Composting

I have a friend who is an avid and scientific composter. He turns out compost every 6 to 8 weeks. All green waste is mulched with either the lawn mower or a mulcher, and placed in the first of a series of three compost bins. After a few days, and regularly thereafter, depending on the heat of the pile, the compost is turned, sometimes every three days, and moved into the next bin. The bins are more than a meter square, made from fabulously thick railway sleepers and placed on a solid concrete pad. The piles are turned using a tractor.

If, like me, you find the idea of all that energy being used to compost a bit too much, I can assure you that you can compost in a much more sedentary manner, although you will not turn out compost as quickly as my friend. I have 4 compost bins made of wooden pallets which sit on heavy duty plastic sheeting to prevent the Eucalyptus roots from sucking the compost dry. 

A native grass frog sheltering in the compost bin. 

All green waste up to around a pencil thickness goes into these bins. I only chop branches short enough to fit in flat. An equal amount of horse manure goes on top of that along with any household leftovers. I repeat these layers till the bin is full to bursting, making sure that each layer is moistened well with buckets of water. I put some old carpet on top and leave it till it is ‘cooked’, only removing the cover to check on progress or when it rains. I get four bins of wonderfully wormy compost twice a year in spring and autumn ready for planting, mulching or vegetable beds.

My friend’s method of composting is called hot composting and mine is the cold method. There are many different suggestions for ways to compost to be found on the internet. For the sake of your garden have a read up, see what suits your style best, and give it a go. ​​