Page 39 - ALG Issue 2 2018 html

General
Compostable materials on the allotment
Allotment composting principles are the same as composting
in your garden, but on allotment plots there will be limited quantities of grass and kitchen waste, which, balanced with the right quantity of carbon-rich browns, would probably be the main ‘activators’. However, soft young weeds are available and these will rot quickly, so rather than hoeing and leaving them on the ground, take advantage of their value to the compost heap and collect them up.
Comfrey leaves make good ‘activators’ and I would recommend setting aside a small part of the plot for growing this useful plant. Nettles are also very effective and while I would not recommend growing them on the plot (it might present problems during plot inspections) there may well be some available in the hedges and uncultivated areas on the site.
If poultry or rabbits are kept, the manure makes a good activator. Some of the horse or cattle manure, delivered to manure the site, can be kept back to add to the compost bin to bulk up other ingredients.
Do not put perennial weeds such as buttercup, bindweed or ground elder directly onto the heap unless you are using a ‘Hot Heap’, as they will survive the composting process. These can be put in a plastic sack (with some grass mowing if available) and left
to dry out until the weeds are no longer recognisable; this may take several months. Some weeds can be killed by drowning in a bucket of water for a month or two. They can then be added to the compost heap.
Items that are a little slower to decompose include windfall fruit, the leaves/tops from vegetables. Remove the carrot, parsnip tops etc to compost on the allotment rather than carry them home to trim later; Also old flowers or bedding plants, soft prunings, perennial weeds (if drowned or dried first) and, of course, tea bags - if you can find the time to relax. Please note that not all tea bags will compost. Chop up tough items using shears or a sharp spade. The smaller you make them the quicker they will compost. They can also be crushed by hitting with the spade or a hammer.
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Allotment Browns include items such as Brassica stalks, which are slow to decompose and are best chopped or crushed. Old straw or hay from animal bedding or from around the strawberries
is valuable too in providing the correct green/brown balance and retaining moisture. Tough hedge clippings and woody prunings will be very slow to compost. If the plot is positioned so that it is covered in autumn leaves these are very slow to rot and are best treated separately to make leaf mould. If bonfires are allowed, the wood ash can be composted, and if necessary it might be acceptable to bring clean cardboard and shredded paper onto the site. Please do not transport uncooked or cooked kitchen waste - especially meat or dairy products - onto the site.
Rod Weston www.carryoncomposting.com/
Rod is also writing a new section for the NAS website on the Composting Year. www.nsalg.org.uk/growing-advice/the- composting-year/
Comfrey ©gaborfromhungary / morguefile.com
NatSol the specialists
01686 412653 info@natsol.co.uk www.natsol.co.uk
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