Just got an allotment and had to clear out some ivy, bramble, hay, rotten beetroots and generic grass and weed cuttings. Had a bit of wire mesh I used to contain it all.
I have no access to a woodchipper, nor do I have the money (or electricity) for one so all these items will have to remain chunky.
Any advice? Do I just keep throwing cardboard, leaves and food scraps on top?
by lulzbonanza
9 Comments
Yea, I mean, break stuff down as small as you reasonably can. So stalks like that I would just take my clippers and chop them up into chunks before I toss them in. I also don’t chip or use electricity for my compost. But most things you add, will be added slowly and over time, and usually you can afford to tear, snap, or rip apart things with your hands. Just keep adding stuff. When do you need the compost by? Are you planning slow or hot? Will the main inputs be from the garden only?
Piss on it
You can leave them at the bottom of your compost pile and simply forget them. It will decompose over the years, but be prepared that this thick sticks might need couple years.
If I were you, I would use anything that is wooden for campfires and only compost leaves and grass
Well, it’s time to use the good ol axe (or any robust sharp tool) to chop em down to bits, them you use them as BROWN in your compost, basically adding any other nitrogen rich matter to it
If you can’t chop it, bury it. Just sitting on the surface will be the longest time
All it needs is time.
Note: do not compost ivy. It will not compost. You’re just planting more ivy. Make a “raft” on the ground (a 4×4′ or larger platform of sticks lined in one direction and a second level of sticks perpendicular to the first), ball the ivy up and pile it on the raft, ensuring none makes contact with the ground. Make it as tall as you can without risk of it falling over. Let it dry out completely. Could take over a year. Then you can shred it and potentially use it as mulch or compost. This is what we did in natural area restoration work, though I wouldn’t want it in my garden. At home, I put it and all noxious weeds in the trash dumpster.
If I may make a suggestion, get rid of the chicken wire. I used chicken wire at first on my pile and it was fine while it was small, but over about 3-6 months, it was all bent out of shape from getting caught on it turning the pile, and also opossum climbing over it to get at the pile. I got some free pallets from work and thats made for a much better pile container
Time and a bit of water. More organic matter. Some worms would be good. Maybe piss on it now and then.
Its not gonna be a quick process.