Frequently Asked Questions:
Doug McLaren from Dundee asked:
Do you have any information about the composting of seaweed?
Douglas McK. Boyle of Organic Services (Scotland) Ltd. replied:
Yes seaweed can be composted but there are both good and bad sides.
On the positive front seaweed has been used as a fertilizer for years all over Scotland, but particularly on the west coast. Seaweed contains considerable nutritional value, all known trace elements and also a considerable portion of growth-promoting hormones including auxins and gibberellins. Seaweed therefore has potential to offer valuable attributes as a co-composting feedstock (consider the range of Maxicrop products (seaweed based) on sale in the garden centers). However against this must be set the high level of salts, particularly of course sodium chloride contained in the seaweed. To some extent this can be reduced by washing the seaweed before incorporation into the composting mass, but I hardly think the Council would be willing to undertake this exercise. The seaweed also has a tough outer "bark" which can be resistant to the composting process and would benefit from light bruising prior to incorporation - simple shredding should be adequate.
As for its use in compost I would imagine that the quantities collected could be incorporated incrementally into a composting mass at less than 10% by volume without detriment to the end product. At such low rates of incorporation the potential benefits of including the algae would be reduced. As to acidity I am not sure to what extent this is true; suffice however to say that most composts produced from green waste and regular feedstocks actually suffer from being on the alkali side of plant requirements and may indeed benefit from some amendment (they normally mature at pH 7 - 8). As far as I am aware the best reference in this line is Seaweed in Agriculture and Horticulture, W.A. Stephenson, 1973, EP Publishing Ltd., Wakefield, Yorkshire.
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Tom Hutton from Langholm asked:
Is it worth trying to compost newspapers in a garden compost set up?
Douglas McK. Boyle of Organic Services (Scotland) Ltd. replied:
I am sure you will find both advocates and opponents. This is true of almost any question you like to pose about composting. One thing is sure they need to be prepared in some way if they are to be included. Some suggest "scrunching" (rumbling) them up rather as you would have done when starting a fire in days gone by. This has the effect initially of providing air passages and latterly in the process of absorbing moisture from wet vegetable and kitchen scraps. Of course the newspaper also ultimately provides carbon in the form of fibre and is "eaten" by the bugs. Others would recommend ripping the paper up first into shreds and adding these. Either way I think there is little difference. If you have a wormery, then torn newspaper as an element in the feed works well, and can help to stop the beds becoming waterlogged. The broader issue of the overall environmental benefit of including newspapers in the composting will depend on the alternative options available locally for collection and recycling. This is a moving situation and I feel that I could not really comment further.
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Alastair Dalton from Glasgow asked:
I'm moving from a flat to a house with a small walled paved garden in Glasgow. Can you give me advice on going about setting up composting for household use?
Ron Gilchrist replied:
When starting composting the first question you need to ask yourself is whether you want to:
1. just put your household and garden organic waste into a composting bin or box and leave it to breakdown into your supply of compost. This option will take about a year.
2. be more ambitious and get involved in more advanced composting, using a bed of special composting worms to make a higher quality of compost in a shorter period of time.
Option 1: This is conventional composting. Buy a plastic bin at your Garden Centre, or nail together a couple of wooden bays about 3ft.cube. These ideally should be against a south-facing wall to benefit from the sun's heat. You will mix your kitchen waste with green waste from your garden, or with shredder paper and cardboard, make sure there is lots of air in the mixture, cover it over with a piece of carpet, and leave it for Nature's microbes to break down the mixture. If you have a larger volume of material to process, you may find that it will heat up [especially if you have fresh grass cuttings in the mix]. This is excellent and means that the microbes are working overtime. The heat will help to kill off any weed seeds or pathogens. However, all this microbial activity will need a lot of oxygen, and so you will be better to turn over your heap, or at least loosen up the surface layer after a few days. The rate of the decomposition process will be reflected in the reduction in the volume of the mix. At the end of the year, lift off the bin, or dig out your wooden composting bays. Apply your compost with all its humus and nutritious trace elements liberally throughout your garden.
Option 2: This is advanced composting or Vermiculture. Buy or build a wooden box about a 2' 6" cube is best. Place it on concrete slabs against a north-facing wall so that it will not heat up in the sunlight. Get some semi-rotted compost or horse manure, or a mixture of shredded paper / cardboard and peat, and make a nice deep layer about 6" deep in the bottom of the box. This is the bedding layer where your Wormstock will live. Buy a kilogram of quality composting worms [cost about £25 ex VAT] and release them into your bedding layer. Keep the bedding just moist but not wet. Cover with a piece of old carpet to stop it drying out and to give your workers a nice dark space to work in. Then simply put all the peelings, egg shells, tea bags, coffee grounds, kitchen towel, etc into a nice plastic container on your kitchen worktop. Every couple of days, make a trench in the bedding in your Worm Box, empty your container along the trench, and cover it up [to keep the fruit flies away] with the bedding and carpet, and leave your underground recycling army to convert it into the valuable Wormcast. This very fine powder need only be sprinkled around your favourite plants and you will see a dramatic improvement in their vigour and disease resistance.
HINT 1: Make a lid for your box to keep the local birds, shrews and voles from stealing your workers!
HINT 2: Put your grass cutting in a bin bag with holes punched in it so that it can heat up without hurting your stock. Once it has heated up and cooled again, perhaps in a week, then apply to the surface of your Worm Bed.
HINT 3: Once you learn how to look after them, your Wormstock can double every 6 - 8 weeks so you can take out half your worms and start someone else composting [great idea too for a Christmas gift for someone special!].
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Other general questions
Where should I Site my Bin ?
Choose an area of bare ground (not concrete). It is important that worms and other creatures involved in decomposition are able to enter the heap and any liquid can drain away into the surrounding soil. You may wish to place your compost pile where you will plant next year, this will increase the fertility of the area. The bin should be convenient for putting your waste in and for digging out the ready compost into the garden. Ideally the compost should be located in a sheltered and sunny area.
What is the Ideal Menu for My Compost Heap?
A basic rule of thumb is the greater variety of ingredients that go into the heap the better your finished compost will be. Different ingredients behave differently in a compost heap. Nettles, comfrey, leaves, urine, grass cuttings are great activators: they create rapid high temperatures when heaped; however unless they are mixed with tougher, fibrous materials they create a sloppy, stinking mass. This is because they compact down as they decompose, squeezing out the air and creating anaerobic conditions.
A well ventilated heap will not smell unpleasant. Paper and card, such as cereal packets, glossy magazines, egg boxes and toilet roll cylinders, should be added. By tearing them up and scrunching them into balls, air pockets become entrapped. If added in sufficient quantities (up to 30%) it reduces the need for turning the heap and acts to soak up excess moisture. Only add newspaper and card if it can't be recycled locally.
Can I Speed up the Process?
Compost is produced at a much faster rate in a hot heap; it should be possible to harvest the compost in up to three months. Seeds and diseases can be killed if temperatures of 60oC are maintained for at least 3 days. In order to achieve a hot heap you need to fill a compost bin in one go. Shred all coarse material; this increases the surface area and speeds up the rate of decomposition. If the consistency is too dry add water or more grass cuttings, if it is too wet add more hedge trimmings, card or paper. Cover the heap with a sheet of plastic and old carpet. Turn the heap every 2 or 3 weeks as the temperature starts to fall.
What if I don't get my heap temperature up, will the weeds survive?
In reality most of us add to out heaps as and when waste is generated. This means that the process takes longer, at least a year, and not all the weed seeds and diseases will be killed. However over this period of time many weed seeds will rot or be eaten. By digging in the compost you will further reduce their chances of germinating. Avoid putting in weeds that are going to seed and those that are pernicious such as bindweed, couch grass, ground elder and oxtails. Instead put them in a black plastic bag in the sun for a couple of months to kill them, before adding to your compost bin.
My Compost is too Wet
This is a common problem caused by an excess of grass cuttings and food waste. To compensate mix in more card, paper, and woody materials such as wood chips, or small amounts of straw or leaves. Unpleasant odours normally signify a lack of oxygen. This may be because the heap is too wet. If you have an excess of grass cuttings do not put them all on your compost heap, leave them on the ground to enrich the lawn or use the grass as a deep mulch.
My Compost is too Dry
If your heap is too dry it will take a very long time to break down. Add more kitchen scraps and grass cuttings. If you don't have access to grass, reduce the amount of paper and card that you are adding. Water your heap but be careful not to over water. Urine is an excellent natural activator.
What about the bugs in my Compost Heap?
Most of the creatures that you will find in your heap are involved in the decomposition process. A heap of full of worms, beetles, ants, snails and slugs is a sign of a healthy heap. Rats are rarely a problem, however it is advisable to avoid composting fish, meat and all cooked products. Despite bins claiming to be vermin proof, rats and squirrels can chew through most materials. Small black flies may gather under the lid of your compost bin, these are fruit flies and are involved in the break down of waste. If they prove troublesome keep the lid off the compost bin and cover fruit and vegetable waste with hedge or grass clippings.
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