"Jewels" wrote in message
...
Hi folks,

How long does compost take to rot down to something useable on the garden.
I've been building up my compost bin for about the last 6-8 months.

....

That depends on how big your compost bin is, and how full it's
been over that period. As you've progessively put more material
into it. Also it won't all be rotted down evenly throughout. Where
the temperature is highest, combined with sufficient moisture -
right in the middle near the bottom will rot quicker than the
outsides or the top layer. Which is why its thought useful
to regularly turn compost heaps to aid the process as most
bacteria work best under warm moist conditions

....


Should it 'look' like the bagged compost when it is ready?

....

Just dark brown and crumbly with not too many discernable
bits of vegetation. i.e lumps.

Although the stuff they show on gardening programmes when
they open the compost bin has probably been well filtered
beforehand. It's genuine garden compost alright - its not
exactly rocket science after all - but maybe filterd through a
1 inch sieve beforehand just to be sure.


Compost as in "bagged compost" is often just a generic term for
what people use to fill their pots with. Much of it is just peat
dug out of the ground, with or without added nutrients, which rotted
down over tens of thousands of years. While the John Innes composts
are based on loam, a combination of sand, silt, and clay, again with
added nutrient. Chosen because it offers the best combination of
both moisture retention and drainage when used in pots and trays.

But neither have very much connection with garden compost at all.



michael adams

....