What have I made and is it useful?! (Compost help please!)

[thismushroom]

I wonder if anyone can help me. I inherited a large plastic compost bin when I moved house last summer. I've put loads of garden cuttings in there and practically all our food waste. Garden cuttings are nettles, ivy, general weeds but a lot were with hindsight a bit too stick-y. The food waste is everything but orange peel. Remember reading somewhere those shouldn't go in compost. I've not added any soil. The bin sits directly to the ground.

Anyway, a year on I've had a look in the little hatch at the bottom. It looks weird. It's muck-like but lots of stuff still not properly decomposed. I could see half an egg shell. It also doesn't seem as compressed as I expected...you wouldn't believe how much I've squashed in there so don't understand why it wasn't compacted. There are lots of sticks tangled in the muck, which might make it difficult to actually get out the little hole! They've probably also been stopping it compacting too maybe?
Anyway, is there anything useful in there do you think? What have I made and should I do anything to improve this creation..?
Thanks everyone

Egg shells and twigs take years to decompose so I'd expect to see them in there. Waxy leaves like ivy will also take longer to break down. What are the temps like? Is it in direct sunlight or shady corner? Warmer temps will break it down quickly. I don't think compacting or squashing it down would help much because it needs air. A turn or fork over every couple months would be better.

I'd there any worms or bugs in there? That is what makes the compost for you.

It sounds like you are on your way just more patience is required. Ideally at this stage you would leave that pile to work and start a new one in a second bin.

You will really help the decomposition if you can get some air in the pile. Don't do any more squishing down.

The very best thing would be to get another bin and do a two bin system. Lift your existing bin completely off and sort through the pile. Anything that looks like compost pop it into a bucket. Then put things that look quite well decomposed in one bin and stuff that's nowhere near in the other. (At this stage I sometimes fish things like sticks out and out them in my council green waste bin if I think they will never rot down). Don't worry about eggshells they are there to be grit in the compost so you don't need them to break down.

If you only have room for one bin it will do it a load of good if you can empty, sort and put everything back. You could cut up the woody twigs as you do it.

If that's not possible stick a garden fork in and give it a wiggle

One last thing I've read the same as you about not putting citrus in the bin but I do anyway and have never ever had any problems. Even something big like the peel from half a lemon disappears into the compost (whereas parsnip tops and cabbage leaves hang around for years).

Sorry I wrote that with paragraphs but the Android app took them out again

Dig out from the top in layers. Any layers that are obviously not rotted put to one side. Any layers that are basically brown you can a) sieve and use for compost b) use as it is as a mulch. Anything you don't use, you can put back into the bin. I would put it back in reverse order, with the least rotted at the bottom, and then I'd put a 2inch layer of garden soil on top.

Yes, I agree, no problem with citrus peel. The things I find don't rot are avocado stones, eggshells, irritating plastic windows from envelopes, synthetic thread from the seams of old 100% cotton shirts, and the kitchen knife I'd lost 6 months previously.

Thank you everyone.
@CatBatCat it doesn't get a lot of direct sun, it's under a tree but it gets very warm, heat generated from the decomposition I guess. It is heaving with bugs and worms. So that's great to hear.
@deplorabelle - you are right. I hadn't really considered that maybe enough time hadn't passed yet. Seems obvious now you mention it!
@MereDintofPandiculation
I hadn't even considered putting other types of waste in....would I need to ensure a balance, so not too much relative to garden and food waste? Thanks for the top tip, I will avoid trying to compost knives.

I will air it too, I felt I should be limiting air but as it's the opposite I'll get in there with a big fork and have a rummage and sort. Great stuff, thanks again everyone.

I don't put perennial weeds (like nettle and ivy!) in my compost although I read that you can if you thoroughly desiccate them first.

For desiccate, read: leave somewhere to dry out in the summer sun for 2-3 weeks. I don't do that; in normal times I take them to the council tip.

some people say leave them to rot in water then add to the compost
but personally I wouldn't risk perennial weeds in compost

You can put the tops of nettle in, and they're very nutritious. Just don't put the roots in, or make sure they're well and truly dead and dried out first. Ivy's probably OK but takes forever to rot.

Other sort of waste - matt surfaced paper and cardboard - if it's shiny the inks may not be a good idea. Pure cotton, silk or linen (not mixed with synthetic fibres), veg peelings and any discarded bits of fruit or veg, some tea bags (some have non-biodegradable bags), cooked veg or fruit waste. From the point of view of balance, veg waste can be regarded as green weeds. If you think it's getting a bit unbalanced, chuck a bit of garden soil on top to speed the breakdown.

I'm always keen to add stuff that hasn't come from the garden because, apart from the greenhouse, I don't use chemical fertilisers, so I'm very aware that with every apple, raspberry, mulberry that I eat, I'm removing nutrient from the garden. So I add it back by adding extra stuff into the heap. I should add, this is gut feeling, it may or may not square with scientific advice.

It is heaving with bugs and worms. That's all the proof you need that it's doing well.

This is great, I've been wanting to start composting for ages