I get excited by the strangest things – compost is one of them. I like to make my own, and it’s so easy to do – I can’t believe I’ve only been doing this for the last three years. Part of the problem is the fact I started fifteen years ago with one of the plastic dalek-style compost bins which put me off for years before I tried again with a wooden slatted compost bin. Granted these are more expensive, but you can find offers online or make your own. The bonus is they come apart so you can empty the compost easily or move them to another part of the garden.
I dutifully sited mine in a semi-shady corner of the garden that got some warmth during the day in spring/summer. I filled it with the correct mix of materials – soil, grass clippings, plant prunings, leaves and weeds (no perennial weeds), shredded cardboard, kitchen veggie waste (no cooked food waste), teabags and eggshells. I then asked my 3 year old to hunt for lots of worms. We added these and set them to work.
I was amazed at how much you could get in such a small compost bin in just one spring and summer. Ideally you need two compost bins so you can be filling one whilst the other rots down, but we just don’t have space. I also forgot to turn it much, but with the airflow through the slats it seemed to do the trick (note how important this is – no wonder the dalek ones often fail). To my amazement after the first winter I came to open the lid (just an old pallet) and forked through what had become a reasonably good, rich crumbly compost for the garden. I was hooked!
*A note of caution on the subject of green waste. If a gardener or landscaper offers to take green waste away for you, it’s important that you check that they have a Waste Carrier’s Licence issued by the Environment Agency and you check how they plan to dispose of the waste. Under the Waste Regulations 2011 if illegally disposed of waste (including green waste) is traced to your household, you may be fined up to £5,000 in a Magistrates Court.
