Compost

Get greener by getting green fingered!

My darling husband is out in the back garden stirring the compost heap as I type (now the snow has melted), so I thought this would be a good time to write about it...

Last spring our council put a leaflet through the door offering garden compost bins, with a small caddy for the kitchen, for free! (see www.recyclenow.com). The bin for the garden is about 4ft high with maximum diameter of about 3 1/2ft (it tapers toward the top slightly). We've put it at the very end of the garden, next to the fence behind a screen of trellis (up which evergreens are growing) and, carefully following the instructions, began using it last summer. Even in the heat, it doesn't particularly pong - it just has a kind of earthy aroma. And now, 9 months on with regular additions and slightly less regular stirring, the stuff at the bottom of the pile is beginning to look compost-ish. There is a little trap door at the bottom of the bin, so you don't have to lean into the bin to fish the compost out. Hopefully it will be ready for use this year for the summer bedding plants...

Our main reason for getting the compost bin was to cut down on the amount of kitchen waste going into our household bin. We rarely throw food away, but peelings, cores, egg shells, tea bags etc are all excellent compost fodder. If anything, our compost bin should smell of tea what with all the bags in it (although be sure to take the tags and string off herbal tea bags)! The little caddy came with biodegradable liners and sit neatly in the cupboard under our kitchen sink. I would say it probably fills up quicker than our (equal sized) rubbish bin (especially with helpful contributions of peelings from friends!), although neither fill as fast as our recycling bin! (More on that in a separate blog)

Wycombe Council are gradually rolling out a kitchen waste collection scheme, which is great although it seems to have been a long time coming. If you're interested in composting, contact your local council who should be able to provide advice/contact details. The waste/recycling dept will probably be your best bet. Or else, try www.recyclenow.com

'But I don't have a garden!'....Well, you can get a wormery (with a lid!) which will sit quite happily in your kitchen whilst the worms inside munch their way through your kitchen waste. I don't know much about the world of wormeries, but I'm sure lots of websites do! And worms really are quite cute :-)