Allotments 4 All
Allotment Stuff => The Basics => Topic started by: Tohellwithweeds on November 28, 2007, 12:30:09
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hi all hope you are all fit and well!! ;) just a little question ?? Ive got an old wooden crate that was used for holding slabs in can i use this as a compost "bin" if so what do i need to start my compost ?? Ive got some grass that's in the recycle bin would that be any use ?? please help I'm all confused ??? ??? if you could just tell me what i need to get started it would be great thanks ;)
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Here you go......... ;D
http://www.organicgardening.com/feature/0,7518,s1-3-79-3,00.html
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I like to start mine off with some shrubby stuff and thick stems this makes for a good drainage layer then I just add my composting material as it comes.
This bit of info might help you; http://tinyurl.com/36j587
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Hi Tohell, loads of stuff to throw in grass, weeds, leaves, teabags, shreddded paper, toilet and kitchen roll tubes, veg peelings, rabbit or hamster bedding, nettles etc also don't forget to wee in the bin. :-[ :o ;D ;D ;D
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Hi!
You can compost almost anything that has had a life!
The obvious things are weeds (best not rooty weeds like clover, dandelion, dock because they keep growing!) Any fruit and vegetable peelings from the house, tea bags, coffee grounds anything like that. Don't put pastry, meat or cooked stuff on as you may get further livestock coming after that!
You can compost wool jumpers newspapers also. You don't want too much woody stuff as that takes ages to compost.
If you can be brave one of the best activators is human pee! When it is warmer - heat helps to speed up the process. I pee in a bucket and carry it up to the lottie in a big water bottle. Lord knows what I would do if anyone noticed!! Luckily I am tucked away in a corner with direct access from the car so can sneak in at the first crack of dawn!!
So far have managed two huge containers of compost for spreading this year!
Good luck with yours!
Old Bird
;D
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Thank you all soooo much added links to my favourites one happy bunny ;D ;D
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oooh i thought female pee was to strong am i wrong :-[ just asked oh if he would mind peeing on my compost he thought i was joking if only i was a man i could pee to my hearts content and no one would bat an eye lid ::) looks like i will have to pee in a bucket ;D
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In my opion I wouldn't use woman's pee but what do I know, I also noticed on another forum someone advised no spud peelings, I've alway's put mine in but not whole spuds, happy composting. ;D ;D ;D
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Male urine is high in nitrogen.
Female urine is not suitable as a compost activator :-X
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Female urine has just as much nitrogen. The only difference is that it has female hormones, but I bet the plants won't notice.
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An old boy told me that there is a way of composting the really horrible weeds - couchgrass, dock etc What you have to do is put them in sealed plastic bags then put the bacgs somewhere dark. The idea is for them to be denied water and ligt and then to die and compost down anaerobically.
I have started this by putting couchgrass in plastic bags inside a very large piece of blag plastic in turn inside a plastic compost bin. I'll let you know.
This doesn't work for blackberries but the old boy said that he never has any fires to burn stuff on his plot.
He also added a variant of the above whereby you put the plastic bag into the water butt with a few holes in but under the water.
I have seen (and smelt) my neighbour's version of this that he does with nettles. Although it is rank he has some of the best evg on the plot.
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oooh i thought female pee was to strong am i wrong :-[ just asked oh if he would mind peeing on my compost he thought i was joking if only i was a man i could pee to my hearts content and no one would bat an eye lid ::) looks like i will have to pee in a bucket ;D
Yeah, me too. My OH is a big hairy biker type, but thinks its gross to pee on stuff he's gonna eat.....I said he should have paid more attention in biology lessons at school, but he's adamant......(actually more a prude if you ask me) He still doesn't release I pee in a bucket for the compost. No its not as good as male, but what choice do I have?
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omg i get enough gyp from my OH about storing up the veg scraps, dunno what he would say if I started peeing everywhere!!!
The tip with the weeds, that does work. Rot them down in a black bag for several weeks then when they are just blackish mush put them in the compost. I put all veg scraps, coffee grounds from work, tea bags, and grass etc from the plot, egg shells.
I started mine in january this year and funnily enough i add, and add, and add but really teh level doesn't go up that much!! so I am assuming that at the bottom there is lots of munched up compost for me for spring planting!!
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i was told lady wee is the best for compost bins! i'm afriad that i am actually too squeamish but my mummy does it regularly! get the boys to wee in there too :)
my two bins are both full at the moment- in a few weeks tho one will have rotten(? rotted?) down i'm sure!
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cereal boxes, ripped up, shredded documents, vacuum cleaner dust and dog hair, egg boxes, card ones, of course, after you've got enough to chit the spuds ;D
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Male or female pee? I am sure that it doesn't make a huge amount of difference to aiding the composting process. It is only an activator and shouldn't cause anyone to stress about it! I would think that the only thing that would make a difference would be different diets etc. But I cannot believe that we are hugely different in our output so to speak!!
Apparently - an no I haven't tried it! - human pee is not germ ridden so you can do all sorts with it! I wouldn't put it on the garden neat or anything like that!
The other really magnificent activator is of course - seaweed - but you have to be near'ish to a beach to get that!
Old Bird!!
;D
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and don't forget the more you drink the more you wee
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I'm not drinking my wee for anyone ;D ;D ;D
Rob.
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Hi!
You can compost almost anything that has had a life!
Old Bird
;D
..............that's my old man sorted then!!!!!
Louise
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My son loves nothing more than peeing on the conpost heap - it's obviously a boy thing!
Louise
PS - he is only 8
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Female urine contains oestrogen (women who are on the pill [oestrogen ethynylestradiol] will produce much higher concentrations) this does not affect it's use as a compost activator it will work just as well as male urine. The reason it is not reccommended is because the oestrogen can leach into the groundwater where even very low levels can have drastic effects on wildlife particularly fish & amphibians.
Using frogs an an example it is during the tadpole stage that reproductive organs begin to develop in frogs, a process that is regulated by the hormone system. When tadpoles swim in water with low concentrations of oestrogen , all of them develop ovaries instead of what is the normal process - that half of the frogs develop ovaries and the other half testicles. No male frogs = no future generations. Same goes for fish & other amphibians.
Having said all that it will actually make very little difference as synthetic oestrogen behaves like DDT did & creates an oestrogenic effect.
Synthetic oestrogen can be found in phalates which are used in the manufacture of plastics. From breakfast to baby products, milk bottles, shopping bags, plastic food wrapping, plastic containers, clingfilm and soft toys, there aren’t many plastics that don’t include this chemical.
DES, a synthetic hormone used in the farming of cattle and chickens.
The list is endless just open your kitchen and bathroom cupboards and everyday products like detergents, soaps, shampoos, and creams all have synthetic oestrogen in them. Most of them will end up leaching it into the water system at some point. The only difference adding female urine to a compost heap will make will be that the oestrogen ends up on your ground rather than entering the sewage system & entering the groundwater somewhere else.
If you want to learn how to compost properly try this site.
http://www.csimba.com/compost/
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Hi Baccy Man
Is that all true or are you just extracting the urine
Frank
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Hi Baccy Man!
What a comprehensive explanation!!
Presumably even if we girls pee into the sewage system the oestrogen still stays after the regeneration and filtration systems then it is re- used back into the water supply system in - say - places like London - where water is collected - treated - and then re-used!
Presumably also as an "Old Girl" there will be less oestrogen and so we are more environmentally friendly!!
;D :o
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What a lovely explanation baccy man. Though Im a little confused......is it only ladeees taking the pill who contribute to the oestrogen levels or is it naturally occuring in the urine?
If its naturally occurring then (my confusion) surely male urine will contain testosterone, will that not effect the balance of amphibians/fish in water courses.
I m not trying to be contradictory......I just havent got the full understanding of all this.
Thanks for being patient in advance ;)
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star, was just thinking the same thing!!
???
all the same, i have no ponds/streams/ etc near our plot so i'm hoping it doesn't mess with nature too much!
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It is the higher levels caused by the pill that cause the most concern. There is one example given in this news story.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1877162.stm
There are 18 types of oestrogen found in human urine, it is found in male urine as well as female, levels in men are low & don't fluctuate levels in women fluctuate with the menstrual cycle & are consistently high during pregnancy.
http://uk.encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761572261/Oestrogen.html
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Thanks so much for that ;), its amazing how ignorant I feel sometimes :-[.
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I see that BBC article is from 2002. No doubt somebody's managed to prove the opposite by now. ;D
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I see that BBC article is from 2002. No doubt somebody's managed to prove the opposite by now. ;D
This article was published in June 2007 after a 7 year study had been completed with very similar results.
http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/pfk/pages/item.php?news=1266
The full report from the study is availiable in a 1.13mb pdf file here.
http://www.pnas.org/cgi/reprint/0609568104v1
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has anyone noticed something I did on the last link?
pnas ::) ::) 8)
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(What's pnas?)
At the bottom of your link its states no human waste, I agree the solids should be kept out of the compost bin. Except in the case of top fruit.
I belong to an Organic growing and sustainability project and we have compost toilets, the solids go to make compost for trees, fruit trees and other top fruit bushes.
I am presuming this is the part of the link you refer to Tee Gee?
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that's what I would like to put on the allotment site next year, Star..compost toilets..I'll have to wait to see how much we make from our plant sale, then broach the idea with the rest of the members
it's ok for the lads, they've made their own, we ladies either have to brave the lads in the club watching footie or pee in a bucket in our sheds..bit of a squash in there with the tools and stuff ;D
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I thought TeeGee was referring to pnas as sounding like the source of the aforementioned pee! ;D
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Ok, thanks Caroline.......I am easily confused.
Must be me age, well I am 21 plus VAT :P ::)
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I am presuming this is the part of the link you refer to Tee Gee?
No look at your link again;.....www .PNAS.org
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I am presuming this is the part of the link you refer to Tee Gee?
No look at your link again;.....www .PNAS.org
Thank you Tee Gee....I finally got it. Yes the first part of the PNAS link is easily understood, even by me. But the scientific bit is waay over my head....I understand the simpler versions on all explanations.
I did hear about this years ago. Alas, my memory is not serving me too well these days :-\
Thanks all for your patience :-* ;)
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Could start here:
http://www.recyclenow.org.uk/home_composting/