I've got what seems to me a big two cell side-by-side 8' x 4' composter affair made with planks as well as a plastic composter for kitcheny type scraps etc. and I've not really had a composter at all before. I've read up here and there and shiney's good sticky on here so I hope I'm doing it right. I generally avoid using chemicals on my garden unless I really have to so I'm wondering if there is a way of telling how nutritious the compost you are making is? (apart from how well you garden grows I guess) Cheers
Unless you can do chemical analysis to only way to assess nutrition would be to do some trials. I was interested in assessing worm compost versus 'normal' garden compost. Here's a link to the thread I started last year > http://gardenerscorner.co.uk/forum/general-gardening-discussion/492-compost-trials-results.html
Thanks Dave for that and some interesting research too. Not sure I would go as far as a testing kit myself. I guess I do mine by gut feel really. The pens get a lot less variety of stuff so I figure it is probably less fertile. I generally save the kitchen scrap compost for my veg and a few special plants I'm trying to coax along. My plastic composter breaks down a lot less quickly than the pen stuff. I'm guessing this is because it has more sturdy scraps thrown in? But also wondering if it is because it is in a hidden away in a shady area behind some big shrubs. Also it gets packed quicky so gets aerated less.
