All I need to do now is add plenty of organic material and cuttings to start
the ball rolling on the manure production front for next years planting.

Anyone any tips, apart from not adding grass cuttings, as to the best
layering or whatever in a 1m cube old coal bunker?

6 wrote:
All I need to do now is add plenty of organic material and cuttings to start
the ball rolling on the manure production front for next years planting.

Do you mean compost production?

Anyone any tips, apart from not adding grass cuttings, as to the best
layering or whatever in a 1m cube old coal bunker?

Do you have holes at the bottom or side of the containers? Why not add
grass cuttings? Anything goes to compost, in equal proportion that is.

"6" .@. wrote in message ...
All I need to do now is add plenty of organic material and cuttings to
start the ball rolling on the manure production front for next years
planting.

Anyone any tips, apart from not adding grass cuttings, as to the best
layering or whatever in a 1m cube old coal bunker?

I'm assuming you mean to use the 'bunker for making compost?

If so - leaves, grass cuttings, soft pruning material, vegetable household
waste can all go in. So long as you keep thing in proportion. Grass is OK as
long as it's not too much in one go,because that will go all soggy and
horrible.

Loads of info he http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compost

Jenny

"6" .@. wrote in message ...
All I need to do now is add plenty of organic material and cuttings to
start
the ball rolling on the manure production front for next years planting.

Anyone any tips, apart from not adding grass cuttings, as to the best
layering or whatever in a 1m cube old coal bunker?

as others say add grass clippings (as much as you want) in ration to brown
material (leaves, mulched prunings, paper, cardboard, straw etc). Grass is
great and brings in nitrogen.

One tip, no rose cuttings unless they are well mulched. The *******s last a
long time and get revenge when you dig the compost out. Either chop them
superfine or as I do now dry them and use as kindling.

rob

George.com writes

"6" .@. wrote in message ...
All I need to do now is add plenty of organic material and cuttings to
start
the ball rolling on the manure production front for next years planting.

Anyone any tips, apart from not adding grass cuttings, as to the best
layering or whatever in a 1m cube old coal bunker?

as others say add grass clippings (as much as you want) in ration to brown
material (leaves, mulched prunings, paper, cardboard, straw etc). Grass is
great and brings in nitrogen.

One tip, no rose cuttings unless they are well mulched. The *******s last a
long time and get revenge when you dig the compost out. Either chop them
superfine or as I do now dry them and use as kindling.

Nothing with spines is a good idea. Brambles, cacti are equally nasty a
year later.

Pruning can go in, if you don't overdo it, if you chop into 3 inch
lengths - they won't be completely rotted when you use the compost, but
that doesn't matter. The chopping is for convenience when you load your
barrow - you can't easily get spades full of compost if you have half
buried two foot long branches in there.

Wine corks don't rot in any reasonable timescale (otherwise we wouldn't
use them to cork wine bottles), nor do avocado stones, nor do those
irritating transparent windows from envelopes, or parcel tape from the
otherwise highly rottable cardboard boxes. I keep a bin bag next to the
heap to discard all the things that have found their way in there and
haven't rotted (why on earth did one of my children imagine a plastic
toothpaste tube would compost?)

--
Kay

K wrote:
George.com writes

"6" .@. wrote in message ...
All I need to do now is add plenty of organic material and cuttings to
start
the ball rolling on the manure production front for next years planting.

Anyone any tips, apart from not adding grass cuttings, as to the best
layering or whatever in a 1m cube old coal bunker?

as others say add grass clippings (as much as you want) in ration to brown
material (leaves, mulched prunings, paper, cardboard, straw etc). Grass is
great and brings in nitrogen.

One tip, no rose cuttings unless they are well mulched. The *******s last a
long time and get revenge when you dig the compost out. Either chop them
superfine or as I do now dry them and use as kindling.

Nothing with spines is a good idea. Brambles, cacti are equally nasty a
year later.

Pruning can go in, if you don't overdo it, if you chop into 3 inch
lengths - they won't be completely rotted when you use the compost, but
that doesn't matter. The chopping is for convenience when you load your
barrow - you can't easily get spades full of compost if you have half
buried two foot long branches in there.

Wine corks don't rot in any reasonable timescale (otherwise we wouldn't
use them to cork wine bottles), nor do avocado stones, nor do those
irritating transparent windows from envelopes, or parcel tape from the
otherwise highly rottable cardboard boxes. I keep a bin bag next to the
heap to discard all the things that have found their way in there and
haven't rotted (why on earth did one of my children imagine a plastic
toothpaste tube would compost?)

Things do stray of their own volition. When turning some friends' not
very successful plastic bin full, I found various plastic scraps and a
wineglass. And in a heap of my own, baler twine, a long-lost potato
peeler, and some electric wire.

Interesting to see the stuff Monty Don was putting on the asparagus
this week: very twiggy, it seemed to me. But I suspect it doesn't
really matter much.

It'll be interesting to watch the effect of long-term composting on the
concrete: the sides will be OK, but I had a dung-heap on a concrete
base, and after a few years the concrete had been softened by the
acids.

If the OP wants quick results, I think compost in an old coal bunker
will probably need to be turned more often than in a heap to keep it
aerated. I've never been fussy, but I'm sure quickly-made hot compost
is much better than slow and cool.

--
Mike.

"George.com" wrote in message
...

"6" .@. wrote in message ...
All I need to do now is add plenty of organic material and cuttings to
start
the ball rolling on the manure production front for next years planting.

Anyone any tips, apart from not adding grass cuttings, as to the best
layering or whatever in a 1m cube old coal bunker?

as others say add grass clippings (as much as you want) in ration to brown
material (leaves, mulched prunings, paper, cardboard, straw etc). Grass is
great and brings in nitrogen.

One tip, no rose cuttings unless they are well mulched. The *******s last
a
long time and get revenge when you dig the compost out. Either chop them
superfine or as I do now dry them and use as kindling.


We mix our confidential document shreddings in with the grass clippings
peelings etc and it does much to lighten and improve the texture of the
compost. It would also need a failrly determined identity theif to recover
the info.

Gill M

Mike Lyle writes



If the OP wants quick results, I think compost in an old coal bunker
will probably need to be turned more often than in a heap to keep it
aerated. I've never been fussy, but I'm sure quickly-made hot compost
is much better than slow and cool.

Better in what way? Texture? Nutrient level?
--
Kay

Gill Matthews writes

"George.com" wrote in message
...

"6" .@. wrote in message ...
All I need to do now is add plenty of organic material and cuttings to
start
the ball rolling on the manure production front for next years planting.

Anyone any tips, apart from not adding grass cuttings, as to the best
layering or whatever in a 1m cube old coal bunker?

as others say add grass clippings (as much as you want) in ration to brown
material (leaves, mulched prunings, paper, cardboard, straw etc). Grass is
great and brings in nitrogen.

One tip, no rose cuttings unless they are well mulched. The *******s last
a
long time and get revenge when you dig the compost out. Either chop them
superfine or as I do now dry them and use as kindling.


We mix our confidential document shreddings in with the grass clippings
peelings etc and it does much to lighten and improve the texture of the
compost. It would also need a failrly determined identity theif to recover
the info.


Especially if you pre soak it with a good quantity of recycled-wine
accelerator ;-)

--
Kay

"K" wrote in message
...
Gill Matthews writes

"George.com" wrote in message
...

"6" .@. wrote in message ...
All I need to do now is add plenty of organic material and cuttings to
start
the ball rolling on the manure production front for next years
planting.

Anyone any tips, apart from not adding grass cuttings, as to the best
layering or whatever in a 1m cube old coal bunker?

as others say add grass clippings (as much as you want) in ration to
brown
material (leaves, mulched prunings, paper, cardboard, straw etc). Grass
is
great and brings in nitrogen.

One tip, no rose cuttings unless they are well mulched. The *******s
last
a
long time and get revenge when you dig the compost out. Either chop them
superfine or as I do now dry them and use as kindling.


We mix our confidential document shreddings in with the grass clippings
peelings etc and it does much to lighten and improve the texture of the
compost. It would also need a failrly determined identity theif to recover
the info.


Especially if you pre soak it with a good quantity of recycled-wine
accelerator ;-)


Some good tips there people, although I would use the recycled beer additive
rather than wine.....Being a bloke etc ;-)

6 wrote:

Some good tips there people, although I would use the recycled beer additive
rather than wine.....Being a bloke etc ;-)

That's my kids job ... and Dr Pepper and Ribena seems to do just as
well ;o)

K wrote:
Mike Lyle writes



If the OP wants quick results, I think compost in an old coal bunker
will probably need to be turned more often than in a heap to keep it
aerated. I've never been fussy, but I'm sure quickly-made hot compost
is much better than slow and cool.

Better in what way? Texture? Nutrient level?

I was thinking of nutrients. The kind of couldn't-care-less heap I've
usually made gets an awful lot of rain passing through, which must take
away much of the soluble stuff; but it's a fine soil conditioner.

--
Mike.

Mike Lyle writes

K wrote:
Mike Lyle writes



If the OP wants quick results, I think compost in an old coal bunker
will probably need to be turned more often than in a heap to keep it
aerated. I've never been fussy, but I'm sure quickly-made hot compost
is much better than slow and cool.

Better in what way? Texture? Nutrient level?

I was thinking of nutrients. The kind of couldn't-care-less heap I've
usually made gets an awful lot of rain passing through, which must take
away much of the soluble stuff; but it's a fine soil conditioner.

Yes, I don't think my compost is particularly rich in nutrients - I
don't use it in pots for that reason - but it's improved the soil no
end. I was planting a blackberry today, and I dug down about i8 inches
of crumbly black soil, not a sign of the yellowish clay that I would
expect to hit about a foot down.
--
Kay

The message om
from "Mike Lyle" contains these words:


K wrote:
Mike Lyle writes



If the OP wants quick results, I think compost in an old coal bunker
will probably need to be turned more often than in a heap to keep it
aerated. I've never been fussy, but I'm sure quickly-made hot compost
is much better than slow and cool.

Better in what way? Texture? Nutrient level?

I was thinking of nutrients. The kind of couldn't-care-less heap I've
usually made gets an awful lot of rain passing through, which must take
away much of the soluble stuff; but it's a fine soil conditioner.

Also for killing weed seeds I would have thought.
I have a real problem with these. Wherever I use my compost I get a
quick covering of dense lush weeds. I know I should sort out my
compostable material more but I find it difficult to be that methodical
as my weeding is often fairly frenetic. My heaps are much like yours
with not much hope of heating up enough to kill any seeds off.

Janet G

"K" wrote in message
...
Mike Lyle writes



If the OP wants quick results, I think compost in an old coal bunker
will probably need to be turned more often than in a heap to keep it
aerated. I've never been fussy, but I'm sure quickly-made hot compost
is much better than slow and cool.

Better in what way? Texture? Nutrient level?
--
Kay

I guess there is not a lot of difference except a hot brew will kill of most
of the nasty seeds.
In either case the actual nutrient level of compost is nothing exceptional ,
it's to be regarded as a soil conditioner rather than a fertiliser.