compost dilema
Potty Lotty
Posts: 65
Right, I have moved into a north slightly east facing garden (house adjoining) and am starting to compost. I have all the blurb on what and how but am just concerned that i have never really been much good at composting before. I have inherited with the garden a big green bin with a black base with an air pillar in the middle. The dilema is where to site this bin for maximum effect. I have put it on slabs as there is little space that has sun, on the earth. Will the compost do its thing here? It slightly overhangs some earth so think that worms will get in if they are determined but have not used one of these bins before and wonder at its efficacy. Any thoughts greatfully heard. The garden, by the way, is a bit in need of nutrients and oomph as it is lovely but a bit jaded round the edges (a bit like me!) I need to get as much compost as possible in a shortish time. In the meantime I am digging well rotted manure in as and when.
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Its best if you can get your compost directly on the soil, but sometimes weve just got to work with what weve got! You can always put a shovel full of garden soil in if you want to boost worms, bacteria etc. Heat is a big deal if you want your compost to cook quickly, so the sunny spot sounds good. Is there any chance you could get a second bin? That way you wont be adding fresh stuff to almost done compost , you can fill one bin wile the othe is cooking. Turning your compost often will also help it to break down.
I generally use the pit method for composting, im not really up for turning heaps and lumping stuff around!
what is the pit method? I too would rather not turn as have a shoulder issue at the mo!
this bin has a hatch at the bottom to take out composted material as it is ready but it seems to be very cold in there but the matierial is all new really as only started it a few weeks ago. I have put in some earth, rotted manure, cardboard, cuttings all shredded and anything that can conceivably rot down.
There wont be much composting going on in your bin at the moment im afraid,it needs to be much warmer, sorry.
I sometimes make compost heaps in out of the way spots, behind the shrubs or what ever, mainly in the summer when ive got lots of stuff to compost, then when the winter comes, i just cover it with soil and leave it to break down, it takes longer than a conventional method, but i just want to add goodness rather than mulch the whole garden.
What a fab idea, I have some spots where I could dig holes and do just that as this garen needs goodness as everything is looking a bit tired. It has been planted out really well with lots of thought and super shrubs etc but I think many years ago by an avid gardener. But it has been neglected for the last few (5-10yrs ish) years and needs to be rediscovered and replenished. It is very exciting and feels like the lost gardens in cornwall (only much smaller
) I am finding all sorts of lovely things. It has a watering system buried underground serving all the garden, plus electrics to the sheds with lovely ornaments and plants being unearthed everytime I have time to go and do some gardening. Wha fun
I hope we will get to see pictures as things come into flower
you will! I am really enjoying this forum while I can do less in the garden but am sure it will go quiet here in a few weeks
I do a combination of both. I've drilled holes into two large plastic garbage cans, and fill those up (they are currently sitting outside the back garage door for easy winter access.. summer time they are across the yard).. both situated on gravel with drainage holes drilled into the bottom. To start, I fill a few inches of the bottom with torn cardboard to help retain a bit of moisture. Then goes in the contents of my kitchen counter bin.. which is usually a mix of browns and greens. Newspaper lined, veg peelings, egg cartons, paper towels, remains from dinner plates, etc. No meat or dairy (the dog eats those, composting of a different sort!), but pretty much everything else goes in. My family of four fills two garbage cans with material each winter.. which is why we have two, but one would be fine too. Come spring, I just dump the entire thing around my rhubarb and blackberries (un-composted) and cover with a layer of newspaper and leaves/grass clippings. If you're into digging, you could just dump it down into a trench and then cover it all back up, rather than doing it daily as you empty your kitchen counter bin. During the summer I fill them both back up again, adding in shoves of garden soil occasionally to introduce bacteria and worms. Come fall I dump it over the veg beds semi- composted and cover it again with newspaper and grass clippings. It's worked fantastic for me, with minimal effort. In the spring when I plant up I still find random identifiable things like corn cobs or whole potatoes.. but most things have become a lovely rich layer for my new plants. Obviously this won't work for weeds with seeds, etc. as it doesn't get hot.. but you could build a separate thing down at the bottom of your garden for that sort of item. Since my mulch on my gardens is so thick with grass clippings and leaves, I just pull out a weed and put it down on top the mulch before it sets seeds.. and the sun kills it off. Nasty weeds with seeds or diseased plants go into the garbage! I've not had any trouble with pests, but if you have things in your garden you may be better off trenching.
i would love to try one of those rotary compost bins, but it would be a bit of an expensive experiment if its pants!
Hi blue onion, another good idea! I have a waste bin with lid and a water butt not being used and I have a place outside the back door which will save trecking down the garden with every kitchen bin of compost material. Thank you for that idea.
bekkie, i investigated the rotary bin idea and came up with lots of negative comments as the bins get so heavy it can be a bit of nightmare turning them without them falling over and causing a bit of damage, but saying that I found a lovely twin rotary one that was supposed to be fast at composting and not too heavy as each one was obviously smaller but it was expensive (about£90) and like you I didn't want to fork out that much to find ut that it didn't do what it said on the tin! Advantage though was that you fill up one side, close it, turn it and it produces good compost in about 6 weeks, while you fill up the other side and then start the process again, sounds good but haven't gone down that route yet. Also it was waist height and on a solid metal frame that made it more stable apparently. I have a birthday coming up!!