Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: cc on August 02, 2017, 22:06
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Emptied out a couple of compost bins (have 4 daleks) on to my garden. Already had one empty, so started trimming some bushes and trees. Shredder turned out to be excellent half inches thick branches turned into very thin strips. The fourth bin was on concrete no visible insects. Was reasonably well rotted. So decided to mix it with new garden waste. Poured a couple of large sweet jars of pee on it over 3 days. It had packed down so went to mix more in. It was very hot with steam coming out.
Question. Should I keep adding more garden waste to it as it compacts down? And more pee or leave well alone. The other two bins are full but will obviously compact down. I could add some from them?
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Two ways, you can just keep adding or wait until it slows down, tip it all out ,mix it up ,add some more & put it all back in,depends how much work you want & how quickly you want the finished product. Most people just leave it,adding in layers until it's full or you've got an empty bin, then start on that one,leaving the other bin to mature
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I basically use the same method we had some lovely composted material but I've found when I go to empty my bucket of waste in the darlek with the lid of about a thousand little flies come out
is there anything you can add to the darleks to assist the breaking down process we do as said fill one up brim full and then start on another bin I've found it takes around twelve months to compost down I also sited them at the top of the garden because o boy they tend to honk
the other thing was when I composted all my old marrows in the darlek we had a lovely crop of marrow plants growing in the runner beans when I put the composted waste in the bean row so that's definitely no more marrows in the darlek :D
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The first one which I had added some old compost to was still steaming after 10 days. Decided to empty it out and into another empty dalek yesterday . It was a bit wet but bottom was doing great. Other 2 bins hot as well. Should have mixed some from them in. Pitty. Turned bin very hot today. I think you need to turn the compost every week to get it to compost quickly AND kill the weed seeds? . Maybe even bindweed??
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I basically use the same method we had some lovely composted material but I've found when I go to empty my bucket of waste in the darlek with the lid of about a thousand little flies come out
is there anything you can add to the darleks to assist the breaking down process we do as said fill one up brim full and then start on another bin I've found it takes around twelve months to compost down I also sited them at the top of the garden because o boy they tend to honk
the other thing was when I composted all my old marrows in the darlek we had a lovely crop of marrow plants growing in the runner beans when I put the composted waste in the bean row so that's definitely no more marrows in the darlek :D
Garrotter
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I've been told from some other gardeners that garrotta is not that good so I don't know may be give it a go
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Shredded comfrey works well as an accelerator.
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Shredded comfrey works well as an accelerator.
Pee, pee and more pee. Best to drink two bottles of cider a night as that helps as well, honest! I have noticed no smell at all (from the compost bins). I keep a large sweet jar (plastic) on the toilet seat and when I don't need it for the compost I put it in the toilet after a poo. Keeps water bill down and reduce water going into septic tank.
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I did have a pack of Garotta several years ago, and the stuff in my daleks seemed to rot down reasonably quickly, but in the absence of a side-by-side comparison it's hard to say how much difference it made.
This year I happen to have got two daleks filled with very similar materials - I might try adding my 'personal liquid waste' to just one of them to see if there is an obvious difference.
Still reckon it's mainly about having the right mix of green and brown ingredients in sufficient quantities, plus sufficient moisture and air, to get hot aerobic decomposition going, which is something I for one have very rarely achieved.
It will still rot down eventually whatever you do, although cold, anaerobic composting will not of course kill weed seeds or pathogenic organisms.
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The only time I've managed to get a decent amount of heat was when I added some cow manure to the mix.
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cold, anaerobic composting will not of course kill weed seeds or pathogenic organisms.
Or the devils bindweed
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Just remembered I had a digital thermometer for cooking. Stuck deep into the 3 compost bins
Got the following reading from the 3 bins 42c 34c 26c. The 42c bin I have turned once. I think I will turn again and mix in the 26c one.
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Just remembered something else! I don't have a standard soakaways for my Ceptic tank. It's actually another tank built out of brick in a circle with a gap between each brick . The bottom is concrete with about a 24" hole in middle for to the water to soak away. Its has an inspection cover. Every now again I pump it out onto a bit of waste weedy ground. Now the weeds tend to grow a lot taller ie 6 foot plus nettles! I think I will try a bit of that in the compost bin???
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Just remembered I had a digital thermometer for cooking. Stuck deep into the 3 compost bins
Got the following reading from the 3 bins 42c 34c 26c. The 42c bin I have turned once. I think I will turn again and mix in the 26c one.
Put 42c with 26c. 26c was a little dry.
Just turned 34c into another bin.
Not really that hard probably only spent 30 minutes doing it.
I am going to have to find some more to compost. I seen a big pile of grass cuttings somewhere? I will ask neighbor with a large grass area to give me his cuttings. Now for browns I have chainsaw chippings. I am thinking I need a bit more wood chippings for grass??
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I mix a good handfull of sawdust from my circular bench saw with each mower box of cuttings. It stopps the grass turning into a slimy lump and helps air circulation.
Nettles get stuffed into an old onion sack then put in a water butt for liquid feed. It niffs a bit but is the dogs danglers.
The last time I checked my main hot bin it was 74c. turned once a month since april.
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I mix a good handfull of sawdust from my circular bench saw with each mower box of cuttings. It stopps the grass turning into a slimy lump and helps air circulation.
Nettles get stuffed into an old onion sack then put in a water butt for liquid feed. It niffs a bit but is the dogs danglers.
The last time I checked my main hot bin it was 74c. turned once a month since april.
Explain further ie your hot bin. 74c is very very high. How do you measure it?
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I have some old temp guages that I wombled years ago that reach down into the centre of the pile with ease. Please note my main hot bin is the pallet type and not a darlek. I have two of these bins side by side. I start one by layering horse muck green waste darlec contents topped with fine bark chippings. layers are 3" ish thick. once full to the top I cover with plack plastic and let it stew for around 6 weeks. As it shrinks I add more. After 6 weeks I turn it out into the second bin adding garrota as I go. I repeat this every 4 weeks or so till June then let it settle.
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I will have about 9 bags (equal to large carrier bags) by tomorrow. I wouldn't say it was well matured. Should I compost it with ?? Or just leave it in a pile open to the element
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Mix it in with your compost the heat will go up then
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I will have about 9 bags (equal to large carrier bags) by tomorrow. I wouldn't say it was well matured. Should I compost it with ?? Or just leave it in a pile open to the element
That should have read I will have about 9 bags (equal to large carrier bags) of HORSE MANURE by tomorrow. I wouldn't say it was well matured. Should I compost it with ?? Or just leave it in a pile open to the element
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I will have about 9 bags (equal to large carrier bags) by tomorrow. I wouldn't say it was well matured. Should I compost it with ?? Or just leave it in a pile open to the element
That should have read I will have about 9 bags (equal to large carrier bags) of HORSE MANURE by tomorrow. I wouldn't say it was well matured. Should I compost it with ?? Or just leave it in a pile open to the element
Mix it in with your compost the heat will go up then
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I will have about 9 bags (equal to large carrier bags) by tomorrow. I wouldn't say it was well matured. Should I compost it with ?? Or just leave it in a pile open to the element
That should have read I will have about 9 bags (equal to large carrier bags) of HORSE MANURE by tomorrow. I wouldn't say it was well matured. Should I compost it with ?? Or just leave it in a pile open to the element
Mix it in with your compost the heat will go up then
Thanks I will do it at the next turning.
I have 4 compost bins but there 2 for sale (ebay) 99p no bids failed to sell first time. Seller offering delivery for £7.50. Not sure I need more!?
I am instead tempted to go for a tumbler. Higher tempreture equals death to weed seeds and maybe even bind weed?
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Nitro cgalk acts as a good accelerator for compost and is cheaper than garrotter.