COMPOST

Let’s dig into the wonderful world of compost and turn over some new knowledge and facts.

Composting in general is the act of adding organic matter to an area of a garden for it to breakdown and be used in the soil in future. There are many options for this, from deluxe, rotating composters, chicken wire DIY composter and the simple heap. I am skint and have a lot of organic material so, I have three plastic composters and one chicken wire composter.

Things you can compost

Chicken bedding, including chicken poop.
Tea bags as long as they don’t contain plastic, if you have any doubt you can open the bag and compost the contents before discarding the bag in general waste.
Kitchen scraps coffee grounds, egg shells, carrot peelings, onion skins, mouldy salad etc.*
Cardboard and paper based products, as long as they don’t contain a plastic coating like some freezer packaging does. Also food soiled packaging (chippy wrappings, pizza boxes) needs to be composted or binned as it cannot be recycled.**
Leaves, grass cuttings, twigs, and other garden waste.

*I try and feed these things to the dogs, as feeding them is better than composting what they can eat. Due to DEFRA regulations the chickens cannot eat kitchen scraps, however they can eat food that hasn’t been in a kitchen.

**I have never been able to find recycling statistics for Argyll and Bute council, some people have also stated that the recycling bins go into landfill from Campbeltown and Argyll in general, but I can’t confirm this. I try to prioritise reusing and composting paper based products.

Things you can’t compost, or can only compost in controlled environment

Dog poop. Cat poop.
Meat and dairy products. (See note above about the dogs)
Plastic containing products, such as tea bags and certain packaging
I haven’t had much success with the Co-Op compostable bags, or compostable packaging in general
Non organic materials
Human waste. I’m sure most people have heard the story about urine being a cat/fox deterrent.
My husband. (Side note, someone phoned the police on me as I’d buried him in the back garden, see note above about the dogs.)
Fats or oils.
Diseased or chemically treated plants. My blighted potatoes should’ve gone to the incinerator as the blight can take up in the soil, as this is the second year I’ve lost my tatties to blight I’m taking a break from growing them. With the weed killer attack I burnt all affected matter.

A side note about logs and bulky items. Compost breaks down faster if it is in smaller pieces, wood chip will degrade faster than an entire fallen tree. I snap sticks before flinging them into the compost. There are other options for trees, and logs, such as hugelkulturs and burying them. Also hacking bits off as it breaks down will help logs break down even faster, they rely mostly on fungal breakdown. Fungus is amazing for composting as it quickly frees up the nutrients and gets them into the soil. I usually have straw fungus appear in the spring in my compost bins with is a fantastic sign.

Greens vs Browns?

You’ll hear this term used a lot in composting, but what does it really mean?

Greens are your green coloured, wet, plant waste, grass cuttings, food waste. Browns, think brown coloured things, twigs, dry leaves, cardboard. NOT dog poop. You want a rough 25-50% green waste to 50-75% brown waste in a compost bin, if you’re struggling for brown waste cardboard is your easiest option.

This all sounds great, but how can you help?

Home composting, get your own compost heap/bin.
Ask a friend if they’ll take your compost. Hi!!
Take compostable material home with you, such as when I come home from work with a bag of goodies for my bin.
If you’re local, I have a chicken wire composter in my front garden, feel free to add to it.
Buy what you need, which reduces the risk of spoiling due to excess. If you’re growing you’re own food, look at how to preserve it or share it with the wider community.

Why is landfill bad?

When you put organic waste into the green general waste bin, it often attracts sea gulls and rats, as it doesn’t break down properly and creates a strong smell. From there it gets collected by the bin lorry, and taken to landfill, mixed with other organic and non-organic waste. This cuts off the air flow that is so important for natural decomposition. Anaerobic degradation occurs as the microorganisms responsible for recycling the nutrients into the soil can’t operate. This causes the release of green house gasses, the main one being methane. BAM! Climate change.

Any questions? Need more advice? Ask me below.

What about the green waste skip at the recycling centre?

Basically I don’t know. I gather it goes up towards Glasgow to be chipped down and made into compost, which has little to no benefit to those of us in Argyll. It’s not as bad as landfill by any means, but why this can’t be done locally is beyond me. Please do continue to use this if it is what suits your needs.

I feel like I need to add this

Everything on this page is my own personal opinion or information that I have gathered with my own research. I am by no means trying to criticise people or organisations who have no option to compost, shit happens, I used to live in Paris, I know about the stinking bins. I also do not condone fly tipping in any circumstance, as someone who has been victim to an entire wheelie bin of waste appearing in my front garden, just don’t.