| Page 1 of 2 | 1 | 2 |
|
|
Compost bins
My daughter is moving into a house, and we are trying to encourage her to use a compost bin. That will be for kitchen waste for 1-2 people, possibly plus grass cuttings from 50 square yards of grass. I have no experience of such things, so any comments would be welcomed. Regards, Nick Maclaren. |
Compost bins
In message ,
Janet wrote and many councils give them away free. Try putting the postcode into http://www.recyclenow.com/home_composting/index.html then the link to buy a bin. The site also gives advice on composting If the local council are providing a subsidy on the purchase price (not all do) the bins will be cheap, otherwise you may find it cheaper to buy elsewhere. -- Alan news2009 {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk |
Compost bins
|
Compost bins
In message , Jake
wrote Kitchen waste from a 2-person familiy (remember that meat waste doesn't go in a compost bin) isn't on its own going to sustain 50 square yards of grass cuttings in the summer. You need a balance or you'll end up with simple smelly mush A few card boxes from the tons of packaging mixed in with the grass cuttings (+ urine) will help with that. And it doesn't really matter if it gets a bit mushy as it will rot down eventually. -- Alan news2009 {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk |
Compost bins
"Alan" wrote in message ... In message , Jake wrote Kitchen waste from a 2-person familiy (remember that meat waste doesn't go in a compost bin) isn't on its own going to sustain 50 square yards of grass cuttings in the summer. You need a balance or you'll end up with simple smelly mush A few card boxes from the tons of packaging mixed in with the grass cuttings (+ urine) will help with that. And it doesn't really matter if it gets a bit mushy as it will rot down eventually. The urine has to be from a male! Alan -- Alan news2009 {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk |
Compost bins
On Sun, 16 Jan 2011 19:41:48 +0000, Alan
wrote: In message , Jake wrote Kitchen waste from a 2-person familiy (remember that meat waste doesn't go in a compost bin) isn't on its own going to sustain 50 square yards of grass cuttings in the summer. You need a balance or you'll end up with simple smelly mush A few card boxes from the tons of packaging mixed in with the grass cuttings (+ urine) will help with that. And it doesn't really matter if it gets a bit mushy as it will rot down eventually. The ideal compost heap/bin will be close on 50% green (in this case grass) and 50% brown (in this case cardboard). The cardboard will need to be scrunched up to provide air in the heap/bin, not just torn and put in flat, as the grass will compact and exclude air. Shredded paper on its own won't do the trick as, again, it'll compact too easily. Male urine (and it's not only male but the first output of the morning ;-)) ) may provide nitrogen but the heap also needs air to work properly - this is why grass on its own doesn't do the biz. Are there any trees in the garden - if so, collect the leaves , bag them up and then use them to provide the "brown" bit through the grass cutting season. Cardboard and grass will take a long time to break down into usable compost (I've tried it!). |
Compost bins
|
Compost bins
Thank you, everyone for your comments. I suspected some of them,
but confirmation is important, as it's outside my experience. Here are a few points: Pallettes etc. aren't on, because the garden really IS only 50-100 square yards, and only about 2/3 is grass - with no borders, shrubs etc. I might well end up collecting the compost for my own use :-) The key is the kitchen waste, to avoid an incredibly smelly green bin. I suspected that it was asking a bit much for the grass to go in as well, so that might have to be put in the green bin. A wormery is well worth considering. This is a far cry from my own composting, but my garden is 1000 square yards, and I use a traditional heap and put everything on. Regards, Nick Maclaren. |
Compost bins
In message , Jake
wrote On Sun, 16 Jan 2011 19:41:48 +0000, Alan wrote: In message , Jake wrote Kitchen waste from a 2-person familiy (remember that meat waste doesn't go in a compost bin) isn't on its own going to sustain 50 square yards of grass cuttings in the summer. You need a balance or you'll end up with simple smelly mush A few card boxes from the tons of packaging mixed in with the grass cuttings (+ urine) will help with that. And it doesn't really matter if it gets a bit mushy as it will rot down eventually. The ideal compost heap/bin will be close on 50% green (in this case grass) and 50% brown (in this case cardboard). The cardboard will need to be scrunched up to provide air in the heap/bin, not just torn and put in flat, as the grass will compact and exclude air. Shredded paper on its own won't do the trick as, again, it'll compact too easily. Male urine (and it's not only male but the first output of the morning ;-)) ) may provide nitrogen but the heap also needs air to work properly - this is why grass on its own doesn't do the biz. Too many people worry too much about getting the perfect mix. I don't worry about how I put all those ingredients in my bins but it all composts down eventually. The card I use is the small food packing boxes, the inner rolls from toilet paper etc. put in whole. Large corrugated card boxes are left outside to weather - in a few rain showers before being torn up. As for urine, just take a **** in a bucket for a day, fill up with water and put it all on the heap. If occasionally is does goes slightly wrong and gets a bit slimy in the summer (don't bother about the condition in the winter) just empty it out and mix it up a bit before putting it back in the bin. Are there any trees in the garden - if so, collect the leaves , bag them up and then use them to provide the "brown" bit through the grass cutting season. Cardboard and grass will take a long time to break down into usable compost (I've tried it!). -- Alan news2009 {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk |
Compost bins
|
Compost bins
Too many people worry too much about getting the perfect mix.
FWIW, I agree. and ... ... just empty it out and mix it up a bit before putting it back in the bin. Yes: ideally you have (at least) two bins: you use one for ageing compost, and one for the new stuff. Every few months you empty out the ageing stuff, and hopefully find some good compost at the bottom; that goes on the garden; the rest goes back in the bin; then you empty the newer stuff out of the other bin, and fork it all into the "ageing compost" bin. That stuff then rots away for another few months, while you put your new stuff into the now-empty "new stuff" bin. And I have found (after decades of trying all sorts of home-made bins) that the dalek bins are very effective, are tidy (unlike my home-made pallet-built affairs!), and have the *great* advantage that to empty it, you just lift the bugger up, instead of having to fork stuff out! If I had a bigger garden, I would always have opted for ... a compost heap! That is, just a big heap, into which you dig for compost every few months. This is what you see the TV gardeners have (Carol has one, Monty has one). My Dad used to have a proper heap too: it was great. Finally: it's the process of shifting it about every few months which is most important, IMHO. I've recently seen that the (disgusting) idea of weeing on it has recently been dissed as a myth; I don't know about that, but what is important is to keep it damp, so I water mine, each time I have turned it all over. John BSc in Compost Making (scraped a 3rd) |
Compost bins
In article
, Another John writes And I have found (after decades of trying all sorts of home-made bins) that the dalek bins are very effective, are tidy (unlike my home-made pallet-built affairs!), and have the *great* advantage that to empty it, you just lift the bugger up, instead of having to fork stuff out! Do what i do I have three large wooden bins at the bottom of the garden, sort of in a terrace, BUT I have put a small plastic bin on alternate deep beds at one end. These i fill up first or with a mixed stuff and then when they need to be emptied i just tip them over and can haul the contents up the bed with a rake. Then i put the empty bin on one of the beds that didn't have a bin and so on. Saves carting the stuff around and any goodness that leaches out goes directly into the soil in the deep/raised bed. Janet -- Janet Tweedy Dalmatian Telegraph http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk |
Compost bins
On Mon, 17 Jan 2011 23:17:16 +0000, Alan
wrote: In message , wrote A wormery is well worth considering. In my experience a dalek type bin that doesn't heat up too much will often contain thousands of worms who find their own way in (if the bin is installed on earth). But - those are common or garden earth worms (no surprise there) - which are not the best for wormeries. The recommended ones are Dendrobaena which are supposed to be the best - also for fishing. I bought mine from local fishing shop. |
Compost bins
In message , Judith
wrote But - those are common or garden earth worms (no surprise there) - which are not the best for wormeries. They appear to be coloured more red than the common earth worm and are smaller. In the large numbers I occasionally see them in my bins it wouldn't make much difference to having the "proper" worm. The worms are usually found in the top two inches of the bin . With the "special" worms, I wonder if people are actually purchasing something that nature provides for free -- Alan news2009 {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk |
| All times are GMT +1. The time now is 05:30 AM. |
|
Powered by vBulletin® Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
GardenBanter