Compost is made in two ways here at Bealtaine Cottage.
The first is what most people would imagine is the only way…certainly the one favoured in all the gardening books…where everything is kept neat and stacked and covered and turned and generally fiddled about with!
Yes, I have one of those heaps on the go and yes it works great…if one is in a hurry for the finished product; rich, crumbly, dark and nutritious food for plants!
However, I have just begun to uncover my lazy compost…where I have done zilch in terms of work, throwing all the garden wastes into an ever-expanding mound of general untidiness!
Pushing back the top layer of waste and flinging it back into the mound on the far-side, I uncovered this superb compost yesterday!
Vegetable beds are being topped up as wheel-barrow after wheel-barrow is pushed around the gardens.
Looking at the amount of seedlings and young plants here in the tunnel this morning, the copious amounts of compost being uncovered will be much needed!
Total effort:minimal!
Result: brilliant!
Pick a corner and get stacking!
Today’s video…just listen!
****************************************
Bealtaine Cottage is also on YouTube…with over 102 videos about Permaculture, planting, growing and living.
Over 535 blogs from Bealtaine Cottage in the archives here.
Donations are always welcome.
Thank you!
Thank you for supporting this blog
That video was the best thing I saw and heard today. I closed my eyes at work and just listened to those birds. Here in the dead of winter it’s pretty quite. The occasional chickadee, blue jay and starlings but they tend to be pretty quiet. I can’t believe how green it is there. The only green we have here are the evergreens and grass.
Reblogged this on Bealtaine Cottage ~ Home of Goddess Permaculture and Earth Healing and commented:
Composting is not an imitation of nature. Cold composting is. Hot composting is a far different process and is not normally a naturally occurring thing.
Yes, this is the way to compost. My family used this way and so do I. The city was pushing for contained composting so I built a surround for my pile and called it done. They left me alone. Every year I get wonderful dirt. My household also adds all cooking scraps. This coming week a new bed will be built with this years dirt.
Isn’t it amazing that the authority thinks it right to ensure compost id contained whilst so much real pollution goes unnoticed! Common-sense needs to be injected into all governmental bodies.Like all good citizens, a pragmatic approach sorts out the silliness…well done!
Colette X
Our city makes closed containers available very cheaply, and even delivers! They’re the best choice for our kitchen scraps, so as not to encourage the rats to come too close. We’ve another open pile for grass clippings, nettles, organic cat litter, etc. Spread the compost love!
Many councils are now providing these containers for compost and are excellent! Compost is so very easy to make and gardens appreciate the extra fertility. I like the slogan, Melissa, “Spread the compost love!” …nice one!
Perfectly timed post. We have a free council composting bin (they also take all our kitchen waste and garden waste to be composted in their own scheme, but I keep my share first!). I have been filling the bin over the last year as it’s in the middle of the main veg area so easy to add to it, but I do no more than that- add and forget! I’ve never held out huge hopes for it as it’s never been turned or tended. I needed to move the bin yesterday and was so surprised to find it 3 quarters full of fantastic quality compost with absolutely no effort. Most of the time I left off the lid as the garden robin likes to jump in and out. I’ll definitely be doing ‘lazy composting’ again!
It’s Nature’s way! Composting is not an imitation of nature. Cold composting is. Hot composting is a far different process and is not normally a naturally occurring thing.