Do you compost?

[Yellowrose 10]

Ive just started off a composter (£4 council type) and have thought about this. Then I realised, why bother with my own, my 4 year old grandson would take great delight in activating it!

[waxonwaxoff 13]

Ive just started off a composter (£4 council type) and have thought about this. Then I realised, why bother with my own, my 4 year old grandson would take great delight in activating it!

 

Funny you mention that. This is how my aunty got my cousins out of nappies in no time. By watering the plants My son prefers to wash my tyres though.

[torin8 10]

As for frequecy of *cough "application" - I don't think you can overdo it.

 

Repeated addition af any cold liquid will briefly/temporarily slow the composting process. Either add a bucketfull at once or add while still warm to avoid the repeated 'chill factor'.

 

Of course remember getting your compost too wet won't help... just enough so it's errr damp is enough!

[Asaw 10]

Can you help?

Have finally got my compost bin in the right spot and going great guns but when I went to it yesterday it was crawling with ants. Is this normal if not can I sprinkle it with ant powder or willit kill off the rest of the insects in there?

[trotter 10]

i have a compost bin in the garden that i bought from the council and every time i lift the lid hundrens of little flies fly out, is this ok? are they doing any damage, anyone:huh:

[baileys_mum 10]

anyone want any guinea pig waste, I got a bin liner full a week

[low_carbon 10]

i have a compost bin in the garden that i bought from the council and every time i lift the lid hundrens of little flies fly out, is this ok? are they doing any damage, anyone:huh:

 

Trotter,

 

They are just fruit flies (Drosophila Melanagoster). If you have a glass of wine (especially red) in the garden and leave it for 5 mins it will be full of the little things.

 

They do no damage at all. I don't know about the ants, they may help tp break it down faster, like slugs that live in the compost bins. But someone else may have different ideas.

[trotter 10]

thanks for that ,low carbon

[04jessops 10]

I've just got a nice smelly heap of grass cuttings at the top corner of my garden. I only started composting a month ago, and although the smell makes me sick , it's good that I can do something for the environment!

[low_carbon 10]

I've just got a nice smelly heap of grass cuttings at the top corner of my garden. I only started composting a month ago, and although the smell makes me sick , it's good that I can do something for the environment!

 

Your compost shouldn't smell that bad. It sounds like you have too much soft (nitrogen rich) material and not enough cardboard/paper. The community composting network has some good advice:

 

http://www.communitycompost.org/

 

Grass clippings should be added in layers, not all at once otherwise... well you know the consequences... keep up the good work

[04jessops 10]

Your compost shouldn't smell that bad. It sounds like you have too much soft (nitrogen rich) material and not enough cardboard/paper. The community composting network has some good advice:

 

http://www.communitycompost.org/

 

Grass clippings should be added in layers, not all at once otherwise... well you know the consequences... keep up the good work

 

Thanks for that. I mainly recycle fruit and veg peelings, with the odd bunch of flowers or grass. All my paper / cardboard goes in the blue bin!

[mc55 10]

I've got a cute little vole living in my compost heap