Composting
Composting is nature’s way of
recycling, home composting provides you with a rich
compost to help improve soil condition and reduce the need for peat
based products.
Getting the best compost is all about the mix:
a roughly even mixture of greens and browns is best. Green material
will help provide nutrients to your plants and the brown material
will help the structure of the soil.
Wet Green
Materials
- Raw fruit and vegetable
peelings
- Old
flowers/plants
- Tea
bags
- Coffee grounds and filter
paper
- Grass
cuttings
- Rabbit/guinea pig/gerbil/hamster
bedding
-
Weeds
Dry Brown Materials
- Dead leaves
- Twigs
- Sawdust
- Torn up cardboard
- Scrunched up paper
- Shredded paper
- Egg shells
Compost Bin Offer
Maidstone Borough Council, in partnership with Straights
and the Waste Improvement Network, is pleased to offer compost bins from £15
(plus delivery) and a special offer of buy two and get the second
half price. (This offer applied to the 220L & 330L compost
converters).
How does composting work?
Organic waste is rotted down through the activity of microbes
and bacteria. They need the right levels of moisture and air
to make good compost.
Air – Ensure that air can
reach the entire content of the bin. You may have to turn it
or stick a garden fork in it to push it back and forth to clear a
central vent every couple of weeks.
Moisture – The contents of
the bin should be moist at all times so you may have to add water
from time to time. Keep the lid on as you don’t want it to be
too wet
Heat – The compost should get
quite hot, which simply means that the bacteria is doing its
job
You should place your compost bin somewhere in easy reach and
preferably on soil which allows earthworms in to help
ventilate the compost.
Composting Queries
If you have any questions about composting you may find the
answers by visiting the Recycle Now home composting
website
To check the details of your refuse and recycling
collections, please put your postcode in the box below and click on
the ‘search’ button.