small additions rather than the huge loads of, e.g., grass one might get from a big lawn - I appreciate in a large garden this might be impractical). This is less work for me and avoids disturbing things as long as possible. But obviously, when I use the compost that's a huge disturbance!
Our gardens are really important ecosystems, and if we all try to make decisions that benefit our natural world then we can collectively have a big impact. Those decisions will vary depending on each of our particular circumstances, but it benefits everyone if we also factor in the health of our environment when making them. Just trying to fly the flag for thinking about the other users of our gardens - especially the minibeasts who are vital to the functioning of our ecosystems!
Posts
Well, I didn't think a question about compost would reap so many interesting replies. I guess I'll never be able to look at a funnel the same again!
I never would have thought to use a funnel, my OH‘s goes straight into the heap.?
Lyn The garage is the only place for me without upsetting the neighbours, young ladies on both sides and low fences at their request. Should I consider the compost heap direct supply method, the lady over the road who has already put a label on me, although living in a bungalow, can by climbing on the wardrobe in her bedroom and using binoculars see over the bushes to my heaps. As my physical appearance appears to entrance her now, what would happen if she saw more of me, I shudder to think.
Back to compost I often scattered a hand full of granular fertiliser as I turned the heap and found it a bit too damp, that increased the heat as well.
Frank.
All the above plus teabags (I tear them in half) .....crushed egg shells. ...veg peelings .....cut up banana skins.....Apple cores. I don't add anything which has been cooked....no meat .....bread or dairy as I gather they can draw rats.
Last edited: 19 October 2017 22:11:59
I’ve got access to bags of pure horse poo, no straw or bedding, that gets its steaming. I also get cardboard boxes, food packaging and junk mail from others so have lots. Ask your neighbours for any peelings or paper.
Lovely post Frank? if the binoculars don’t pick it up then nothing will?
I dont put egg shells on or paper from tea bags, dry them on the window sill or radiator then tip leaves out, they don’t rot down as quick as the heap.
Put a couple of shovels of garden soil in, that will contain lots of bugs to get it started.
I, well, Hubby, collects egg shells in a tub then puts them on a baking tray when there's something in the oven then bash them to crumbs when they're dry.
Lyn, " back in the day" it was advised to add soil, but ( AND I MIGHT WELL BE WRONG ) I think "they" reckon there's enough " stuff" on the roots of weeds etc to get things going. The soil doesn't warm up and , as such, lowers the temperature .
I repeat, I might be wrong.
I don't add meat, but I do add the end bit of a loaf and also kitchen towel ( depending on what it's been used for )
Lyn Binoculars were not needed when we arrived at the edge of the Suez Canal and found the bridge at Kantara closed whilst the ship convoy passed. Three weeks on water rationing hot and dirty I climbed out of my vehicle stripped naked and dived in. Coming back up to loud female cheers I panicked shot out of the water and my shorts flew on while looking around for the afore said females. The Canal was just a bit wider than the ships using it and on the other side was a bus load of WAAF's waiting to cross the other way. Comments across the water were loud and various, my face a sunburned brown and crimson mixed positively Khaki, Another memory Lyn some you never forget.
Frank.
Can I just make the argument for NOT turning your compost piles?
Compost is a wonderful habitat for many creatures, and turning the pile a lot will disturb them. If you're especially lucky, slow worms or grass snakes will hibernate or lay their eggs in the pile!
I just make sure I add a good mix of material - not too much wet (grass cuttings, annual weeds, hedge trimmings, kitchen waste) or dry (chopped up twigs, dead leaves, cardboard, paper) stuff all at once. As long as wet and dry go in at roughly the same rate, it'll all rot down beautifully without turning at all. Having two heaps means you can start on the second when the first is full.
Then, in spring you can spread the resulting goodness over the garden! If you wait until it's warmed up a bit then you won't disturb anything hibernating but it'll still be too early for breeding.
Oh, and whenever I empty an egg carton, finish a toilet roll or get a delivery in the post, the cardboard goes straight on the pile. Adds much-needed carbon and provides little air pockets which aid decomposition.
Andy, we all have our own thoughts and opinions on Compost making, The problem with wild life is how far do we go? Buddhism, never lift our heads in case we step on something or let everything take its chance. I saw slow worms and Adders when living in Hampshire never ever seen one up here in the N.E. Do we never dig the garden in case we kill something, tidy away rubbish because something may be under it? in my case it is usually snails.
I found with three piles turning one pile into the next one along gives the best results for compost, coming from farming stock where hard decisions must be made you have to make choices we are down to earth people who know sometimes those choices will hurt. A tidy garden of our choice or something handed over to nature which is it. Some prefer one way others another it is personal choice. I turn my compost.
Frank.
Hi Frank - thanks for your reply!
You're right of course, there's a balance to be found. In fact, managed gardens are often better for wildlife than an area just left alone, due to the much higher plant biodiversity than would be naturally sustainable, so just by doing some gardening we're often helping!
I don't turn my compost (much), just try to construct it well to start with (which I can do as I have a small garden and so only have small additions rather than the huge loads of, e.g., grass one might get from a big lawn - I appreciate in a large garden this might be impractical). This is less work for me and avoids disturbing things as long as possible. But obviously, when I use the compost that's a huge disturbance!
Our gardens are really important ecosystems, and if we all try to make decisions that benefit our natural world then we can collectively have a big impact. Those decisions will vary depending on each of our particular circumstances, but it benefits everyone if we also factor in the health of our environment when making them. Just trying to fly the flag for thinking about the other users of our gardens - especially the minibeasts who are vital to the functioning of our ecosystems!
Enjoy your gardening