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Plastic compost bin in small garden - looking for advice
I sent off for a subsidised compost bin in the hope of reducing our
household waste output (kitchen scraps and guinea pig bedding, mostly - we already recycle as much as we can). Now it has arrived, it looks enormous in our very small garden, even though it is the smaller of the two on offer (220 litre size). I have been reading the archives on this group and becoming more and more daunted. I have a few specific questions - sorry if they have all been answered befo 1. Do I really need to put the thing in a sunny spot? It takes up the whole width of our flower bed, and would have to go in the spot currently used by a lovely plant that pops up all by itself every summer. 2. Should I raise it up on bricks to add air? Wouldn't this allow rats/foxes to get in and fish out the food scraps? We have had our black sacks opened by both rats and foxes in our garden, so we know they are around and don't want to attract them (the rats, anyway) 3. If I don't need to get the compost out in a hurry, would it be OK to just pile stuff and let it rot down slowly, or is turning a necessity to make it work at all? 4. Can someone explain to me what the difference is between a hot heap and a cold one? Thanks for any advice and encouragement you can offer, Dani Brighton |
#2
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In article .com, "Dani" writes: | | 1. Do I really need to put the thing in a sunny spot? It takes up the | whole width of our flower bed, and would have to go in the spot | currently used by a lovely plant that pops up all by itself every | summer. No. Put it whereever you feel like - out of sight is good. You can buy green wire "chicken netting" at garden centres, wrap it round the bin, and plant climbers up it. I do that with my water butt. Canary creeper, climbing nasturtiums, morning glories, black-eyed Susan, Eccremocarpus scaber etc. are all good, as they can be cut down to get at the bin. Even climbing beans and squashes, but they are a bit big for a small garden! | 2. Should I raise it up on bricks to add air? Wouldn't this allow | rats/foxes to get in and fish out the food scraps? We have had our | black sacks opened by both rats and foxes in our garden, so we know | they are around and don't want to attract them (the rats, anyway) It won't make any difference to that, but raising it is generally good. | 3. If I don't need to get the compost out in a hurry, would it be OK | to just pile stuff and let it rot down slowly, or is turning a | necessity to make it work at all? If it contains a mixture of kitchen scraps and guinea pig bedding, it should be fine without being turned over. The critical need is to prevent it compacting into an airless mass. You may need to add some water, as the bedding is dry - you want it thoroughly damp but not saturated. | 4. Can someone explain to me what the difference is between a hot heap | and a cold one? A hot heap breaks down faster, but is more sensitive to ingredients (i.e. they have to be soft material and the right dampness). Worm farms are cold and even more sensitive. A cold heap is slower, but will compost almost anything. A hot heap will turn into a cold one if there is material that hasn't composted during the initial bacterial action. It is unlikely that you will be able to run a purely hot heap if you include guinea pig bedding, as that is semi-woody. Your mixture is a very good one, but will take the best part of a year to rot down. I run a series of definitely cold heaps and they take a couple of years, but that includes unshredded hedge prunings, bones and old duvets :-) Regards, Nick Maclaren. |
#3
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Nick Maclaren wrote: In article .com, "Dani" writes: | snip lots of useful info on compost heaps. I note that a heap can take two years to break down completely if it's cold, and I suddenly feel a lot better about mine :-) I bought one of those dismantlable square bins - I forget how many litres, but it's huge, and on the go for just over a year, still not full - and they are a nightmare to turn. Trying to get in there with a garden fork is a pain, as you need to rest the fork handle on the edge for leverage, and the sides of the bin click out of place. I also feel at this stage that I should let that decompose, and start a new one. I am seriously thinking of investing in a two-sided modular wooden one - you know with those slats which slot into side frames - are they as good as a plastic bin for composting? Unlike the OP, I am blessed with a large garden, and would only have to shave a bit off the rhubarb to site it. As regards rats, I had some in the initial stages, but turning the contents of the bin regularly seems to have scared them off. Haven't seen the tail of one, nor indeed any evidence of their visit. Also, following advice I got here, I do not put in any bread, meat or cooked food, just veg scraps, grass clippings - not too much, those go to mulch beds straight out of the mower - twigs, weeds, tissue and shredded paper, etc. It is undoubtedly a brilliant way to reduce the size of one's bin. No doubt, soon, it will also provide wonderfully nutritious mulch for my flowers and veg.... patience, patience... Cat(h) The world swirls... |
#4
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In article . com, "Cat(h)" writes: | | I am seriously thinking of investing in a two-sided modular wooden one | - you know with those slats which slot into side frames - are they as | good as a plastic bin for composting? Unlike the OP, I am blessed with | a large garden, and would only have to shave a bit off the rhubarb to | site it. I use 10m of pig netting, cut in half and with each pair of ends wired together. I hammer poles in to keep it in shape as it fills, and move the wire when I need to start a new heap. | As regards rats, I had some in the initial stages, but turning the | contents of the bin regularly seems to have scared them off. Haven't | seen the tail of one, nor indeed any evidence of their visit. Also, | following advice I got here, I do not put in any bread, meat or cooked | food, just veg scraps, grass clippings - not too much, those go to | mulch beds straight out of the mower - twigs, weeds, tissue and | shredded paper, etc. Not from me, you didn't. I put all of that on, and the only problem with rats is caused by next door's junk pile. Turning the heap is the key, and the idea that they are attracted by particular ex-food items is largely an old wife's tale. | It is undoubtedly a brilliant way to reduce the size of one's bin. No | doubt, soon, it will also provide wonderfully nutritious mulch for my | flowers and veg.... patience, patience... Yup. And it's good for potting, too, especially if made with enough twiggery. Regards, Nick Maclaren. |
#5
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Dani wrote:
1. Do I really need to put the thing in a sunny spot? It takes up the whole width of our flower bed, and would have to go in the spot currently used by a lovely plant that pops up all by itself every summer. Nope - put your plastic compost dalek somewhere out of the way - where it suits you. Onto earth is the best, but anything will do if you're pushed for space. I have my compost heap sited in the shadiest corner of my garden to as to avoid wasting valuable growing space with better growing conditions. 2. Should I raise it up on bricks to add air? Wouldn't this allow rats/foxes to get in and fish out the food scraps? We have had our black sacks opened by both rats and foxes in our garden, so we know they are around and don't want to attract them (the rats, anyway) You can, but I never bothered when I had a dalek. Be prepared for the odd slimey bit of compost but no other problems. NB - you may need to raise it if you're going to position it over concrete or other non-earth surface. 3. If I don't need to get the compost out in a hurry, would it be OK to just pile stuff and let it rot down slowly, or is turning a necessity to make it work at all? Absolutly! Pile it in at the top, and let nature get on with it - empty out when the bin is full - use everything that has composted, and put everything that hasn't back in. You can turn it - but with a dalek it is VERY difficult - I know - I've tried and failed, and concluded it wasn't worth it! 4. Can someone explain to me what the difference is between a hot heap and a cold one? A hot heap is generally built in one go with a particular mixture of stuff that is known to heat up. It heats up and composts faster. Its also said to kill off more weed seads. A cold heap is one that is assembled gradually, again from a mixture of stuff. This will be what you have unless your guinea pigs have the runs big time..... If you can try mixing in the guinea pig bedding (c/w with guinea pig output) with your grass cutting - it will rot faster. Put all you kitchen scraps in - I put all food related paper (e.g. grease proof, kitchen towel), uneaten food (not much in our house!), veg off cuts, bones, fruit skin & stones etc. in, I also put in liquids such as undrunk tea, gravy, vegetable cooking water etc. etc. I collect my kichen waste in a solid plastic container with a tight fitting lid, and empty into the heap every few days when it is full. Put all your garden waste (grass cuttings, weeds, prunings) in the heap as well, but don't put in too much twiggy stuff - your heap will take years to digest it. I put small light, sappy prunnings into the heap. But when I prune the hedge, the results get put in the council garden recycling. HTH Sarah |
#6
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On 19 Aug 2005 04:55:51 -0700, "Dani"
wrote: I sent off for a subsidised compost bin in the hope of reducing our household waste output (kitchen scraps and guinea pig bedding, mostly - we already recycle as much as we can). Now it has arrived, it looks enormous in our very small garden, even though it is the smaller of the two on offer (220 litre size). Dani, I had one of those in my not very large garden. I've now got a second one since I like it so much! Mine aren't in sunny positions and aren't raised up from the soil. I thought it was supposed to stand on the soil to help the worms climb in. I'm pretty sure I don't do things properly. I shove in various left-over vegetables and banana skins, egg-boxes, some newspaper and bits of clippings from the garden - grass cuttings and anything that isn't too woody. I think I should probably chop things up a bit more than I do. If I remember I sometimes stir things around a bit. If it looks a bit dry I might water it. Every few months I open the door at the bottom and I usually amazed to find that there's stuff that looks like compost there. A minor miracle. Sometimes I find bits that haven't rotted enough so I just put them back in the top. It's all very easy. I hope that's encouraging enough for you! Anne |
#7
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Dani wrote:
[various questions, well answered already]] 2. Should I raise it up on bricks to add air? Wouldn't this allow rats/foxes to get in and fish out the food scraps? We have had our black sacks opened by both rats and foxes in our garden, so we know they are around and don't want to attract them (the rats, anyway) You are supposedly never more than 5 metres from a rat in the UK, if our local environmental health expert is to believed. But that is no reason to feed them. The advice to avoid meat scraps is well-founded. I have seen two of these daleks destroyed by badgers, after chop bones and the like. Shredded, they were. |
#8
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In article .com,
wrote: Dani wrote: [various questions, well answered already]] 2. Should I raise it up on bricks to add air? Wouldn't this allow rats/foxes to get in and fish out the food scraps? We have had our black sacks opened by both rats and foxes in our garden, so we know they are around and don't want to attract them (the rats, anyway) You are supposedly never more than 5 metres from a rat in the UK, if our local environmental health expert is to believed. But that is no reason to feed them. The advice to avoid meat scraps is well-founded. I have seen two of these daleks destroyed by badgers, after chop bones and the like. Shredded, they were. How do you know they weren't looking for worms - one of badgers' main foods, and an unavoidable/essential component of compost? Regards, Nick Maclaren. |
#9
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Nick Maclaren wrote:
The advice to avoid meat scraps is well-founded. I have seen two of these daleks destroyed by badgers, after chop bones and the like. Shredded, they were. How do you know they weren't looking for worms - one of badgers' main foods, and an unavoidable/essential component of compost? I don't, really, other than the fact that other peoples bins weren't attacked, and they hadn't put things in that smelled so strongly. Of course, once the badger had learned what the tall things were... |
#10
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In article .com,
wrote: Nick Maclaren wrote: The advice to avoid meat scraps is well-founded. I have seen two of these daleks destroyed by badgers, after chop bones and the like. Shredded, they were. How do you know they weren't looking for worms - one of badgers' main foods, and an unavoidable/essential component of compost? I don't, really, other than the fact that other peoples bins weren't attacked, and they hadn't put things in that smelled so strongly. Of course, once the badger had learned what the tall things were... Ah! Yes, avoiding things that smell strongly of food is a good idea. Because of the way that I run my heap, it almost never smells, even when I put meant bones, turkey carcases and forgotten stew on it. At a recent party, one person said "but your compost heap doesn't smell!" I don't know how you would avoid a BIN smelling if you put certain classes of material in it, but an open heap is much better aerated. Regards, Nick Maclaren. |
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#12
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Kay wrote:
In article .com, writes [...] You are supposedly never more than 5 metres from a rat in the UK, if our local environmental health expert is to believed. But that is no reason to feed them. Can anyone tell me why rats should have a preference for cooked food? I pondered this many years ago, and came to the conclusion that people meant not cooked food as such, but the mixture of food left over from a meal, which would include animal products which we would rarely throw away before cooking. -- Mike. |
#13
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In article , Mike Lyle mike_lyle_uk@REM
OVETHISyahoo.co.uk writes Kay wrote: In article .com, writes [...] You are supposedly never more than 5 metres from a rat in the UK, if our local environmental health expert is to believed. But that is no reason to feed them. Can anyone tell me why rats should have a preference for cooked food? I pondered this many years ago, and came to the conclusion that people meant not cooked food as such, but the mixture of food left over from a meal, which would include animal products which we would rarely throw away before cooking. I thought rats preferred grains and seeds, so I'm not sure why animal products should be supposed to be so attractive. -- Kay "Do not insult the crocodile until you have crossed the river" |
#14
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Kay wrote:
In article , Mike Lyle mike_lyle_uk@REM OVETHISyahoo.co.uk writes Kay wrote: [...] Can anyone tell me why rats should have a preference for cooked food? I pondered this many years ago, and came to the conclusion that people meant not cooked food as such, but the mixture of food left over from a meal, which would include animal products which we would rarely throw away before cooking. I thought rats preferred grains and seeds, so I'm not sure why animal products should be supposed to be so attractive. I think they're opportunists: the usual natural diet may be seeds, but people do recommend bacon and fish -- and chocolate -- as bait for traps. There can't be very much future in specialising in grain and seeds in suburban gardens, so high-protein and high-fat kitchen waste would be very attractive. As I say, I don't think the pundits really meant "cooked" as such, but were carelessly using the word to cover non-leafy food waste. -- Mike. |
#15
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In article ,
Kay wrote: Can anyone tell me why rats should have a preference for cooked food? I blame the supermarket and fast food culture. From the viewpoint of a civilised entity, it is hard to distinguish humans from rats. Regards, Nick Maclaren. |
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