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Still have questions about composting
susananwms
Posts: 213
I have read up and googled so much about composting that I know more now but have also confused myself on a lot of things
I currently have a cold composting bin but learnt about the greens and browns (after having huge mess in my bin)
I now only add grass clippings, shredded newspaper and cardboard, veg, salad and fruit peelings, cut up flowers and soft stemmed plants
I do not add onions, twigs, privet, waste food or weeds except for nettles
I now have waste that sometimes heats up and get warm and breaks down easily but more by chance than by my experience
I have been looking at the Hotbin Mk2 (200 LITRES) but was discouraged because was told that because I live alone with a medium small sized garden I would not produce enough waste to feed the bin often enough and it is a big expense for something that might not work. I do not feel that the 100 litre would be big enough
My questions
If I got a Hotbin Mk2 I cannot see that I would be doing anything different ie cutting stuff up but would be able to add much more ie more kitchen waste, twigs, weeds, tougher leaves. If I was not able to 'feed' it enough to keep the temp up what would happen? Would stuff still rot down without worms or insects if it became cold? Is it something that I would probably not be able to use in Winter? Would love to hear from anyone who has experience of one of these
In my cold bin I used to layer ie green stuff then paper etc but have now started mixing stuff in a bin before adding......I do not know where I have picked this up from.... but should I then add and stir and mix into the previous stuff I have put in or should I just be adding and leaving? Also I cannot reach the bottom to turn it all so hopefully that is already composted thoroughly. Think I am beginning to mix up info on the two types of composting
I have also looked at the bins on rollers that you turn every week. I dont get this at all as if it heats up at all would it not just cool it down when turned?
Basicaly i want a smaller bin that composts quicker than my 330 litre one which I can never fill anyway. The hotbin and the roller bins sound good because they are smaller and also could be put around a corner on my patio releasing a bit more garden by the removal of the big one I have. Sorry for the long post but would appreciate some advice on best way to go even if it is to stick with what i am doing now
I currently have a cold composting bin but learnt about the greens and browns (after having huge mess in my bin)
I now only add grass clippings, shredded newspaper and cardboard, veg, salad and fruit peelings, cut up flowers and soft stemmed plants
I do not add onions, twigs, privet, waste food or weeds except for nettles
I now have waste that sometimes heats up and get warm and breaks down easily but more by chance than by my experience
I have been looking at the Hotbin Mk2 (200 LITRES) but was discouraged because was told that because I live alone with a medium small sized garden I would not produce enough waste to feed the bin often enough and it is a big expense for something that might not work. I do not feel that the 100 litre would be big enough
My questions
If I got a Hotbin Mk2 I cannot see that I would be doing anything different ie cutting stuff up but would be able to add much more ie more kitchen waste, twigs, weeds, tougher leaves. If I was not able to 'feed' it enough to keep the temp up what would happen? Would stuff still rot down without worms or insects if it became cold? Is it something that I would probably not be able to use in Winter? Would love to hear from anyone who has experience of one of these
In my cold bin I used to layer ie green stuff then paper etc but have now started mixing stuff in a bin before adding......I do not know where I have picked this up from.... but should I then add and stir and mix into the previous stuff I have put in or should I just be adding and leaving? Also I cannot reach the bottom to turn it all so hopefully that is already composted thoroughly. Think I am beginning to mix up info on the two types of composting
I have also looked at the bins on rollers that you turn every week. I dont get this at all as if it heats up at all would it not just cool it down when turned?
Basicaly i want a smaller bin that composts quicker than my 330 litre one which I can never fill anyway. The hotbin and the roller bins sound good because they are smaller and also could be put around a corner on my patio releasing a bit more garden by the removal of the big one I have. Sorry for the long post but would appreciate some advice on best way to go even if it is to stick with what i am doing now
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Posts
My own view is that you might be better off with 2 smaller 'normal' compost bins. You can keep your existing large bin - you don't need to fill it before you empty it - and buy a smaller bin to sit alongside it.
My preferred (successful) method of composting is to pile dead headings, prunings, cut backs etc on the lawn and then chop it all up with the lawn mower. The plants and twiggier stuff get chopped and mixed with nitrogenous lawn clippings and it all gets thrown in the bin.
I also layer with shredded paper and vegetable waste - but only taking enough care to ensure there's never a really thick layer of either slimy, smelly grass cuttings or bone dry twiggy matter. It's just a compost bin - precision doesn't matter.
I often have a bit of a stir round with the garden fork just to mix things a bit and get drier stuff into the moister stuff - but it's only the top 2' or so - not a full turn of the bin. I also throw in a watering can of water once a week.
If your 2 bins are next to each other you can turn bin 1 into bin 2 when bin 1 is nearly full - this will aerate and reactivate the composting process. The contents of bin 2 can then be left to 'cook' for a few months without further intervention (just make sure it doesn't dry out) while you start filling bin 1 again.
By the time bin 1 is full the contents of bin 2 may be sufficiently cooked to start using it. So you use the contents of bin 2, turn bin 1 into bin 2 and start filling bin 1 again.
I think the main secret to faster composting is a good mix of brown and green (you already know that) and chopping stuff up nice and small so there's lots of surface area for the bacteria etc to work on. You can use secateurs etc but a shredder (optional - and only for dry twiggy matter) or a lawn mower will do it finer, faster and better. You can 'save' stuff for chopping if you only produce very small amounts at a time. The other main thing is to keep the bin moist - not wet but slightly damp. A dry bin takes years to break down.
The only plant based things I don't put in my bin are weeds I think may survive the composting process and cause a problem round the garden (bindweed, ground elder etc) and potatoes - which always seem to sprout and grow😟