Help me compost!

[ToysRus56]

Hello!

Talk to me about compost. Id like to start! Medium size garden. Ideally it wouldn't be an eyesoar - tempted to get one of these - thoughts?

https://www.rhsplants.co.uk/product/_/compost-box-sustainable-timber/classid.2000012276/sku.PR30000529/?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21901495384&gbraid=0AAAAA-VcshrbWgzCS1o0lR3wnEbPA3LRG&gclid=CjwKCAjwoOjVBhArEiwAUwDak_pscLxgGRhawuI1fTih97upGamakQU41YBjrtC_z3M0Nl18aRAgFBoCm4UQAvD_BwE

Thanks

I have one that’s like a dalek that I use for garden waste, including lawn clippings, and cardboard. Although it sits on mesh and is surrounded by bricks, rats still get in so I put veg peelings into a tumbler. I find the tumbler surprisingly heavy to turn well before it gets full, unfortunately. I also have a worm farm which doesn’t attract rats but it’s a huge mess to get the composted material out of it. I liked the idea of bokashi but found the smell overpoweringly awful.

So, the dalek is probably the winner, but still on a quest for the perfect solution! My parents had two large piles in beds that they just turned regularly with a garden fork, and these made beautiful compost, but it was a larger garden so any rats (and the snakes that came for the rats and the warmth!) were far from the house.

What kind of wormery is it? I have a worm city, a stacking one, and it's easy to remove one full tray of worm castings each time. Another thing you could do (which I learned from an 80 year old neighbour!!) Is put things in the tumbler just long enough to start decomposing, then into the wormery. So the tumbler doesn't get more than about a quarter full so still light, and the worms make short work of the partially composted stuff.

That’s a good idea to add the tumbled compost to the worm farm. I also have a stacking one, but it must be different from your worm city as it’s a messy process to remove the worm castings from the bottom tray.

Ive tried and tested loads of ways and the best ive found is to tip it upside down over a large seed tray or a tarp on a warmish day, and all the worms and bits will drop down. Then leave it for 24 hours. The next day, tap to get most of it out, and turn it back up the right way and pop it back as the top layer of the wormery. Pop a load of kitchen scraps in and move the top of your pile of castings over as the mass of worms should be at the bottom of the pile and scoop them back into the top tray.

Dont worry about getting it all out, the stuff that didint fall will have worm eggs or baby worms in it to replenish your stocks.

Any other way I find it just a nightmare.

I do have a very large seed tray which i use foe this. I have one of the large original round wormeries.

The other way I do it is to have a separate stash for maturing, and I just put the whole lot in there along with all the worms, and intersplice it with half tumbled compost and the worms finish it all off slowly over winter. I put these in small wheelie bins. The worms pretty quickly regenerate themselves and move up to the higher layers.

I never ever scoop all the wet compost out, I let gravity do the work.

I follow 'Vermicomposting learn by doing' on youtube's method. He orders the trays differently to the way the stacking wormeries recommend, so you're harvesting the second to top tray. He also runs them a lot drier than other ways so that helps. Lots of good tips on his channel.

We were issued a hot box from the council. They then sent a composting agent to explain! (In France) I was told to throw in all kitchen waste except meat/fish or bread to avoid rats.& Leaves & plants but little or no grass cuttings & not in thick layers. So I don't actually put grass in.
I lift the box once a year & move it along to the adjoining slot . Then spread out the bottom composted material on the veg garden & put the top layer back into the hotbox.
(On the patch where the box was I plant Parsley. Chives, Coriander etc which thrive like Triffids)
Its very self sufficient & the advantage is there’s no mixing.
There is a small hatch on the bottom but its not practical at all.
I also water it from time to time.

Oh, I also would avoid seeds from butternut & all squash as each & every one grow in the spread out compost😅

my DH uses the composting method for gardening called "the NO DIG method". A chap by the name of Charles Dowding in UK has several books/vids/instructions on composting. Look him up.