Starting a compost heap - any advice

[ConstantlyCold]

So I bought a small basic wooden compost bin.

I’ve set it up on bare soil and shoved it 4 bags of raw horse manure. I’m planning to add cuttings from plants and potato peelings to it.
I have a lawn should I be adding the cuttings to it too. I have a vague memory of it making very wet slimy compost.

How long does it take for cuttings to become compost?

For every handful of 'greens' add a handful of 'browns'.

Greens are fresh stuff - so like the stuff you have already listed.

Browns are 'old/dead' plant material - so cardboard, shredded paper, straw, etc.

As the greens rot down, if there are no browns, you just get get slimy stuff.

The best way to do it is to layer it browns/greens/browns/greens throughout.

If you have used weed and feed, don't add your lawn mowings as when you come to use the compost, it can stop the plants that are in it from taking up nutrients. You should check that the horses haven't been fed any grass/hay/straw etc that was treated with a ragwort killing herbicide, as this has the same and much stronger effect.

The smaller the bits that go in, the quicker the compost.

The more you turn it, the quicker the compost.

I put all my weedings onto the grass, leave it for a day or two to die off and then mow them and add them to the composters.

I compost where I am needing the compost, then lift the compost bin, move it 2 feet away, and pitch the uncomposted material into the empty bin; and the composted stuff I just rake over the soil and let the worms do the rest. It saves alot of wheelbarrowing stuff about the place.

I put all my weedings onto the grass, leave it for a day or two to die off and then mow them and add them to the composters

such a good idea.

Posted a bit early there. Thanks so much for that epic post. So much good advice.

Just one thing. Is horse manure brown or green? It looks brown but it’s made of grass which is green. I’m a bit baffled, sorry.

My dad always says no to potato peelings and tomatoes- the former to prevent any diseases from entering the compost, the latter because they grow everywhere!

I put all sorts on mine. Egg shells, tea bags, Christmas tree branches, the odd bit of cardboard if things are getting a bit slimy.

Home compost is one of the best bits about developing a garden, SO satisfying!

fresh horse manure is green, it might have straw with it which is a brown...

I put everything in mine apart from meat.

My advise - water it if it’s dry; add shredded paper, card or loo roll tubes mixed in if it’s wet.

fresh horse manure is green, it might have straw with it which is a brown

Probably best I add in some shredded paper then. There’s a lot of green in my compost bin at the moment.

Thanks for all the advice.

DM says you can buy some liquid that makes it rot down quicker, but she couldn't remember what it was called. Garden centre didn't seem to have anything.

DM says you can buy some liquid that makes it rot down quicker, but she couldn't remember what it was called. Garden centre didn't seem to have anything

Male urine. I wouldn't pay for it though.

Coffee grounds, nettles and comfrey also act as accelerators.

Male urine.

Why male? Will 4 year old boy wee do? Or does it need to be proper man piss?

I have been complimented on my compost

I put in all veg peelings and all fruit except citrus (the citrus peel takes too long to decompose) . Also tea bags.
Also hair (We have a mobile hairdresser come to the house).
I put shredded paper in, so the compost doesn't get too soggy.

I don't put grass in very often - it's too 'heavy' and often wet. A bit is ok, but it does't produce good compost if it is mainly grass.

I have to dispute that 'no grass' thing sorry - Chelsea Physic garden I think it is - make compost solely out of grass and shredded paper. I use grass to kick start mine - it really helps to get it going. If it is too heavy and wet it is because there isn't enough browns in there. It isn't the grass' fault!

I once made a Berkeley Heap out of [only] shredded paper, cardboard, dock stems and grass; and got usable compost in 29 days - in fact the mistake I made was not to mow the docks stems before adding. I was sieving it and using it a month after starting it.

[Yes boy wee is fine. Girl wee is not.]

Don’t underestimate the size of the compost bin you’ll need; it’s surprising how often we have to empty the kitchen compost into the compost bin.

Wilko do a compost starter liquid.....
I got massive black plastic compost bins from my council.
I thought you weren't meant to put excrement in compost?!

I put loads and loads of grass in mine, and I make brilliant compost even though I do say so myself. It disappears to nothing very quickly.

The trick is just to layer it with other stuff.

I don't think we are disagreeing
I've come across people who just , or mostly put grass cuttings in, and don't mix enough other material in - so, in essence, it is just rotting grass cuttings. You need to have a mixture of stuff, nd get nutrients from things like egg shells and the fruit and veg, an then something (like your shredded paper) to break up the dampness.

But why is boy / man we good but girl / woman wee not?

Less acidic I believe...all wee has urea in it which is what Wilko are selling in bottles to you. It's that that speeds up the process.

Or it could be an old wives tale, as men used to have the allotments and didn't want women squatting on their heaps when they paid a visit.

Sainsbury's cafe will give you their coffee grounds to compost for free.
I love my compost bins!

I have the bin ready to start but I’m anxious about attracting vermin. We have enough squirrels as it is, and I really don’t want rats.

Best to put it on grass or earth or concrete path?

if you dont want vermin, dont put cooked food in.

Put it where you are going to use it...so the area of the garden that needs it eventually.

Thanks Tells, that is sensible advice. I had thought about having it by the back kitchen door, so that I would be more likely to use it to put things like peelings. But it is more sensible not to have to move the compost very far when it comes to using it in the garden.

I had thought about having it by the back kitchen door, so that I would be more likely to use it to put things like peelings. But it is more sensible not to have to move the compost very far when it comes to using it in the garden.

Put the compost bin where you will use the compost.

Put the collection container bear the back door - peelings are perfect, only put in the compost bin uncooked vegetable waste.

This includes peelings and choppings and garden waste. No meat, no fish, no cooked veg. No bread. Avoid the remaindings of fermented wine as that attracts everything [if you are a home brewer].

I just dug a load of grunge out of the bottom of my garden pond...mostly rotten leaves and pine needles. It's now in a heap while I decide what to do with it. Shall I add it to my (mainly grass-clippings) compost bin?

Leave it next to the pond for 48 hours, and then add it - let any creatures in it make their way back to the pond before adding it.