Compost

Hello Nfk.

Am no great expert but there is a 'recipe' for compost, you can get books from library etc on the precise details. Its all about matching the chemical levels. Certain amounts of greenery need to be balanced with dryer materials. Thus if you put loads of lawn cuttings in the mixture goes wrong. Monty Don talks a lot os sense about it...perhaps there could be something on the BBC gardening site?

I am no expert on composting, but I have 2 bins and leave it a year before using the contents, so fill one over one year and the other the next, making sure there are layers of different items for balance. I never seem to produce any heat though, which would speed things up.

The length of time it takes to 'cook' depends on lots of things. I've never found six to nine months enough. I usually leave mine for a year or even two years. Fortunately I have room for several very large heaps (no bins). Maybe you could get your DH to pee on it? That's supposed to help.

We have five bins. Ours take about six months in winter and less time in summer. My OH pees on them too.
Something a man can do better than a woman.

I think the wet summer and cold winter have affected compost heaps. I have two square wooden ones and I usually reckon that each spring, if I remove the first 6 - 9 inches of the top I should have decent compost underneath. This year even a foot or more down the material is still uncomposted. I have decided not to even investigate the second heap but just leave it to compost for another year.

I am lucky to have four large compost heaps so I leave them to cook for a year (in roatation) Monty Don gives composting advice in most of his books but you might find some useful info on these youtube videos

I'm giving up on mine because of having rats in them .

I have one of these which I got from the council, I also have two ordinary dustbins and a heap.
For some reason the council bin composts things a lot faster than the ordinary bins or the heap.
I have no idea why, unless it's something to do with the shape allowing heat to be retained
Personally I think worms are important. I love lifting the lid and seeing lots of baby worms slithering about, feasting themselves.

Thanks everyone. We don't have room for more than two bins, but I shall study the UTube videos Merlot (although they look quite scary) and see if there's a mix to speed things up.

Our 'proper' compost bin has a wee door at the bottom which you can open to take out a few shovelfuls of rotted compost at a time. With the other bin, which has no door, I decant the unrotted top layers into the wheelbarrow, upend the bin to harvest the well rotted stuff below and then replace the top layers at the bottom of the bin and start filling up again. My other trick is to capture as many worms as I can when digging over the veg. plot and bung them into the compost bin. They think they are in worm heaven and swiftly go to work feeding and making baby worms.

Do you add garden soil every so often? A layer of any old stuff from a corner, if you can spare it, to make a compost sandwich - it speeds things up no end - cheaper and quicker than any fancy compost accelerator. Also do water your compost every so often - if it's too dry it won't rot - but not with chlorinated water as this will kill the bugs. As Bags recommends getting your OH to pee on it will also help (but be careful not to get arrested!)

I've tried horse muck mixed in which seemed to help and mixed soil with grass cuttings to try to stop them becoming a thatch, but probably not enough. I think some of the problem is not having enough kitchen waste now there are just two of us. It wasn't a problem when the house was full of kids.
Keep forgetting to water, thanks for the reminder.
(the peeing bit is difficult as the bins are by the fence with two attentive toddlers next door - I'll have to send him out late at night!)

I get mine to p into a 4l plastic milk bottle indoors and then mix it in a watering can. Bingo. We are just two now so it is difficult to collect enough peelings - so we have the neighbours saving them for us.
Also Tegan - don't give up! If you water your compost regularly the rats will leave - and find a drier home. But don't put any cooked food or bread or bones in the compost it will attract them.

I have one of those Beehive style composters which is made up of layers with an opening door at the bottom enabling us to shovel the good stuff out as it is "cooked".

I have an excellent (although a bit ancient) recipe book for compost called Backyard composting it is really good but not sure if it is still available.