Siting of 'dalek' compost bins

Hi
I'm setting up a couple of compost bins and would like to know if they would be okay next to my veg patch - but about three feet or so away - would that be okay?

Also I have read in various books, that it is a good idea to put wire netting at the bottom (to keep wildlife out) - is this really necessary cos I won't be putting any meat or cooked food in??

Thanks
Newveggie

 

We have one, the only place we could site it conveniently was behind the shed with almost zero sunshine. It has taken a year to start getting decent compost out of the bottom, but it's been worth it.

PS provide a bucket outside and "encourage" any males in your family to wee in it, to add to the composter - a great activator (I only say males as it's easier for us than females!).

 

I agree with all that:

Mine are in full sun and the black plastic gets nicely hot, which encourages the contents. But I have also made compost, in the past, in the shade.

Convenient to get to is important. Near the veg patch, with a suitable "bucket" for weeding duties (I have lots of old bucket-like containers that fertilizer came in, and I grab it and pull a few weeds when visiting the veg patch - and then just tip them into the Dalek).

Mine is sited so that I don't have to walk across any bare earth to get to it - important in the winter when I empty the kitchen compost-bin, otherwise my shoes would get covered with our clay soil :(

Mine is also sited so I can pee in it without encouraging the neighbours to post a video on YouTube to embarrass me!! (I do that most days, saves the water of a flush, plus it gets the temperature in the heap up like nothing else, free too!)

I suggest you forget about the little door at the bottom to get the "finished compost" out. That has never worked for me. Once an month-ish, during the Summer, I lift mine off (its narrower at the top, than the bottom), plonk it down alongside, and re-fill it with the original contents, thus mixing it all up. When it is "full" I then empty out the second one, and that becomes the new one.

I am very fussy about where my Tomato, Cucumber and Potato plant waste goes. So that goes into a specific bin, which is then never used back on the veg patch (I put it on the flower borders), to prevent spreading any diseases from that plant family.

But, OTOH, [and I am sure unlike MOST people], I am extremely lax about pernicious weeds, and weeds which are in seed. I chuck everything on the heap, and live with the fact that they are likely to survive the composting process. I would prefer to have the maximum of composted material, and live with pulling out some extra bindweed. I would NOT compost Ground Elder or Marestails though.

 

Thank you so much for all the detailed info. Very helpful indeed. My bin is in full sunlight, so that is good, but unfortunately also in full view of neighbours, so peeing is out of the question, unless I can persuade my other half (easier for him!)

Another question - can I mix up kitchen and garden waste in same bin?

 

Yes, you can. A good mix is green waste (garden waste) and brown waste (kitchen and cardboard). We are lucky having a "green" bin that the council collect so all weeds, grass clippings, dead headed flowers and dead annuals go into it, along with cardboard. But we have a small bin in the kitchen that all kitchen waste - peelings, eggshells, tea bags etc go into (no meat though or cooked food) and gets emptied into the composter. We add shredded paper and the used bedding from the chicken house, so it gets a good mix (I think). We also add corrugated cardboard as a) the council won't take it and b) I've heard worms in the composter love to gnaw through the glue.