Compost

[northernballer]

Has anyone got their own compost bin? I like the idea but really not sure how it works!

Can I make my own? What can I put in it? And how long before it produces anything useful?

I got a water butt recently which has been the highlight of my gardening year and now need something else!

Ooh I love making compost! We put food scraps (uncooked, fruit and veg only and not too much citrus peel), garden trimmings chopped into 5-10cm pieces, shredded cardboard (I tear up boxes and run them through the paper shredder), and the occasional bucket of horse poo from the nearby woods.

You need a mix of green and brown stuff, and stick a garden fork in and mix it up every couple of weeks. I have two bins, so after 6 months I stop adding to the full one and let it compost down, and start building the second bin. So 1-2 loads of finished compost a year.

I have a wormery in my small london garden. It produces stinky bin juice fertiliser (tap at bottom) very quickly. I put as many clippings as I can in there and all veg waste

Just started!

Got this one https://www.bmstores.co.uk/products/composter-black-220l-278266

I’m using it for garden waste and raw food like peelings. Not sure what to expect but thought it was worth a go!

So I have an old wherlie bin, could I just use that? Stick all my old veg and garden waste in there and turn it every so often? Or do I need to buy an actual compost bin?

Sorry I really am completely clueless!

Mine is like the one @ThirdStorm linked to.

We've had it 20+ years and rarely do anything to it (like the suggestion of needing to mix through with a garden fork).

We put in:
Veg peelings
tea bags
coffee dregs
hair (I have my hair cut at home)
'rough' card - such as egg boxes (rather then the more glossy, commercial card that is printed on)
once in a while we put in some cut grass or hedge trimmings, but careful not to 'drown' the mix with these
shredded paper sometime to stop it being too 'soggy'
raw egg shells (crushed)

It rots down in just a few months and is ready to use without needing anyone doing anything to it.

Compost bins are pretty inexpensive. My compost bin is full of those red worms, they break things down really quickly.

We have two bin systems
A, one we add stuff to
B, one that is breaking down into lovely compost.

When the A bin is full, the other one is about ready to go on the garden.

We empty the B bin by topdressing the raised beds and mulching the trees.

Then we transfer everything from the A bin into the newly emptied B bin, which means it's all been turned. This helps it break down much faster.

The A bin is now empty and we start filling it up again with kitchen waste, chicken manure, garden clippings, small animal bedding, cardboard etc.

Having chickens definitely helps the quality of the compost. I have a friend with horses and her compost is great as well.

Don't use a wheelie bin... you need the compost to be in touch with the ground, so that it decomposes with the help of bacteria from the soil and wiggly horrid things.

If you can site it somewhere warm, it will speed up the process a bit.

This might help!

https://www.rhs.org.uk/soil-composts-mulches/composting

Edited to add: I see they suggest a cool spot, not a warm one - my bad! I've always found a warmer spot seems better, but I'm no expert!

Thank you everyone! Just ordered a bin =)

I flipping love my compost bin. My family give me their veg peelings & grass. I also love going to the farm for fresh manure to add to it. It gives me lots of pleasure knowing I'm making my own compost from scraps.

So my bin has arrived! Does it need to go on earth or can it go on a concrete slab? It doesn't have a base wonks in contact with the ground.

I would put it in the back corner of my garden on an unused flower bed but it's right under some trees and next to a fence and I read somewhere they can catch fire, although it is contained so not much of an oxygen supply I wouldn't have thought?

I put mine on a patch of earth. Then surrounded it by stones. No idea if that’s good or bad as I don’t know what I’m doing!

The compost gets warm as it decomposes, but I doubt it will catch fire! Mine is on concrete and the red compost worms find their way in fine. So I don’t think it matters that much. I’d place it where it suits you/your garden.

Mine are on a patch of earth under a tree. They're full of worms which are always up round the lid. I have to rinse or hose them off so I don't chop them up when I put the lid back.

Place it on earth for drainage and for the worms. Mines in semi shade.

On dirt somewhere out of the way. No, it is not likely to catch fire.

I wouldn't put it too far out of the way or it is going to become a pain to pop the kitchen stuff in there without having to put your wellies on and traipse down the garden.

I have a collecting bin by the back door. It goes up the garden to be emptied into the compost bin when it's full.

If you do composting properly then it does get hot but the pile doesn't often catch alight. I don't do proper composting: I just chuck stuff in as it arises. It's called cold composting and that never self-combusts. It's less effort but takes longer so I just have more compost bins!

If you have room, put the bin in a space where you could put two bins side by side.

Next spring (hopefully) lift the whole bin up and put it next to the pile of compost. Put the uncomposted top layer back into the bin, and use the stuff that has composted in your garden.

Do not put persistent weeds in there, or not unless you have killed them in water first, although nettles are good!