Use councils waste collection or compost? including brambles

Girthhitch

Am I right in thinking that anything other than brambles is best to compost? Was going to tackle an overgrown garden and throw everything including brambles in the non walk-able area behind where a couple large bushes/small trees reside, but can bramble cuttings re-root there?

Perhaps its a waste to use my councils green bins if everything is compostable, there's plenty of space, can perhaps use the bins a bit if I underestimate the work

Thanks from a non-gardener.

teaselMay

I'd compost even brambles if it's going to be proper compost that gets hot and rots down.

My compost barely gets chance to rot, to the extent that mostly I mow it up into fine pieces and scatter it directly on the garden these days. Even doing that including with small amounts of brambles I've only ever had brambles in two places, both under the hedge.

FlorayG

Cut any roots off the brambles then cut the stems as small as you can - a foot long each is best - then you can safely compost. You can either put the roots in the council compost bin or put them in a dustbin full of water to rot.
Any other weeds, cut off the roots and any seed pods formed and rot those as well, put the green parts on your heap. I did this with a 1/4 acre of brambles and bracken; it took two years to rot down but eventually made nice compost

twopenny

Obviously good advice from Floray who's been there, done that.

I had a run of cultivated blackberries.
I spent time chopping them into small 1ft bits and took them to the recycling centre.
I poisoned the roots as they were huge but in a few years they started to sprout again.
So if you dig them up cut off the roots and dispose. The stems go hard and dry. They won't compost on their own, you need a proper heap of compost.

When you've cleared and recovered pop back and ask for gardening advice. We have everything here from immaculate flower beds, fruit and veg to trees and easy care. Threads on people's making a garden with ideas and updates.

-taff

A shredder could be your best friend. I got one a while ago on fbmp for thirty quid, it's done all my bay prunings for years which get put into bags or buckets to add to the hotbin compost [ saves me sourcing already rotting wood chip or buying it from them] Did the holly tree this winter and the rosemary when I chop large bits off.

I do use my green bin mostly for the grass clippings [ too much mares tail in there] and anything really weedy. I won't or wouldn't compost bindweed roots, they can go in a bucket of water to make feed. If there are loads of bindweed roots, like there are at my allotment, I put them in an empty compost bag and fill it up, then place somewhere out of the way so they can rot in the bag and make me some free compost for my trouble weeding [ al weeds go in these bags] Bramble roots can also go in water, or leave them out to dry completely. You can shred the stems though or chop them up.

If you have too much woody stuff consider a dead hedge, much easier making one of those than a bug hotel. 

Effician

We grow thornless Blackberries ( just as vigorous so it seems) & it's a good contributor to the compost bins each year as all the fruited stalks have to be cut back just leaving fresh growth for the next season like summer Rasberries. As already mentioned shred if you can either shredder or lawnmower for quicker composting.

We're growing courgette & squash  in our 200l blue barrel  bins of freshly hacked vegetation / cardboard & some food scraps with 30cm of fresh compost on top for the roots to tget a start ,do it each year with very good results & it makes good use of our limited space.

-taff

That's a good idea. Does the hacked up stuff compost in there or do you turn it out when they've finished growing?

Effician

It just breaks down over the summer & autumn feeding the courgette/ squash as it does, these bins are the first ones emptied onto the borders in late winter. The thing to watch when growing in bins is that the level with drop a lot so i normally extend the bin by about 18" & by the time it settles i can remove the shuttering & the compost sits at the top of the barrel , a courgette sitting a foot or more below the bin top isn't ideal.

It's a method going back many many  years & folks grew marrows, squash , pumpkins etc on open compost heaps.

-taff

I might give that a go next year. I'm growing things in straw this year, should have really given it another year to break down a bit more but the potatoes are through it and the littler stuff, the rocket , parsley, beetroot seem to be ok in the big bed [ there are a few inches of last years spent compost in there] 

I saw an interview with Ruth Stout and had to play...it's been a while since I experimented...I shouldn't be surprised really, nearly everything under the sun has been done by someone somewhere but until you try, you never know if it'll work for you...or at least that's what I tell myself.

twopenny

I grow potatoes in the compost heap due to lack of space.
Works well if on the small size.