Eco Garden: Composting
21.08.2023 - 12:00
/ theunconventionalgardener.com
/ Emma Doughty
/ Eco Garden
Gardeners are privileged to witness miracles on a daily basis – seeds germinating, buds unfurling and bees pollinating flowers. No less miraculous are the quiet miracles that take place in the compost heap, where tiny organisms turn waste products into compost, allowing the cycle of life to begin again.
To the uninitiated, the composting process looks complicated. Television gardeners often do nothing to dispel this myth, with sprawling heaps and endless vigour that allows them to turn their compost almost daily. But composting is a natural process that happens everywhere, daily, without interference. With a little help from us it can happen in our gardens almost as effortlessly.
Many gardeners’ first encounter with composting is with a plastic composter. Plastic composters are fantastic, but are not without their faults. Their plastic walls catch the sun and keep heat in, speeding the composting process, but are unattractive and often relegated to shady areas of the garden. They are easily assembled, but their steep sides and small openings make it hard to get a spade inside to turn the compost or extract it. A steady diet of kitchen waste and grass cuttings guarantees a slimy, smelly mess and many would-be composters must be discouraged by their first attempts.
CAT cold composting The Centre for Alternative Technology has developed a cold composting process that is ideal for use in small gardens, and for plastic composters. This ‘high fibre’ method involves mixing kitchen and garden waste with crumpled paper and torn cardboard. Waste is added to the heap as and when it is available, creating a continuous composting process. The compost is never turned and will not heat up enough to kill weed seeds and plant diseases, but
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