Composting Grass Cuttings
 

Since I downsized garden, I only have 1 Dalek that I use for garden
waste etc. Grass cuttings have been excluded because of volume and go to
the council recycling tip.

I have just been given a second Dalek, and wondered if I could dedicate
this just to grass cuttings - probably with shredded paper between it as
I used to do in my old large mixed content compost heaps.

Would this work? or would it just result in a solid soggy mess! I would
probably only want to empty it once a year at most - depending on what
it produces.

Thanks

Roger T

Composting Grass Cuttings
 

On 21/08/2020 10:11, Pwllgloyw wrote:
Since I downsized garden, I only have 1 Dalek that I use for garden
waste etc. Grass cuttings have been excluded because of volume and go to
the council recycling tip.

I have just been given a second Dalek, and wondered if I could dedicate
this just to grass cuttings - probably with shredded paper between it as
I used to do in my old large mixed content compost heaps.

Would this work? or would it just result in a solid soggy mess! I would
probably only want to empty it once a year at most - depending on what
it produces.

Thanks

Roger T
grass alone is not a great compost. Add any other fibrous stuff like
leaves and weeds etc.

Avoid food waste. Rats.


--
Climate is what you expect but weather is what you get.
Mark Twain

Composting Grass Cuttings
 

On Fri, 21 Aug 2020 10:11:45 +0100, Pwllgloyw
wrote:
wondered if I could dedicate
this just to grass cuttings - probably with shredded paper

Yes it does work, I find coreggated cardboard works best, (amazon
boxes!) You will be surprised just how much you will get rid of, tear
the cardboard into palm size bits, that way you get more "edges" and
it will compost faster. If it starts getting slimy, you need more
cardboard!

Composting Grass Cuttings
 

On 21/08/2020 10:11, Pwllgloyw wrote:
Since I downsized garden, I only have 1 Dalek that I use for garden
waste etc. Grass cuttings have been excluded because of volume and go to
the council recycling tip.

I have just been given a second Dalek, and wondered if I could dedicate
this just to grass cuttings - probably with shredded paper between it as
I used to do in my old large mixed content compost heaps.

I have never bothered with messing about adding paper to mine. I might
put any prunings on before the next grass cut so that they get the full
benefit of a hot heap but I found that provided I was adding a cubic
metre of stuff at a time it really didn't matter that much. It would be
warm the next day and mad hot the day after that with a funny short
chain fatty acid smell that is distinctive and borderline unpleasant.

A couple of times have had it smouldering internally!

Would this work? or would it just result in a solid soggy mess! I would
probably only want to empty it once a year at most - depending on what
it produces.

It might fill up a bit too quickly.

What seems to be a disaster is a small amount of grass clippings weekly
that inevitably turn into a disgusting green slime. Garotta or similar
will help a smaller pile but small heaps never really get hot.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

Composting Grass Cuttings
 

On 21/08/2020 14:54, Chris Hogg wrote:
Piggy-backing on this thread (apologies to the OP), since moving house
I don't have room for a compost heap, let alone the pair of
traditional bays I used to have, and I'm thinking of getting one of
these insulated bins to speed up the composting process.
https://tinyurl.com/y2o4rqm7

But I fill a 240 litre council bin every two weeks in the summer. The
insulated bin is 200 litres. From your experience of hot compost
heaps, how quickly will a mixture of grass cuttings, weeds and hedge
prunings rot down in one of these insulated bins, do you think, or
will I need half-a-dozen of them to cope with my output?

I have no experience at all of insulated composters but my instinct
would be that if it goes hot then it is more or less rotted down by the
next time I cut the grass. Early in the season when it is cold and slow
then it hangs around longer likewise if it gets too dry.

I do have a sort of calibration point for you though.

I have a green bin for cutting the village hall green and it was brim
full fresh cut yesterday. In 24 hours it is now 40C and 80% full so by
next week I expect it to be about 40% full and ponging a bit of ammonia.

The wind and rain today have taken too much heat out of my open compost
heap so it is nowhere near to going hot yet. Doesn't smell right.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

Composting Grass Cuttings
 

On 21/08/2020 12:27, Derek wrote:
On Fri, 21 Aug 2020 10:11:45 +0100, Pwllgloyw
wrote:
wondered if I could dedicate
this just to grass cuttings - probably with shredded paper

Yes it does work, I find coreggated cardboard works best, (amazon
boxes!) You will be surprised just how much you will get rid of, tear
the cardboard into palm size bits, that way you get more "edges" and
it will compost faster. If it starts getting slimy, you need more
cardboard!



Also worth waiting for rain to wet cardboard boxes. Makes it easier to
rip up and remove any packing tape.

--
mailto : news {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

Composting Grass Cuttings
 

On Saturday, August 22, 2020 at 12:40:50 PM UTC+1, alan_m wrote:
On 21/08/2020 12:27, Derek wrote:
On Fri, 21 Aug 2020 10:11:45 +0100, Pwllgloyw
wrote:
wondered if I could dedicate
this just to grass cuttings - probably with shredded paper

Yes it does work, I find coreggated cardboard works best, (amazon
boxes!) You will be surprised just how much you will get rid of, tear
the cardboard into palm size bits, that way you get more "edges" and
it will compost faster. If it starts getting slimy, you need more
cardboard!

Also worth waiting for rain to wet cardboard boxes. Makes it easier to
rip up and remove any packing tape.

--
mailto : news {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

Composting Grass Cuttings
 

On Sat, 22 Aug 2020 20:31:15 +0100, Chris Hogg wrote:
I have a slight concern though, that if the contents get too hot they'll catch
fire

Highly unlikely, seen a large mound of wood chip smoulder in the
middle, that turned to ash, but no flames, but your small amount will
not generate enough heat

Composting Grass Cuttings
 

On 22/08/2020 20:31, Chris Hogg wrote:
On Fri, 21 Aug 2020 17:03:41 +0100, Martin Brown
wrote:

I have a green bin for cutting the village hall green and it was brim
full fresh cut yesterday. In 24 hours it is now 40C and 80% full so by
next week I expect it to be about 40% full and ponging a bit of ammonia.

The wind and rain today have taken too much heat out of my open compost
heap so it is nowhere near to going hot yet. Doesn't smell right.

Useful comments. Thanks. I may try one, and if it doesn't compost its
contents fast enough, I can either just put the excess into my green
bin (which is actually brown!) or buy a second composter. I have a
slight concern though, that if the contents get too hot they'll catch
fire in the centre and actually destroy the bin. Time will tell.

I doubt if it can get that hot in the limited volume of a green bin but
even if it did then I expect it would self limit for lack of oxygen.

I think it has happened to me about three times in 25 years with 2m
cubic heaps pretty full with a large addition of grass cuttings in one
go. Getting above 60C is fairly routine in high summer but becoming hot
enough to smoulder internally is incredibly rare.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

Composting Grass Cuttings
 

On 23/08/2020 15:41, Derek wrote:
On Sat, 22 Aug 2020 20:31:15 +0100, Chris Hogg wrote:
I have a slight concern though, that if the contents get too hot they'll catch
fire

Highly unlikely, seen a large mound of wood chip smoulder in the
middle, that turned to ash, but no flames, but your small amount will
not generate enough heat

I've definitely had charring in the middle of an acre of grass cuttings
back in the day when I collected rather than mulched them

--
"Strange as it seems, no amount of learning can cure stupidity, and
higher education positively fortifies it."

- Stephen Vizinczey

Composting Grass Cuttings
 

The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 23/08/2020 15:41, Derek wrote:
On Sat, 22 Aug 2020 20:31:15 +0100, Chris Hogg wrote:
I have a slight concern though, that if the contents get too hot they'll catch
fire

Highly unlikely, seen a large mound of wood chip smoulder in the
middle, that turned to ash, but no flames, but your small amount will
not generate enough heat

I've definitely had charring in the middle of an acre of grass cuttings
back in the day when I collected rather than mulched them

I'm not surprised if you had an acre of grass cuttings, that's a big
pile! ... or did you mean a pile of cuttings from mowing an acre? :-)

--
Chris Green
·

Composting Grass Cuttings
 

On 24/08/2020 23:16, Chris Green wrote:
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 23/08/2020 15:41, Derek wrote:
On Sat, 22 Aug 2020 20:31:15 +0100, Chris Hogg wrote:
I have a slight concern though, that if the contents get too hot they'll catch
fire

Highly unlikely, seen a large mound of wood chip smoulder in the
middle, that turned to ash, but no flames, but your small amount will
not generate enough heat

I've definitely had charring in the middle of an acre of grass cuttings
back in the day when I collected rather than mulched them

I'm not surprised if you had an acre of grass cuttings, that's a big
pile! ... or did you mean a pile of cuttings from mowing an acre? :-)

The latter

--
"The most difficult subjects can be explained to the most slow witted
man if he has not formed any idea of them already; but the simplest
thing cannot be made clear to the most intelligent man if he is firmly
persuaded that he knows already, without a shadow of doubt, what is laid
before him."

- Leo Tolstoy

Composting Grass Cuttings
 

On 24/08/2020 15:45, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 23/08/2020 15:41, Derek wrote:
On Sat, 22 Aug 2020 20:31:15 +0100, Chris Hogg wrote:
I have a slight concern though, that if the contents get too hot
they'll catch
fire

Highly unlikely, seen a large mound of wood chip smoulder in the
middle, that turned to ash, but no flames, but your small amount will
not generate enough heat

I've definitely had charring in the middle of an acre of grass cuttings
back in the day when I collected rather than mulched them

A third of an acre is enough if the conditions are just right.

I'm pretty sure a green bin can't go critical though. The VH one I did
last week there is now an inch gap around the block of fermenting block
of lawn clippings. I've never really bothered to look every day before.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown