You've
probably seen the ready-made compost containers available for small to
medium sized gardens. Their good design owes much to moulded recycled
plastics. They work by a steady thru-put of regular small-scale
additions of organic matter.
The time and expense to build a small heap with timber construction
hardly seems worth it. That's why the (re-cycled) plastic compost
container is an exciting development. They solve the problem of low
input, save space and still produce the goods. With
smaller gardens that's ideal.
COMPOST CONTAINER CHECK LIST
Start by filling bin to the top,
Aim to keep it full,
Choose a larger size compost
container only if you can keep it full, the contents reduce quickly,
Easy to add relatively small
amounts of organic matter. No need to store before composting,
Smaller 12 CuFt bins
can be kept full with a small steady input,
Break, cut, or shred tough
material before adding, especially the browns,
Shred and spreadthe
shrinking heap to fill wall to wall and avoid large air spaces. Finer
material helps retain heat and moisture, Check List continues
after details of 5 recommended composters
Without a doubt this is perhaps the simplest and one of the best small compost bins. Two sizes available.
The narrower upper section with tight lid recycles moisture internally. The material quickly reduces in volume so it won't be full for long. As it shrinks spread it out to ensure it fills the wider cross-section lower down.
The one-piece compost container is easily lifted off the heap whole to move to a new location. You can easily turn the heap by repositioning the container beside the heap and spading the material back into it again.
Quick way to dispose compost there's more inside
Mine provides moist black stuff thick with worms and a faint earthy smell - LOVELY the picture above doesn't do it justice.
The Cone Bin stands 40" (1 m) high, 32" diameter and holds 12cuft.
U.K. Gardeners can find the Compost Converter and a good website for compost containers and composting accessories on this link - or click the image.
Note: an additional Converter Base Plate is available for mounting on solid surfaces or to prevent vermin entry. The removable bottom door provides easy access to finished compost.
- Earthmaker Aerobic Composter -
Earth-Maker Aerobic Composter
I saw this one displayed at the Garden Organic in Ryton, Coventry. Its design takes full advantage of moulded plastic.
A removable upper shelf retains material for an initial stage of rapid hot composting. Slide the shelf back to let the material down the middle section where composting continues.
Finally use a rod to push the composted material down to the bottom to mature.
The system has advantages. Material at the same stage of decomposition gets hotter than when mixed with older material. The system more or less prevents unfinished compost from mixing with completed compost.
It also gives the worms a clear run in the cooler lower section of the container.
2 things are important
when aerating your heap - to break apart dense clumps, and to move the
material that has been on the cooler outside to the hot centre.
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of page COMPOST CONTAINER CHECK LIST CONTINUED
Aerate periodically. An aerating tool cuts and break
lumps apart; or thrust a garden fork into the heap and lever it around,
Smaller volumes in these
compost containers gives less prolonged or intense heat so keep adding new material
and aerate periodically,
Formulated compost activators
contain specific bacteria and nutrients for hot composting but are not
essential,
Aim to mix green and brown
matter equally - optionally, use nitrogen supplements:- comfrey,
poultry manure, urine, dried blood,
Scatter
a thin layer of finished compost over every 6 inches or so of new
material. Suitable micro-organisms will grow throughout the heap,
Heat generated raises the
temperature in the upper middle section of the bin - a narrower top
section helps reduce heat loss,
Tight
lid and plastic walls keep fresh material moist, conserve water vapour
inside, and reduce losses by leaching. No messing with plastic sheets
on windy days,
Pre-soak organic matter if it's
really dry but avoid
direct watering inside the compost container,
Open base allows small animals
e.g. worms, to digest the cool end. The finished stuff is moist, black,
crumbly,
Often
quoted completion times 4 to 6 weeks for ideal conditions e.g. shredded
material, warmth, ideal moisture content, using activator etc...
After decomposition, another 3
months to meld should be given, perhaps in a seperate bin,
Compost container can be set up
almost anywhere and easily moved to a new location,
- Earthmaker Aerobic Composter - 
