compost help

sorry guys another question!! I have a big green plastic compost bin with a little door at the bottom in my garden from a few years ago. There was a small amount of compost still in it but extremely dry and almost ready. Since my bit of a pruning jamboree last weekend along with some kitchen waste it is now practically full. I did trey to chop up the dried bit at the bottom and put a bit of water on it . The kitchen waste consisted mainly of tea bags, veg peelings and banana skins ( should I have chopped these?)and the garden waste was various woody type and soft prunings which i chopped up a bit (but they were still about 6 inches long)leaves which had been around the garden since last year and i added a spadeful of the new compost i had delivered. Thinking about it now does anyone think that maybe I should take it all out and give it a good mix and a bit of a chop up or should i just give it a bit of a water and just leave it and see what happens?

 

The woody bits will take a long time to break down, and so will leaves. Depends whether you've got more space, in which case leave it and start another heap, or energy, in which case turn it and mix it and take out long twiggy bits!

 

shredders are great!! But they do cost a bit - great for making mulch imo - I wouldn't be without mine. Agree with Liz - if you've got space for a second bin, I'd go for it. I like the ones made of wood planks you slot together, as you can assemble them top suit yourself, and air gets in. I put an old carpet on top, and the cat sleeps on it!

 

I agree, I've got a shredder and tend to shred all twiggy bits before composting. We have a council tip to take garden waste like wood but I find it difficult to transport stuff. The larger bits are burnt for wood ash.

 

Hi Folks,
On the subject of composting.
Are the composters that rotate any good?
Has anyone used one?
Just starting to get my new garden in order and would love to start composting.
TIA
J

 

any composting system requires two units imo, the rotation does increase rate of composting, but i think it is easier to turn over a compost heap every 2-3 weeks in summer than to rotate every 2-3 days, but then im always looking to do less work and sepnd less money!

 

I guess that means that the bins with removable sides would be better (some of these are as expensive as the rotating ones, I think - but perhaps the sizes are different).
My local council will sell a plastic bin with the small door at the bottom, along with an activator, at a very reasonable rate.
My gut instinct is to go for a wooden one with removable sides - they just look right somehow.

 

Quite agree with Lady Gardener, I have a homemade timber plank bin with 3 sections in it, and I turn it fairly regularly. There is usually 1 bin thats fairly empty so I use that to transfer from 1 of the others. 2 things, 1 to get as much air in as possible ( and a quick stir round don't do much) and the other, just as important, is thorough checking of condition, water if too dry, add chicken manure pellets as you go, and pull out any twiggy bits or undesirables. Oh havn't found any rats yet!

The more attention you put into it, the better the compost you get out. Also don't have too much grass in any one place, or anything else come to that, keep it nicely layered and don't have any dead pockets anywhere. Oh, and keep it covered up with old carpet and a lid on top. IMHO

 

i think nixonf23 s suggestion of a big cat to sit on top is a good idea too!
i find you can manage to mix with most types of compost bins ,,, to some degree at least

 

Thanks guys,
Think I will get a wooden one with sides.
Can I use grass clippings even though I still have a lot of buttercups in the grass?
Also, i have a lot of kitchen vegetable waste. How small would you chop this up to go in the compost?

 

Hi Jinty, Have a look at this thread for rotating bins.
http://www.gardenerscorner.co.uk/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=001261;p=2#000015
If you're any good at all with DIY a wooden bin with slatted sides and slot in pieces at the front is very easy to make from pallets. Hardest bit is taking pallets apart!
Grass clippings can go in even with buttercups. I don't chop up kitchen waste like peelings, they're fine. If you had a whole turnip you might need to chop it up!

 

Thanks Liz,
There is a 200litre compost tumbler advertised in NA Kays catalogue for �£60. No picture there though, although I think it might be on a stand so that the centre of the tumbler handle is about waist height. (Saw a similarly priced one somewhere that looked like that)
Look at www.kaysdiscountgarden.co.uk under compost then tumblers. Might not suit you though.
And I assume that even though the bin is 200litres that you can't fill it as much as a normal one due to both the weight of turning and the fact that there needs to be room for the compost to rotate.
J

 

Liz, doesn't your council have a pick-up service for big garden bits? I know various Scottish authorities who do that for no charge - how about Wiltshire? That's Salisbury area, isn't it?

 

Hi, The Kays tumbler is a good price for anyone who can handle a vertical turning one; The most useful for me are the horizontal ones which seem to be more expensive, but I've had some very good reports since I started looking.
Wiltshire council are slowly getting their act together with regard to recycling, but still charge �£15 for large pick ups. Even then you have to take it onto the pavement, they don't make allowances for the elderly or disabled!

 

Better move to Scotland, Liz!! You'd get free bus travel for the entire country too, from 1/4/06!! :D :D