herbal compost booster

i found a book i forgot i had its very interesting anyway it has a whole section on organic gardening.
this is what it says....
it can take 2 years for a compost heap to turn into a rich humus so if you want to accelerate the process add the booster to your compost and it may rot down in as little as six weeks in summer, three months in autumn and five months in winter, so here it is hope it helps
quantities for a small compost heap for about a year:-
7 teaspoons liquid glucose
1 teaspoon each dried valerian,stinging nettle,camomile,dandelion and yarrow leaves
1 teaspoon dried oak bark
450ml(16floz)rainwater
pour the liquid glucose into a plastic bottle.Add all of the herbs and the oak bark then shake thoroughly.Add 2 teaspoons of the mixture to the rainwater and leave to infuse for 24 hours.Use a pole to make about 5 evenly spaced holes in your compost heap.Pour 6 tablespoons of the herb water into each hole.Refil the holes with fine soil and press down.Repeat every 6 weeks until the compost has completely rotted down

 

Interesting, but sounds like a faff on. The point of adding various herbs to the heap, as I understand it, is really just to get loads of nitrogen in there, which the various bacteria need, but also to add various trace elements that are often lacking. Nettles and comfrey are two popular choices for that purpose.

I like the idea of adding glucose, but I suspect any sugar would do the trick, and I even suspect that regular granulated sugar would do the trick. I suspect that the purpose here is to feed the natural yeasts that are present in the compost heap, to get some anaerobic digestion going on.

 

Sounds like something made up by a hippy after a few too many "herbs"

The holes for airation will help, as will the sugar. But the amounts of nitrogen from such a small amount of herbs would be negligble.

Easier to make the holes and wee in them

 

ahh well maybe not then lol its all about what was used in days gone by

 

When you say its about what was used in days gone by, how old is this book? Was it published before 1951 by any chance?

There were certain, erm, practices that were illegal until then, so anyone wanting to share the knowledge had to do so by either dressing it up as fiction, or sneaking it under some other basis.

 

Nothing wrong with putting that up We can look at it with new eyes

 

its readers digest hints and tips from times past , published 2000

 

Ahh, them's not allowed to use the wee word

 

For years I've been asking Mr "M" to salvage his urine to use as a compost booster - he was, is and remains horrified at the thought. He simply can't grasp that I don't need him to walk down the garden path, remove the compost lid and "hoist the main brace" I'm kind enough to offer a bucket: he still declines

Maybe I need that recipe after all - far less faff than enticing Mr "M" down the garden path

 

Sommet wrong with the boy.

 

"M"......feed him with a few cups of strong tea then lock him outside for an hour, that should sort the problem!

 

I was thinking of putting him *in* the compost bin and securing the lid for a week hour or two

 

Certainly not me, Jiffy!!
He should be old enough by now to be able to do that for himself