[Fluffywelshsheep]

Thought i would share this with everyone.
you know the important document bank statements bills etc that you can't bin but don't want to keep try shredding them and putting them in the compost bin it gives the dry matter and air that it needs.

Linz

[Wanda L. Wood]

I have always been worried about the type of ink that is used on the paper. In Scotland do they use a vegetable based ink? Here in Oregon, a lot of the ink is not safe, so I do not use it. I think the manufactures should state what their ink bases are.

[Fluffywelshsheep]

I never really thought about the ink but the paper get broken down in the compost bin not sure about the ink that is used. Never ad a problem with the compost bin it has plenty of bugs in it so can't really be that much of a problem. I would think that if it was a lot of problem the bugs would be able to live in it.

[Drystonewall]

If you have chickens, add their poo and used bedding to the heap too.

[Fluffywelshsheep]

i don't have chicken but i now a woman who does lol.
And i go and collect every now and then. Not to bad to have in the back of a car if it is dry. And the where is cold but not so good if the contentss wet and hot out side. Open all windows including the sunroof
lol

[jan]

Well there you go, never thought of putting the chicken bedding etc in the composter!!  Doh!

[Fluffywelshsheep]

It supposed to be the best sh*t around hehe
sorry i counldn't resist that one lol

[Rosemary]

Comfrey is a good addition to the compost bin, too. We grow it in the garden but it grows wild around here too. It makes a good mulch too, just laid on the soil. And lining the trench into which you're going to put potatoes.

[Fluffywelshsheep]

I got comfrey from the highland show this year so am gona try and grow it for compost she says lol

[Judith]

Hi

If you grow comfrey make sure it is in a place where it cannot try to take over the world - it spreads like wildfire.  Having said that it is a terrific compost activator and rots down really well.  You have to be sure not to put in the roots though as they will just keep growing.  Nettles are also good but make sure the roots don't go in - they also keep growing and are a pain to get out.  Its easy to miss a bit when you spread the compost. We put everything into our compost - old cardboard and newspapers ripped up, the contents of the vacuum cleaner, old cotton tee shirts etc. Anything biodegradable really but nothing cooked unless it is plain boiled veg.  We have never had a problem with rats, although the heaps are home to slow worms in the winter.  We have never worried too much about ink or even thought about it. We don't turn it either - just leave it all for about a year and it all rots down into a lovely black crumbly mixture filled with worms.  We have about 3 on the go at one time and the benefit to the garden and veg beds is astonishing.  Recycled beer (human urine) is also very good but it has to be male RB as female does not have the same effect - something to do with hormones I think.  Just make sure the neighbours  are not around or the consequences could be dire!!!!

Judith

[carl]

brilliant, all i need now is a steady supply of beer.

[Fluffywelshsheep]

hehe that could be interesting peeing in the compost lol
anyway .
I have 3 on the good also one is almost ready to go on the garden about 2/3 years old started it when i moved in lol
So very well rotted down it was full to the top but now only 1/3 full so most be in a good spot. The soil is also most ready for it to go on to. The place where it is going is slowly being lined with cardboard as a weed surpressant, I have lots of large bit of card board so i was gona give it a goo, not sure if it'll work, But that is what gardening is all about trial and error, Being an end of a group of terrace in a bigish village my neighbours think i am totally nutty.
I will be having a rearrange in the garden as soon as i come back from doing the family round next week (travelling to wales for funeral duties)
I'll let you all now how I get on with the cardboard and compost.
Linz

[stephen]

have seen quite a few links to Worms when composting has been google'd! here is one of them:

http://www.wormsdirectuk.co.uk/default.php?cPath=21_30

thought some of you might find them a usefull addition to your compost heap!

[Fluffywelshsheep]

btw the worms you need for the compost are the worms that hide under pot etc.
So if you move a pot or something and you see lots of worms, there the ones you need to pick up ,run and put in your compost.
lol

[Dan]

If you grow comfrey make sure it is in a place where it cannot try to take over the world - it spreads like wildfire.

Ah, you need to get the right variety of comfrey - Bocking 14 is sterile and won't spread, the HDRA do a great little leaflet on it, but there are lots of good resources online too:

allotment.org.uk
Wikipedia

HTH.