Thanks for this Steve. The cost of peat free compost will be as nothing compared to the environmental cost of continuing with peat based. My method of bulking compost is lasagna layers of dried leaves and comfrey leaves.
Hi Steve, Peggy here, from Windermere, Florida zone 9b 🇺🇸 I love your knowledge on compost. I'm 71 and gardening for over 50 years. I've been raising worms 🪱 for over 12 years in a Can-O-Worms. I started a small compost bin a couple years ago with just shredded cardboard and grass clippings. I turn it a couple times a week. It doesn't smell or attract mice, even in our Florida heat and humidity. I live in a housing development with a strict HOA so I have to look neat and tidy. It's a hard balance to be organic in this "spray with chemicals" world. But I do my best 👌 I just found your channel and it's lovely. I started mine last year and try to promote Garden What You've Got as a daily tool towards using what you already have. Take care and stay 🌿💚🌿👩🌾👍
It’s certainly going to be a challenge, I have two Dalec style bins , this year I had some good compost from one which was from the start of last year, I’m now making it for the end of next year, I only have four large raised beds and my home made compost will only ever be enough to enrich those each autumn. Actually last January I buried some kitchen waste in two of my larger beds and the results have been very good, maybe another possibility for small time gardeners, But compost for starting seeds is a whole other dilemma. I hope the more experienced gardeners like you Steve will come up with some really good ideas.
I'll jump in with you Steve, I'm a peat free gardener and I agree that I've noticed shop bought compost over the last 18 months has become pretty terrible. I suppose because the companies who make it were struggling to keep up with demand and putting out un screened stuff full of sticks and plastic etc. I manage to make about 80% or so of my compost at home and have done a few videos about my process but I'll get some fresh ones up to talk about it if it helps. I use pretty much a similar method to you in terms of what I put in, but I have a big hotbin I use rather than a more open pile idea. I'll give you a yell when I've got something put together :D
Our local council give away the compost from garden recycling, just take a bag and a shovel. I struggle to make compost as my neighbour has a rat issue due to a garden full of decking, which has now become my issue and trying to control them has become trial. Few years ago a bought a wormer, i have five layers of it now and it makes an astonishingly large amount of worm castings and worm wee. I work at making it as productive as possible, all household veg is stored in the freezer in tubs and bags, i have a large family and ferocious eaters !! this helps to start the break down of the plant fibres, when i defrost it, ( or before i freeze it it just depends on time) i run it through the food processor, yum yum a grey green slurry….back in a tub with tight fitting lid, put out side to continue the break down process, only a day or two. Then feed it to the worms, i feed approx 2/3 kilos plus of ground up food a week/ten days. Once the wormery is established it is quite amazing how quickly the colony stabilises into its own eco balance, They also eat cardboard their most favourite are large egg trays from my local farm shop. One thing that is extremely interesting about worms is there ability to filter out ANYTHING that is not a natural product, ie: a piece of plastic tape or strip of glue attached to cardboard that i may have missed. Harvesting peat compost is very destructive to the environment there has been many good reports written on this matter and we must listen to the warnings and look for other solutions. Another good video topic. Thanks
Lovely wooden trug Steve. Looks brand spanking new though! I inherited my Mothers, didn't look after it, left it out ... when I then bought a replacement I appreciated it a lot more! and mine will see me out. I expect my kids will then leave it out and discover the same
I use an inexpensive paper shredder and use an electric wood shredder- hoping to get my compost pile to decompose faster. I used to hand-rip everything but my old hands would get sore. My grip is not what it used to be. You have excellent educational videos. Thank you.
Thanks Steve I have been making my own compost in my garden for just over a year. It took a while to understand what could or couldn't be added but I am getting there and have some lovely compost ready for my next bed but no where near the amount I need. As a fairly new gardener all my learning to grow was based on peat compost and have now started to transition to peat free. It has not gone well so using 50% or less peat compost to eventually get my skills in place to go completely peat free. Take care
Thank you for your compost video. I have three compost bins already that I put a good variety of things in but I will definitely try the stacking boxes idea now. Great advice, much appreciated.
Every summer I collect bags and bags of grass cuttings from a friend of mine which suits both of us ..I get to bulk my compost up and she gets rid of the grass ...
I keep shiny / dressed paper out of my compost heap, but I don't know if I need to? I also don't know how to tell if cardboard is "plastic coated" so there may well be cardboard I could add, but because I'm not sure about plastic then I don't ... Why do we need plastic coated cardboard anyway
Brilliant video Steve - I love the way you have stated the potential problem with peat free compost prices/quality etc and then got straight down to how we can all be proactive in managing our compost supplies going forward! There are so many ways we can add materials to our own compost piles (all stated I'm sure, in the comments!) and also many ways to enrich our soils naturally with comfrey/nettle tea etc. I agree completely, that we have to start thinking outside the box, and part of this is getting away from the out-dated ideas of "kill, maim, destroy", with the likes of Roundup (I cringe every time I walk past 'that' shelf in the garden centre 😔) and the other lethal chemical treatments out there. Your compost man Steve B sounds great! Would he agree to doing a video with you I wonder?
Hi Steve, you are so right in respect of compost, will be interesting to see how this is going to go. Thanks for sharing information on what is good waste for composting, take care 🙂
Thanks for your commitment Steve. Very balanced approach. I'd love to know more. I make my own compost using all the ingredients you've demonstrated there, I even sling weeds in, not too many but they grow anyway so what's a few more! I have 3 1 cubic yard bins, I turn them about 3 times a year and use them within the year ready or not.
Totally agree with all you have said Steve, the last 18 months compost has been terribly they have been putting all sorts of fillers in. Making your own is always best but having enough is another story, look forward to reading the comments on this one, many thanks for sharing kind regards alan…………..THE DAWN CHORUS PLOT 🌿
Great video Steve. I've been trialling the Bokashi method this year which is great for when I can't get up to the plot every day or two but I think the tray idea is quite genius! I've still got to get into a proper routine regarding the compost bins themselves - they work okay but could certainly be fine tuned so I'll look forward to seeing your other methods.
I use builders bags in a sunny unused sde next to the plot. I do similar to you and add in coffee grounds, wood ash, pee and lots of veg from kitchen as well as plot. Got a hot bin at home next to back door and I use that to feed my builders bag in the garden. I was using an enclosed dalek with no door flap and it worked quite well but as it's conical grass would tend to clump. Bags are more open and wider space so build up heat .. just hide it behind flowers! Wonder how to manage with seed compost though in future....
I've stopped using all plastic which degrade (such as weed supressing membrane) on my edibles garden. Microplastics seems to be becoming a problem in e.g. Fish and I figure that might also be an issue in vegetable gardens longer term ... I would worry that builders bags might be similar, the ones I have had outside for a long time have rotted into tiny fragments.
Hi Steve, your video has brought back memories of watching my dad and grandad making their own seedling compost. The one part that i cannot remember is how to steam the compost to kill any weed seeds, i know that statement flies in the face of what we accept as normal these days but it makes sense to do a small batch for starting veg seeds etc. I watched Tap o North the other day and they are experimenting with Bokashi which is a fermenting process which delivers weed /seed free compost in 7 weeks, just a thought, cheers Dave
I use, and reuse, soil-based John Innes Seed Compost for my seeds. I bought some bags, probably a decade ago, and haven't bought any more since. I figure the seeds are not expecting any nutrient until they are pricked out (but I do provide a liquid feed if they need it). I sieve the used trays, moisten, put a couple of inches of water in bottom of a large Pyrex bowl, seed compost on top, cover with an upturned plate, into the microwave for about 5 minutes on full power, to get the water boiling, and then on about 30-40% power for 10 - 15 minutes. I leave the plate on top until it has cooled down. No idea if this is suitable substitute for steam sterilise, but I've not had a problem in all the years I've been doing it. As it is not virgin compost the only seeds are ones I sowed which didn't germinate originally and I reckon the ones that could grow did! so there aren't any/many that are viable, and the steam / microwaves kills (I hope) anything else.
Thanks for this Steve, interesting and great suggestions. I bought various brands of compost this year as I used most of my home produced in new raised beds and none were much good, many seedlings grew to two leaves and no further, but didn’t die off either 🤔 one was supposedly woodland based but I have never seen so many volunteer tomatoes! Many came up very late in the season when least expecting a tomato to germinate 😂🌱🍅 will be giving to compost box a go
Great video, thanks. A few ideas will find it's way in my way of gardening. I'll start thinking of how to make a peat free seed tray compost. Probably part sand and part very old compost?
Thanks for this video and your insight into compost and how things are changing Steve. Yes making your own is the best option as far as cost is concerned. There are plastic free teabags and hopefully that continues to improve because we need less plastic in store bought food & drink and in every industry. Keep safe, well and happy gardening and keep making video's 👍.
This is very timely Steve, I've been meaning to ask if you would make videos on composting, I have a couple of plastic dustbins that I have the bottoms cut off, which are turned upside down, filled with my compostables, hopefully next spring I will sieve some of it and add to leaf mould as a seed start.. also have a tote with holes in and soil, which I do exactly the same as you, feeding scraps to bring the worms in ready for next spring as well..
I think that your foresight is spot on. Thank you for bringing up the issue of plastics in green waste as well. We have the same thing here in the states. I source tons of green waste compost from a large city about 20 minutes from me, and plastics are definitely an issue.
Do your neighbors rake leaves in your area? Here in Ann Arbor Michigan, US most of my neighbors rake their leaves. This time of year, it's easy to drive around snagging leaf bags. I shred them. Last year the compost was wonderful. This year I am going to fill the whole yard with it and try to heat the greenhouses, or at least mulch all the plants a meter deep. Here in the US we have a problem with clopyralids contaminating the manure-- which I understand is more restricted elsewhere. So the bottom line is I don't trust any local manure. At this point I am using urine as my nitrogen source.
In the UK the farming aminopyralid are regulated and supposedly cannot get into manure supply, but we had massive problems a few years ago (regulation tightened since) but still have had periodic failures. Clopyralids are in amateur garden lawn weed killers and I am sure get into municipal compost (we have "brown bins" for vegetable waste collection), so I have never used municipal compost just-in-case.
Hi Steve great video. I’ve just started my compost this year and have found my paper shredder helps gets the paper nice and small with little effort. I’ve also got the cook where I work collecting kitchen scraps for me too! Might be a daft idea but could I put fur from brushing the dog in there too? Just seems I have a lot to spare my dog is a fur factory!! Just wondered if I could put it to good use, as well as putting it out for the birds to use.
I use hair from my cat and my own hair and nail clippings. My thought is that if hoof can be used in compost, these materials can be used also. I once heard about using sheep wool to fertilise rhubarb. But it can't be that specific.
I managed to fill my compost bin by end of last year. I went an Collected a lot of bag full of leaves ( had permission to take some ) I am totally amazed how lovely an crumbly it goes an smells sooo lovely, Anyhow i was shocked at how much my compost in the darlick bin had shrunk, 😲 Can i use this compost this year? Thank you.
Thanks Steve and also to all the comments on this. What a lesson! We have to make the change and I for one am up for the challenge with help from the likes of you 🙂
Hi Steve. Just moved to a new house and am looking to build raised beds, so the idea of adding my own compost sounds great! I was thinking of making a worm bin also, could this be incorporated into the compost system with the supermarket trays? I managed to get a few trays off the delivery guy for the house move. I can also get seaweed off the beach. Also wondering if crushed shells may be of use.
Last year I got 2 lots out my compost bin although it was great compost. But think I may do the method your trying with the basket. Do u collect leaves and try to do leaf mould I've been trying that last year and this year that should help to give me some compost.
I was surprised Steve was adding his leaves in. Like you I make my leaf mould separately, and it is fantastic in helping root formation (it has all the benefits of Root Grow without the cost or packaging!), I only use my finished leaf mould for things that will benefit - for potting-on and a couple of handfuls when planting out new shrubs etc. to get the beneficial mycorrhizal fungi going.
I used to be a printing plate maker and there where two types of ink in general, water based and UV. UV ink is the stuff that you tend to see on packaging, and is high gloss, very high gloss. If the print is not high gloss you can be 99 percent certain it is water based and environment safe...Steve...🙂
@@GreenSideUp Thank you Steve, I am making compost to make a front garden veg bed and that information is great. Now I can compost my bills, yay. You have a great channel, I am learning a lot from you, thank you again.
I had a bin with a door at the bottom to get the finished compost out. I never made compost good enough for it to just magically become fine enough for that to work! I think the old fashioned way of "3 bins" is better. Fill up the first bin, when it is full move it to bin #2 (the act of turning it introduces air and mixes the actively composting material in and gets the process going again), and before that move #2 to bin #3. The stuff in Bin #3 is "done". As it rots down it needs less space, so bins #2 and #3 can be smaller.
hya steve ive made my compost bin its about 40 inch x 40 inch ive done the lasagne brown n green its got to 100 is it hot enough to destoy seeds if not how can i get it hotter
Where I live their building a biomass energy plant and our council are now collecting all waste for this but still charge you for taking it away ? While making money from selling the energy or gas at a profit so green compost might be a thing of the past soon? Great video 👍😊👍
I don't use municipal compost because there are bound to be clopyralids in it from the amateur lawn weed killers, and accidentally getting those into a veg plot will be a nightmare to sort out.
Interesting challenge there with the compost will be interesting to see how it comes out. I don't mind lidl cheap peat free. Great brown material bulking agent as well as potting soil and I can't say I've had a problem with it at all yet and it's only £1. As youtubers that's what we do, offer our knowledge and advice or in some occasions ask for it when we're stuck. Hopefully sharing it so that many people can use it or help. 😁 Jen
I've inherited a plot with compost bays that were completely empty that I'm learning to fill. Will be filming something on it soon. Lots of things I can take forward in this video! 😁
I think the best idea is to go back to making you're own John Innes compost. 7:3:2 it uses less Peat (or Peat free) and doesn'r rely on the quality being first class as such. Also it makes watering easier and I still think plants do better in it. There are still huge peat deposits but sadly they're in Russia so thats not going to help much but greenwaste is OK IF they process it correctly, but the companies bang it out as quick as possible to maximise the Proffit margins. THe other problem is some of the peat alternaites (coir) whilst its a byproduct it has to come half way round the world ... how 'green' is that?
I use a lot of Avon boxes and Amozan boxes ripped up, and a lot of grass clippings for the bulk of my compost plus kitchen waste. I use it first on my spuds then spread it on veg beds. In the autumn I am able to gather leaves with a lot of donations from my naiboures we live close to trees, this is mixed in to compost when rotted down.I am going to have a go at making my own seed mix/potting mix in 2022 I hope it works out to (as you have said) save money and a lot of peat do not forget, small pieces and turn to get air in compost
Thank you friend this is the reason I have been thinking about hydroponics in particular the kratky ? system I think you have experimented with this could you give us your thoughts in an updated video cheers brilliant channel learnt so much thanks again.
Whenever possible I avoid making compost. It's a lot of work and the volume of what you have put in is reduced to about 20 percent. My preferred way to protect and enrich the soil is mulching, it works right away and you don't have to wait a year. When you need a clean bed you always can rake them up and put the remains in the compost heap. Consider growing the Bocking 14 Cumfrey variety that does not spread seeds and sends it's roots deep in the ground to retrieve all the goodies hiding deep below the level that the normal veggies cannot reach. I'm very well aware that my way is not appealing to the eyes of many people, but the plants don't mind. My raised beds don't have to look like those immaculate market farmers beds. They have a total other cost/time view than backyard growers or small plot holders. Greetings from Holland.
Tremendous video Steve well done mate, the content and your delivery and explanations are top draw, the channel has come on in leaps and bounds Steve and you deserve all the credit that comes your way 😀 have a good week mate and stay safe David 👍👍
the peat free compost i have been using is £7.50-£8.50 for a 50L bag, doesn't contain any green wast compost and had been very good. Like with all "new" to you products there is a learning curve but once i got used to it am actually getting better results with a lot of things than i did with peat based compost.
I always look out for the split bags at the garden centre - they charge £2 a bag and it's normally the better quality stuff, plus I have 3 plastic compost bins and make a lot of my own.
hi Steve talking of grandads don't know what mine would make of today's way's of gardening 70 year agony when we had frist TV he said to me it won't be long before they be watching us where ever we go & do how right was he thanks for making me go back to grandad ways of gardening /Chris 🤔
I don’t see peat free composts as the way forward I actually see manure as the solution and you can get it for free! Coco coir is far from perfect I’d rather use manure
Try growing your own peat moss. I haven't done it purposly but in Australia we use peat and wood chips in our composting toilets. I put my wast in an old toilet pit on the property. Due to run off from the road flooding it the peat has grown. Unfortunately I dug it all out just before a 5 year drought. But it is possible.
Hi Steve this is further to my previous comment. After this video I researched the problem with peat. I was unaware of the significant harm that was being caused which has spurred me on to change my habit. I will do my utmost to use whatever is the right thing, could you tell me if other alternatives have impacts on anything other than my purse that I should be aware of so I can make the right choice. Take care
Husband bought some coco coir from wilks last week not expensive lovely an lose. I have noticed it seems to attract the tiny little flies don't no why, it does not smell seeds come up ok
Sadly Ecco friendly means triple the cost, it’s just gouging from suppliers that jump on the band wagon. I make my own and try coir as an additive. Thank you for sharing ✌️🇨🇦🐝 safe
With the covid crisis every thing in price will go up, and out of this covid 19 many folk are turning to grow there own, and buying easy home living,vsuch as mobile ,Shepard huts, canal boats, as one can now see it's not going to be the same again, grow as much as you possibly can, and share your surplus with each other, and garden tips, I sound desperate or pathetic, judge this by looking at prices, and protests of what's going on, it comes down to each to there own.
Sorry but where on earth are you buying compost for £12 a bag? We get 3 50l bags of excellent peat-free Sylva Grow for £12 which makes them £4 a bag for very good peat-free compost. I feel like you’re exaggerating here which is a shame because I generally really like your content. We all know that peat farming isn’t sustainable as our population grows, the threat to the environment is more important than saving a few £ on compost. Also it might be worth you asking your site officers or council if you can get them to provide regular deliveries of council compost. Ours dumps a huge load made from the food bins the council collects each week. This subsidises the stuff we make to make up what we need.
Hi Kane, I do not buy compost for £12 a bag, it is mentioned in the video in the context of nursery/garden centre owners stating that that is the price of peat free that is good enough to use. Cheaper Peat Free compost, around the £6 a bag mark I mention because it is around the average price of cheap multi purpose compost. I do not mention "deals" simply because this confuses an already quite confusing issue. I see no point in exaggerating content as people will see right through that. I also realise that moving from peat to peat free is an accepted thing and I am not just trying to save a couple of quid on compost, I also stated that in the video. Council or green waste compost is another environmental issue in itself, in that it does have plastics in them. This might be slightly different for yourself as it is food waste you say, our council compost is green waste. I mention the issue and made the video because I can see problems in the future for both compost companies and the end user when peat is finally removed from the whole cycle, simply replacing that bulk where peat once was will have both cost and quality implications. I also state in the video that I hope I am wrong, and I really do hope I am wrong...Steve...😃
Thanks for this Steve. The cost of peat free compost will be as nothing compared to the environmental cost of continuing with peat based. My method of bulking compost is lasagna layers of dried leaves and comfrey leaves.
Hi Steve, Peggy here, from Windermere, Florida zone 9b 🇺🇸
I love your knowledge on compost.
I'm 71 and gardening for over 50 years. I've been raising worms 🪱 for over 12 years in a Can-O-Worms. I started a small compost bin a couple years ago with just shredded cardboard and grass clippings. I turn it a couple times a week. It doesn't smell or attract mice, even in our Florida heat and humidity. I live in a housing development with a strict HOA so I have to look neat and tidy.
It's a hard balance to be organic in this "spray with chemicals" world.
But I do my best 👌
I just found your channel and it's lovely. I started mine last year and try to promote Garden What You've Got as a daily tool towards using what you already have.
Take care and stay 🌿💚🌿👩🌾👍
It’s certainly going to be a challenge, I have two Dalec style bins , this year I had some good compost from one which was from the start of last year, I’m now making it for the end of next year, I only have four large raised beds and my home made compost will only ever be enough to enrich those each autumn. Actually last January I buried some kitchen waste in two of my larger beds and the results have been very good, maybe another possibility for small time gardeners, But compost for starting seeds is a whole other dilemma. I hope the more experienced gardeners like you Steve will come up with some really good ideas.
I'll jump in with you Steve, I'm a peat free gardener and I agree that I've noticed shop bought compost over the last 18 months has become pretty terrible. I suppose because the companies who make it were struggling to keep up with demand and putting out un screened stuff full of sticks and plastic etc.
I manage to make about 80% or so of my compost at home and have done a few videos about my process but I'll get some fresh ones up to talk about it if it helps. I use pretty much a similar method to you in terms of what I put in, but I have a big hotbin I use rather than a more open pile idea. I'll give you a yell when I've got something put together :D
Yes, both myself and my parents found the compost was barely broken down, looked like wood chippings
Our local council give away the compost from garden recycling, just take a bag and a shovel. I struggle to make compost as my neighbour has a rat issue due to a garden full of decking, which has now become my issue and trying to control them has become trial.
Few years ago a bought a wormer, i have five layers of it now and it makes an astonishingly large amount of worm castings and worm wee. I work at making it as productive as possible, all household veg is stored in the freezer in tubs and bags, i have a large family and ferocious eaters !! this helps to start the break down of the plant fibres, when i defrost it, ( or before i freeze it it just depends on time) i run it through the food processor, yum yum a grey green slurry….back in a tub with tight fitting lid, put out side to continue the break down process, only a day or two. Then feed it to the worms, i feed approx 2/3 kilos plus of ground up food a week/ten days. Once the wormery is established it is quite amazing how quickly the colony stabilises into its own eco balance, They also eat cardboard their most favourite are large egg trays from my local farm shop. One thing that is extremely interesting about worms is there ability to filter out ANYTHING that is not a natural product, ie: a piece of plastic tape or strip of glue attached to cardboard that i may have missed. Harvesting peat compost is very destructive to the environment there has been many good reports written on this matter and we must listen to the warnings and look for other solutions. Another good video topic. Thanks
Thank you Debra, that is very useful and full information. Many thanks for taking the time to write it down here...Steve...😃
Lovely wooden trug Steve. Looks brand spanking new though! I inherited my Mothers, didn't look after it, left it out ... when I then bought a replacement I appreciated it a lot more! and mine will see me out. I expect my kids will then leave it out and discover the same
A very relevant topic Steve. Something to work on. Many thanks.
I use an inexpensive paper shredder and use an electric wood shredder- hoping to get my compost pile to decompose faster. I used to hand-rip everything but my old hands would get sore. My grip is not what it used to be. You have excellent educational videos. Thank you.
Thanks Steve I have been making my own compost in my garden for just over a year. It took a while to understand what could or couldn't be added but I am getting there and have some lovely compost ready for my next bed but no where near the amount I need. As a fairly new gardener all my learning to grow was based on peat compost and have now started to transition to peat free. It has not gone well so using 50% or less peat compost to eventually get my skills in place to go completely peat free. Take care
I get worms from under my pots and add them to my small compost pots, not sure if they like it or not!
Thanks Steve what a brilliant idea for the compost, I will be trying it.
Thank you for your compost video. I have three compost bins already that I put a good variety of things in but I will definitely try the stacking boxes idea now. Great advice, much appreciated.
Every summer I collect bags and bags of grass cuttings from a friend of mine which suits both of us ..I get to bulk my compost up and she gets rid of the grass ...
Hi Steve, really learned a lot from that video… but tell me, was the seed catalogue you were shredding, shiny (dressed) paper?
I keep shiny / dressed paper out of my compost heap, but I don't know if I need to? I also don't know how to tell if cardboard is "plastic coated" so there may well be cardboard I could add, but because I'm not sure about plastic then I don't ... Why do we need plastic coated cardboard anyway
@@kgarden8960 Rule of thumb, if the cardboard is brown (even with writing on) it's fine. It's the shiny stuff you need to worry about
Brilliant video Steve - I love the way you have stated the potential problem with peat free compost prices/quality etc and then got straight down to how we can all be proactive in managing our compost supplies going forward! There are so many ways we can add materials to our own compost piles (all stated I'm sure, in the comments!) and also many ways to enrich our soils naturally with comfrey/nettle tea etc. I agree completely, that we have to start thinking outside the box, and part of this is getting away from the out-dated ideas of "kill, maim, destroy", with the likes of Roundup (I cringe every time I walk past 'that' shelf in the garden centre 😔) and the other lethal chemical treatments out there. Your compost man Steve B sounds great! Would he agree to doing a video with you I wonder?
That is a good idea Willow, I'll contact him and see if he will be up for that...Steve...😃 (Thanks Willow!)
Thank you Steve--- eye opener info. You have made some very good points.
Hi Steve, you are so right in respect of compost, will be interesting to see how this is going to go. Thanks for sharing information on what is good waste for composting, take care 🙂
I use a paper shredder and use that paper as mulch or in bottom of pots in addition to putting it in my compost bin.
Thanks for your commitment Steve. Very balanced approach. I'd love to know more. I make my own compost using all the ingredients you've demonstrated there, I even sling weeds in, not too many but they grow anyway so what's a few more! I have 3 1 cubic yard bins, I turn them about 3 times a year and use them within the year ready or not.
Totally agree with all you have said Steve, the last 18 months compost has been terribly they have been putting all sorts of fillers in. Making your own is always best but having enough is another story, look forward to reading the comments on this one, many thanks for sharing kind regards
alan…………..THE DAWN CHORUS PLOT 🌿
Great video Steve thinking ahead smart great idea
Great video Steve. I've been trialling the Bokashi method this year which is great for when I can't get up to the plot every day or two but I think the tray idea is quite genius! I've still got to get into a proper routine regarding the compost bins themselves - they work okay but could certainly be fine tuned so I'll look forward to seeing your other methods.
I use builders bags in a sunny unused sde next to the plot. I do similar to you and add in coffee grounds, wood ash, pee and lots of veg from kitchen as well as plot. Got a hot bin at home next to back door and I use that to feed my builders bag in the garden. I was using an enclosed dalek with no door flap and it worked quite well but as it's conical grass would tend to clump. Bags are more open and wider space so build up heat .. just hide it behind flowers! Wonder how to manage with seed compost though in future....
I've stopped using all plastic which degrade (such as weed supressing membrane) on my edibles garden. Microplastics seems to be becoming a problem in e.g. Fish and I figure that might also be an issue in vegetable gardens longer term ... I would worry that builders bags might be similar, the ones I have had outside for a long time have rotted into tiny fragments.
@@kgarden8960 that's a point..hadn't thought of that....
Hi Steve, your video has brought back memories of watching my dad and grandad making their own seedling compost. The one part that i cannot remember is how to steam the compost to kill any weed seeds, i know that statement flies in the face of what we accept as normal these days but it makes sense to do a small batch for starting veg seeds etc. I watched Tap o North the other day and they are experimenting with Bokashi which is a fermenting process which delivers weed /seed free compost in 7 weeks, just a thought, cheers Dave
I use, and reuse, soil-based John Innes Seed Compost for my seeds. I bought some bags, probably a decade ago, and haven't bought any more since. I figure the seeds are not expecting any nutrient until they are pricked out (but I do provide a liquid feed if they need it). I sieve the used trays, moisten, put a couple of inches of water in bottom of a large Pyrex bowl, seed compost on top, cover with an upturned plate, into the microwave for about 5 minutes on full power, to get the water boiling, and then on about 30-40% power for 10 - 15 minutes. I leave the plate on top until it has cooled down. No idea if this is suitable substitute for steam sterilise, but I've not had a problem in all the years I've been doing it. As it is not virgin compost the only seeds are ones I sowed which didn't germinate originally and I reckon the ones that could grow did! so there aren't any/many that are viable, and the steam / microwaves kills (I hope) anything else.
I microwave my homemade compost for starting seeds
Thanks for this Steve, interesting and great suggestions. I bought various brands of compost this year as I used most of my home produced in new raised beds and none were much good, many seedlings grew to two leaves and no further, but didn’t die off either 🤔 one was supposedly woodland based but I have never seen so many volunteer tomatoes! Many came up very late in the season when least expecting a tomato to germinate 😂🌱🍅 will be giving to compost box a go
Brilliant I have to agree it’s going to be difficult and expensive if we don’t make our own 👍☘️
Great video, thanks. A few ideas will find it's way in my way of gardening. I'll start thinking of how to make a peat free seed tray compost. Probably part sand and part very old compost?
Fantastic vid, I try and compost everything and pleased I'm on the right track ... need to ask the neighbours for their stuff too 😃
Hi Steve, very informative video, is it true that worms will steer clear of onion waste.
cheers
I agreed everything is expensive even coffee is sky high. Hello all the way from US.
Brilliant video Steve....
Thanks for this video and your insight into compost and how things are changing Steve. Yes making your own is the best option as far as cost is concerned. There are plastic free teabags and hopefully that continues to improve because we need less plastic in store bought food & drink and in every industry. Keep safe, well and happy gardening and keep making video's 👍.
This is very timely Steve, I've been meaning to ask if you would make videos on composting, I have a couple of plastic dustbins that I have the bottoms cut off, which are turned upside down, filled with my compostables, hopefully next spring I will sieve some of it and add to leaf mould as a seed start.. also have a tote with holes in and soil, which I do exactly the same as you, feeding scraps to bring the worms in ready for next spring as well..
I think that your foresight is spot on. Thank you for bringing up the issue of plastics in green waste as well. We have the same thing here in the states. I source tons of green waste compost from a large city about 20 minutes from me, and plastics are definitely an issue.
Do your neighbors rake leaves in your area? Here in Ann Arbor Michigan, US most of my neighbors rake their leaves. This time of year, it's easy to drive around snagging leaf bags. I shred them. Last year the compost was wonderful. This year I am going to fill the whole yard with it and try to heat the greenhouses, or at least mulch all the plants a meter deep. Here in the US we have a problem with clopyralids contaminating the manure-- which I understand is more restricted elsewhere. So the bottom line is I don't trust any local manure. At this point I am using urine as my nitrogen source.
In the UK the farming aminopyralid are regulated and supposedly cannot get into manure supply, but we had massive problems a few years ago (regulation tightened since) but still have had periodic failures. Clopyralids are in amateur garden lawn weed killers and I am sure get into municipal compost (we have "brown bins" for vegetable waste collection), so I have never used municipal compost just-in-case.
Hi Steve great video. I’ve just started my compost this year and have found my paper shredder helps gets the paper nice and small with little effort. I’ve also got the cook where I work collecting kitchen scraps for me too! Might be a daft idea but could I put fur from brushing the dog in there too? Just seems I have a lot to spare my dog is a fur factory!! Just wondered if I could put it to good use, as well as putting it out for the birds to use.
I use hair from my cat and my own hair and nail clippings. My thought is that if hoof can be used in compost, these materials can be used also. I once heard about using sheep wool to fertilise rhubarb. But it can't be that specific.
You can also use the dirt from your vacuum cleaner, anything organic, even old cotton or wool clothing 👍
I managed to fill my compost bin by end of last year.
I went an Collected a lot of bag full of leaves ( had permission to take some )
I am totally amazed how lovely an crumbly it goes an smells sooo lovely,
Anyhow i was shocked at how much my compost in the darlick bin had shrunk, 😲
Can i use this compost this year?
Thank you.
Thanks Steve and also to all the comments on this. What a lesson! We have to make the change and I for one am up for the challenge with help from the likes of you 🙂
Hi Steve. Just moved to a new house and am looking to build raised beds, so the idea of adding my own compost sounds great! I was thinking of making a worm bin also, could this be incorporated into the compost system with the supermarket trays? I managed to get a few trays off the delivery guy for the house move. I can also get seaweed off the beach. Also wondering if crushed shells may be of use.
Last year I got 2 lots out my compost bin although it was great compost. But think I may do the method your trying with the basket. Do u collect leaves and try to do leaf mould I've been trying that last year and this year that should help to give me some compost.
I was surprised Steve was adding his leaves in. Like you I make my leaf mould separately, and it is fantastic in helping root formation (it has all the benefits of Root Grow without the cost or packaging!), I only use my finished leaf mould for things that will benefit - for potting-on and a couple of handfuls when planting out new shrubs etc. to get the beneficial mycorrhizal fungi going.
@@kgarden8960 yea I'm quiet new to leaf mould process, still finding my feet but it amazing what u get out of it.
Really good video Steve. Feel rather more inspired to get stuck into mine. Had a rat problem this spring so composting enthusiasm fell off a lot.
Hi Steve can I use bedding from my sister's hamster cage for composting? It looks like shredded cardboard but there's hamster urine etc in it?
I would think that urine is a bonus.
Animals that eat vegetation are fine, animals that eat meat then no ...
Yes, so long as you don't buy the aesthetic stuff, you know, the ones that are dyed purple and such. If you just use the normal stuff it's fine
👍💚 blessings
Steve, are they using organic ink on the seed magazines? Just thinking.
I used to be a printing plate maker and there where two types of ink in general, water based and UV. UV ink is the stuff that you tend to see on packaging, and is high gloss, very high gloss. If the print is not high gloss you can be 99 percent certain it is water based and environment safe...Steve...🙂
@@GreenSideUp Thank you Steve, I am making compost to make a front garden veg bed and that information is great. Now I can compost my bills, yay.
You have a great channel, I am learning a lot from you, thank you again.
So when making a compost area you put compost material at the top then you take from the bottom after it has rotted . ??
I had a bin with a door at the bottom to get the finished compost out. I never made compost good enough for it to just magically become fine enough for that to work! I think the old fashioned way of "3 bins" is better. Fill up the first bin, when it is full move it to bin #2 (the act of turning it introduces air and mixes the actively composting material in and gets the process going again), and before that move #2 to bin #3. The stuff in Bin #3 is "done". As it rots down it needs less space, so bins #2 and #3 can be smaller.
hya steve ive made my compost bin its about 40 inch x 40 inch ive done the lasagne brown n green its got to 100 is it hot enough to destoy seeds if not how can i get it hotter
and also its 4 foot depth
I would love to see your Grandfathers method🇨🇦
Where I live their building a biomass energy plant and our council are now collecting all waste for this but still charge you for taking it away ? While making money from selling the energy or gas at a profit so green compost might be a thing of the past soon?
Great video 👍😊👍
Very informative thanks you 👍 😊 from newbies me 2 nd tear growing x
Should I add worms into my compost?
Worms will find there way in by themselves I've found
The thing I worry about is that weed killer (pyrolid) in the green waste, but I have a worm bin
I don't use municipal compost because there are bound to be clopyralids in it from the amateur lawn weed killers, and accidentally getting those into a veg plot will be a nightmare to sort out.
Interesting challenge there with the compost will be interesting to see how it comes out.
I don't mind lidl cheap peat free. Great brown material bulking agent as well as potting soil and I can't say I've had a problem with it at all yet and it's only £1.
As youtubers that's what we do, offer our knowledge and advice or in some occasions ask for it when we're stuck. Hopefully sharing it so that many people can use it or help. 😁
Jen
I've inherited a plot with compost bays that were completely empty that I'm learning to fill. Will be filming something on it soon. Lots of things I can take forward in this video! 😁
@@JensGardenAdventures Nice one. Mine were full when I moved in, bonus. Full of bricks though for some ungodly reason
I think the best idea is to go back to making you're own John Innes compost. 7:3:2 it uses less Peat (or Peat free) and doesn'r rely on the quality being first class as such. Also it makes watering easier and I still think plants do better in it.
There are still huge peat deposits but sadly they're in Russia so thats not going to help much but greenwaste is OK IF they process it correctly, but the companies bang it out as quick as possible to maximise the Proffit margins.
THe other problem is some of the peat alternaites (coir) whilst its a byproduct it has to come half way round the world ... how 'green' is that?
I think the "half-way-round-the-world" will be fine once transport is decarbonised (Dunno when that will be! but it is doable).
I use a lot of Avon boxes and Amozan boxes ripped up, and a lot of grass clippings for the bulk of my compost plus kitchen waste. I use it first on my spuds then spread it on veg beds. In the autumn I am able to gather leaves with a lot of donations from my naiboures we live close to trees, this is mixed in to compost when rotted down.I am going to have a go at making my own seed mix/potting mix in 2022 I hope it works out to (as you have said) save money and a lot of peat do not forget, small pieces and turn to get air in compost
hi steve i talk about my compost a lot i call it my engine room. all the best ivan
👍👍⚘
Thank you friend this is the reason I have been thinking about hydroponics in particular the kratky ? system I think you have experimented with this could you give us your thoughts in an updated video cheers brilliant channel learnt so much thanks again.
I get my neighbours to give me their grass cuttings and leaves, all adds to the pile!
Whenever possible I avoid making compost. It's a lot of work and the volume of what you have put in is reduced to about 20 percent. My preferred way to protect and enrich the soil is mulching, it works right away and you don't have to wait a year. When you need a clean bed you always can rake them up and put the remains in the compost heap. Consider growing the Bocking 14 Cumfrey variety that does not spread seeds and sends it's roots deep in the ground to retrieve all the goodies hiding deep below the level that the normal veggies cannot reach. I'm very well aware that my way is not appealing to the eyes of many people, but the plants don't mind. My raised beds don't have to look like those immaculate market farmers beds. They have a total other cost/time view than backyard growers or small plot holders. Greetings from Holland.
Tremendous video Steve well done mate, the content and your delivery and explanations are top draw, the channel has come on in leaps and bounds Steve and you deserve all the credit that comes your way 😀 have a good week mate and stay safe David 👍👍
Hi I am 60 and my husband passed away and I’m going to make my own compost and Grow
I am sorry for your loss xxxx
the peat free compost i have been using is £7.50-£8.50 for a 50L bag, doesn't contain any green wast compost and had been very good. Like with all "new" to you products there is a learning curve but once i got used to it am actually getting better results with a lot of things than i did with peat based compost.
Could you say what it is called please
@@debbieporter8610 i use the melcourt sylvagrow range of composts.
I always look out for the split bags at the garden centre - they charge £2 a bag and it's normally the better quality stuff, plus I have 3 plastic compost bins and make a lot of my own.
hi Steve talking of grandads don't know what mine would make of today's way's of gardening 70 year agony when we had frist TV he said to me it won't be long before they be watching us where ever we go & do how right was he thanks for making me go back to grandad ways of gardening /Chris 🤔
I don’t see peat free composts as the way forward I actually see manure as the solution and you can get it for free! Coco coir is far from perfect I’d rather use manure
Try growing your own peat moss.
I haven't done it purposly but in Australia we use peat and wood chips in our composting toilets.
I put my wast in an old toilet pit on the property. Due to run off from the road flooding it the peat has grown. Unfortunately I dug it all out just before a 5 year drought. But it is possible.
Hi Steve this is further to my previous comment. After this video I researched the problem with peat. I was unaware of the significant harm that was being caused which has spurred me on to change my habit. I will do my utmost to use whatever is the right thing, could you tell me if other alternatives have impacts on anything other than my purse that I should be aware of so I can make the right choice. Take care
Husband bought some coco coir from wilks last week not expensive
lovely an lose. I have noticed it seems to attract the tiny little flies don't no why, it does not smell
seeds come up ok
@@debbieporter8610 Thanks for the info I will give it a go. Take care
Sadly Ecco friendly means triple the cost, it’s just gouging from suppliers that jump on the band wagon. I make my own and try coir as an additive. Thank you for sharing ✌️🇨🇦🐝 safe
Eco friendly does not always mean triple the cost. If you're buying everything then yes, if you make stuff yourself then no
U can only us white paper with no print on it
With the covid crisis every thing in price will go up, and out of this covid 19 many folk are turning to grow there own, and buying easy home living,vsuch as mobile ,Shepard huts, canal boats, as one can now see it's not going to be the same again, grow as much as you possibly can, and share your surplus with each other, and garden tips, I sound desperate or pathetic, judge this by looking at prices, and protests of what's going on, it comes down to each to there own.
Avocado will attract worms too.
Ja, but avacardos are also bad for the environment. Lots of air miles to bring them into the UK to begin with
Let’s be honest here. Peat free is terrible and it’s more than likely rammed with chemicals.
i imagine aquaponics would be the way forward when prices are prohibitive.
Sorry but where on earth are you buying compost for £12 a bag? We get 3 50l bags of excellent peat-free Sylva Grow for £12 which makes them £4 a bag for very good peat-free compost. I feel like you’re exaggerating here which is a shame because I generally really like your content.
We all know that peat farming isn’t sustainable as our population grows, the threat to the environment is more important than saving a few £ on compost.
Also it might be worth you asking your site officers or council if you can get them to provide regular deliveries of council compost. Ours dumps a huge load made from the food bins the council collects each week. This subsidises the stuff we make to make up what we need.
Hi Kane, I do not buy compost for £12 a bag, it is mentioned in the video in the context of nursery/garden centre owners stating that that is the price of peat free that is good enough to use. Cheaper Peat Free compost, around the £6 a bag mark I mention because it is around the average price of cheap multi purpose compost. I do not mention "deals" simply because this confuses an already quite confusing issue. I see no point in exaggerating content as people will see right through that. I also realise that moving from peat to peat free is an accepted thing and I am not just trying to save a couple of quid on compost, I also stated that in the video. Council or green waste compost is another environmental issue in itself, in that it does have plastics in them. This might be slightly different for yourself as it is food waste you say, our council compost is green waste. I mention the issue and made the video because I can see problems in the future for both compost companies and the end user when peat is finally removed from the whole cycle, simply replacing that bulk where peat once was will have both cost and quality implications. I also state in the video that I hope I am wrong, and I really do hope I am wrong...Steve...😃
The print has chemicals in it, I shred all my white paper
Most print ink is water based and totally fine. Only high gloss inks you need to worry about
The peat free I've tried is rubbish! Like trying to grow plants in wool!
TBH some plants will grow fine in wool
they can screen it as much as they like but green waste contains harmful residues from herbicides.