1. Shred, mow or chop up all materials (not the manure). Hay especially will break down far quicker
2. Turn the heap regularly, this adds air pockets to feed all the bacteria that are breaking the compost down
3. If you can contain the heap with sides you will have greater success, less surface area exposed and drying out (pallets, wire, plastic bins etc) 4. Don't stress so much about greens and browns, of the heap is really wet add more dry/brown material if it's too dry add more green 5. DONT become obsessed as people will think your very strange, I'm barred from talking about compost at the tea table and am regularly ridiculed by my 8year old about my love of compost 🤣🤣
Is the manure you're adding fresh or well rotted? Well rotted manure is better used on the planted areas you have, rather than just added to a compost bin I agree with @Wilderbeast - hay doesn't readily break down into a crumbly mix, so is better shredded first if you want it. If you don't have enough greens to add, what you have is basically a midden - which is what we would call the area for putting all waste products from stabled horses. Compost is slightly different in it's mix
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
IIRC the OP has acquired some manure that he’d hoped to use when planting his potatoes, but it’s very fresh, so I suggested he used to as an ‘activator’ in his new compost heap. 😊
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Indeed @Fairygirl 😊 You don’t need a lot to ‘activate’ the compost, but in the past (due to my agricultural background) I’ve used up to a third manure in the heap and it’s made jolly fine compost. 😊 👍
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
As the OP didn't seem to be adding much in the way of greens, I was just mentioning the difference between a compost heap and something else, and I was wondering what the aim of the process was going to be, as it didn't seem to be a compost heap as such.
I have a lot of experience of middens
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
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4. Don't stress so much about greens and browns, of the heap is really wet add more dry/brown material if it's too dry add more green
5. DONT become obsessed as people will think your very strange, I'm barred from talking about compost at the tea table and am regularly ridiculed by my 8year old about my love of compost 🤣🤣
I agree with @Wilderbeast - hay doesn't readily break down into a crumbly mix, so is better shredded first if you want it.
If you don't have enough greens to add, what you have is basically a midden - which is what we would call the area for putting all waste products from stabled horses. Compost is slightly different in it's mix
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I have a lot of experience of middens
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...