Compost Discussion Thread (Merged Threads)

Witsend_2

Hi I wouldn't worry if your compost looks a little wet then add some shredded paper and give it a good mix and all should be well.;)

ShauntheSheep

There's no problem. In fact compost will break down more quickly if it is on the wet side rather than too dry. Mix in some dryer material and keep it covered so that it can warm up. Don't give up!

itsalldrivingmemad

I have just bought a compost bin an normal big black thing that is now situatied in the cormer of my garden and is filling up nicely with grass clippings and potatoe clippings etc. Can i put Dendrobaena worms straight in there or do I need a specific wormery to use these worms for faster composting?

Any advice would be greatfully appreciated.

overlykeensaver

I am the proud owner of a brand new (and empty) compost bin. This may sound a stupid question, but how do I start?

Do I just start chucking my veg peelings, cardboard, paper and grass cuttings in? What would be best to put down as the first layer? Does it matter ?

itsalldrivingmemad

anyone know anything about these worms i'd be grateful...

WestonDave

I would naturally have said yes as I understand these worms occur in nature and over time you will probably find evidence of them in your bin - I've seen a dead one on the lid of mine. Had a quick look via google at Scottishworms.com (no recommendation just the first site that came up) and they sell these worms to put in your compost heap - so I guess that confirms it! From what I can tell they can be sensitive to acid or dry conditions so you need to wiegh up whether the speed is worth the extra monitoring you'll need to do to protect your investment in worms as they don't appear to be cheap.

They do breed fairly well so given you are providing a predator free environment with plenty of potential food I'd just allow the numbers to build up naturally.

WestonDave

Its best to have something at the bottom which will create an air circulation under the heap - if you've got any twiggy prunings that is probably longest lasting, otherwise scrunched up cardboard is OK.

Be careful about putting too much grass cuttings in in one go as they tend to form a wet smelly mass - mix them in with other stuff like paper and cardboard to help balance the moisture.

overlykeensaver

Thanks WestonDave, I have a hedge that needs a prune so will use some of the clippings mixed with cardboard to form my first layer. Thanks for the tip about not overdoing the grass clippings too. Luckily my council has a garden waste recycling scheme so will be able to get rid of most of them in my garden waste green bin.

Linda32

Hi,

An idea I use is to think of the items as ingredients, what I mean is abit of one thing and abit of another thing.

Try if you can to build up in layers.

Save all your veg peelings and salad, anything raw which would have grew, so no meat or fish as this will obviously go off.
Don't put plate scrapings in as you will have added somthing to the meal, if you see what I mean.

Not too much citrus peel but the odd orange don't matter.

You can put weeds in but not the woody type.

Leave out leaves as these take too long to break down, its better to make leaf mould with these.

Pet waste if the pet eats veg rather than meat, rabbit etc

Cut flowers and egg shells are fine as well.

Cardboard egg boxes can be left whole as this creates air pockets.

HTH

V_Chic_Chick

How much chicken manure and woodshavings is it sensible to put in (as a rough %), when the mixture is probably about 50:50, and there is about half to a third of a plastic carrier bag full per 1.5 weeks?