The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Smallholding => Techniques and skills => Topic started by: Muc on June 20, 2010, 12:45:59 pm

Title: Compost leftovers
Post by: Muc on June 20, 2010, 12:45:59 pm
I've just emptied my compost bin and in addition to good quality composted brown stuff, I had various bits of plastic, a spoon, and nylon threads. Of the degradable matter, there were some pea-nuts, the nuts from avocados and bits of newspaper which had been used for mulching (I used too many sheets together and it turned to plywood).
This is after two years - one in a cone (on a concrete base to deter rats) and the second year in a tumble bin.
I still can't figure where all the nylon threads came from.
Title: Re: Compost leftovers
Post by: Womble on June 20, 2010, 03:46:09 pm

Likewise, we couldn't work out where the strips of plastic were coming from, until I realised that they must have been sellotape from cardboard boxes. I'm giving up composting eggshells though - they just don't seem to break down at all.
Title: Re: Compost leftovers
Post by: egglady on June 20, 2010, 09:23:59 pm

Likewise, we couldn't work out where the strips of plastic were coming from, until I realised that they must have been sellotape from cardboard boxes. I'm giving up composting eggshells though - they just don't seem to break down at all.

if you, or anyone you know, has hens, wash out the shells, bake them in the oven for 15 mins, chuck them in the  food processor and feed them back to the hens - simples!
Title: Re: Compost leftovers
Post by: suziequeue on July 03, 2010, 09:51:32 pm
I rinse the eggs and zap them in the microwave for ten minutes.

Then I put them into the cut-off leg of a pair of jeans and roll them with a heavy rolling pin.

It makes a tremendously satisfying crunch and the tubular leg means that I can shake the shells back in to the middle and roll them again and again into a fine powder.

Then they go onto the compost heap or into the wormery.

Susanna
Title: Re: Compost leftovers
Post by: Mo on August 07, 2010, 08:07:37 am
You can also use broken up eggshells to deter slugs and snails by scattering them around the edges of your veg bed.