Ok so I have a little patio garden going on with a young lilac bush, 2 3ft tall holly trees (their new), a wild-growing blackberry (bush?), 2 strawberry plants in hanging baskets, a young raspberry bush, some wild english ivy and a potted english ivy that I’m training to grow up and around my patio doors and last but not least 2 cool wave pansy hanging baskets, alone with various strings of multi colored fairy lights and fairy statues.
Its my little garden of eden so to speak, i plan to add a blueberry bush this spring.
Anyway since i dont have a lot of room on my patio I bought a small composting bin, its actually not a bad size and i might get another. I love the fact that its easy to put together doesnt tske up much room AND the best part you can spin it around to throughly mix all the contents without touching it.
This is the one I bought
So onto my question what CAN I and what CANT I put into it, I know the obvious stuff, grass and vegatatio clippings, my cats dirty litter ( I use pine wood untreated pellets), but when it comes to kitchen scraps i get confused. Can ALL of my old, not eaten, peelings etc kitchen scraps go into it or only certain things? And whats the best way for me to achieve some nice compost for future use.
TIA
love and light
Fresh leaves, cut grass, weeds that do not have ripe seeds.
Dry leaves from plants, trees and straw.
Branches of trees and bushes, as long as they have been chopped.
Natural wood ash and wood sawdust not impregnated with chemicals.
Vegetable kitchen scraps, fresh or cooked, that do not contain oils.
Peels of lemons and oranges, in small quantities.
Eggshells. 8. Coffee and tea residues.
Sliced and washed seaweed.
Sheep and cattle manure in small quantities
Composting is very important for the environment and for your plants!
What materials do we not put in the compost?
Ok MASSIVE thank you, im actually going to print this out as ive been putting EVERY FOOD scrap, old leftovers wtc in my biodegradable kitchen bin liners. So NOW I know that what ive done wrong because i was literally throwing ALL old food in it. Thankfully i didnt put it into my composter yet.
Again thanks so much
Blessed be
It looks like the wonderful AIRAM already has you covered about what to add/not add to compost!
The only thing I would add would be that you may want to keep it next to your patio/ in a place that is downwind rather than in among your plants because compost can get really stinky, especially when it’s hot out. It’s wonderful to have nearby for planting, but it’s not something you want to smell while you’re out enjoying your beautiful patio garden!
Cleaning the compost bit can be a bit tedious too, but we have slightly smaller and different one we keep in our kitchen (so it needs to be taken out and then washed at least once every two days), so that may not apply to this style. It looks like the front door is big enough to make it easy to wash out when/if needed
Enjoy your new composter, Winter- happy gardening!
Hiya @BryWisteria
I have no choice but to keep it on my patio as right over the wall is the car park, lol. But I have it at the end part of it and bad smells don’t really bother me. I grew up on a (somewhat) working farm and have mucked stalls both as a chore and as a job, so I’m covered there.
I have a small one on my kitchen counter for my scraps which I have lined with biodegradable liners and when it gets halfway full I put it in my composter. Just a quick question though can I put old bread in it?
Oh, how fun! Hooray for composting! I had two that were very similar to the ones you have here. The rule of thumb I always followed was that any food waste that goes into the compost should be without oils, preferably uncooked. Also, make sure you’re mixing the right ratio of “brown matter” with “green matter”.
I wouldn’t put cat litter (even the pine pellets) in the compost if you’re going to use the compost in a food garden in the future. It is also advised to create a separate compost bin if you’re composting cat litter.
Composting cat litter has a few risks. Some cats’ feces contain the parasite Toxoplasma gondii , which can spread through soil and into crops. This parasite causes toxoplasmosis, an infection that can harm pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems. To prevent the spread of this disease, avoid using compost made from cat litter on edible crops.
@AIRAM thanks so much @MeganB thanks hun, I will be sure to buy another composter and use the one with the cat litter in it just for my flowers and lilac bushes etc and use the second one for my berry bushes. And I’ll be sure to read all the articles you left for me.
thanks again
blessed be
