Compost Heaps

Building a Compost heap can be very rewarding. Not only are you saving your money by not having to buy bags of compost, but you're also saving on Landfill by reducing the amount of waste that has to be dumped. A further great benefit of a Compost heap is that it prevents rotting food, that would otherwise be put in landfill, from breaking down anerobically. When green waste breaks down anerobically, it produces methane, which is 25 times more toxic than Carbon Dioxide as a greenhouse gas.

Aerobic Composting requires air to be trapped inside the heap. Water should be present but not in such quantities that it really wets the waste matter.

Building a compost Heap:

It's pretty simple to build a heap. The most important part is to provide support to the sides and rear of the heap itself. Before you start adding your waste, it's important to line the base of the heap with some twigs or a mass of tangled branches/ twigs. This will trap air in the heap and allow for free drainage of water.

Next, start adding layers of waste consisting of:

Food and green waste.

Rolled up newspaper, shredded newspaper, straw.

grass cuttings and leaf mould

Add a watering can of water if it's dry. This will to allow bacteria to develop, aiding it the breaking down of the waste matter.

Repeat the above three steps until the heap is full, then cover for a year.

Stuff you can add to a heap includes: Tea bags, coffee granules, food waste, garden waste, chicken manure, straw, hay, horse manure, sheep manure. Don't add meat waste unless you want to attract rats to the heap.

Your Compost heap may need turning every few months. It's best if you do turn it after six months as this re-introduces air into the mix which will result in new bacterial growth and aerobic activity.

The above process is generally known as a COLD heap- in that the heat generated is minimal and takes quite some time to rot down the waste. A Hot heap by comparison is where the compost heap is built up in one go and then sealed over the top with a tarpaulin. This method, resulting in aerobic activity throughout the entire heap will cause steam to rise from your waste, literally cooking seeds and perennial weed roots, breaking them down at the cellular level. The result is that Compost is generated in six to nine months, with little risk of contamination from foreign seeds.

plastic compost bin

A Plastic compost Bin. Ideal if you need to move it once in a while or don't have the sapce to build a bin.

Plastic Compost Bins do have their place, but more in the City garden than contemporary Country gardens, where old doors, timber and pallets are put to use as retainers. The Plastic Bin is a great way to generate more heat than is given off by aerobic activity. Placing the bin in direct sunlight will heat up the interior very quickly. Filling the bin is the same as for traditional heaps. Plastic bins that can be rotated are also available. These have the added benefit of mixing up the compost so that older matter that has alredy started rotting will come into contact with newer waste more readily. This, coupled with the air that's added to the mix as it's turned will really generate some heat and aerobic activity.

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