Compost Discussion Thread (Merged Threads)

heatherw_01

I am hopefully getting a compost bin soon. How long does it take for the stuff in it to turn into compost?

katiep_2

Grr! My water authority don't have it, and while it looks like I could get one from Severn Trent, there's a 6-8 week wait! Just think how much compost I could collect in that time!!! Back to the drawing board!

rubix_76

heatherw_01 wrote:

I am hopefully getting a compost bin soon. How long does it take for the stuff in it to turn into compost?

How long have you got ??

I have been looking into this as although my "pile" was going down (as in rotting) it didn't appear to be turning into compost, so I wen't to 'tut library, and got some books on compost, and they say you can do it in as little 2 months if you are prepared to spend time making the "stuff" as small as possible. I have been guilty of putting a whole apple that had gone soft in, and it doesn't rot dosn very quickly. If you make sure you have got equal amounts of "browns" and "greens" in there and it is layered just right, you can get it very quickly.

If however you (like me) just plonk anything in any-old-how, it can take up to 2 years !!! :eek: Having more than one bin or pile can help, as one can be rotting down as the other is being piled up.

check out this website that was mentioned earlier, it is very good and tells you just about all you will need to know about compost. Try this site too.

Happy Composting

Rubix

arkonite_babe

I sound like you rubix, me thinks I need to start being a biot more carful about my sorting, otherwise my compost will take years at this rate

stevanbt

Hello all,
We have a compost bin, we use it a lot. However, every time we open the lid a swarm of Fruit Flies escape.

Does anyone have any ideas how to control them?

The only thing I've found is:-
Leave the lid off to encourage natural preditors to eat them. But I haven't got a clue what natural preditors to encourage. And I can't leave the lid off for too long incase the contents get wet.

Thanks in advance, Steve.

Is something Doing Your Head In :mad: - http://blog.doingmyheadin.com

Seakay

We have this problem as well, and I haven't found a cure, I'm afraid. I keep a jar of tansy (herb that's supposed to deter flies) on the nearest windowsill and also a sticky paper flycatcher (belt and braces) by that window, but obviously this is just to combat the results, not the cause.

Citonella is supposed to repel insects, so perhaps a plant would deter the flies?

http://www.groovyweb.uklinux.net/index.php?page_name=mosquito%20repelling%20plant&category=ads

I have not tried that, but I am thinking of moving my tansy plant to nearer the compost bin to see if it helps at all.

http://www.taoherbfarm.com/herbs/herbs/tansy.htm

The_Biff

You can cover the compost with an inch or less of soil. This usually works for me.

pollys

Put in a layer of shredded paper, this will keep the flies down for a while but another layer will be needed as soon as they reappear.

arkonite_babe

make sure the shredded paper doesn't contain any shiny stuff, like the one used for advertising flyers, this doesn't break down as well.

There are links in the useful sticky at the top of the board for help on composting.

Kantankrus_Mare

For anyone that is looking for a compost bin just keep looking in the gardening section of your local paper. I have picked up 2 free ones in the last month or so that people no longer wanted.:D