At Caffi Clywedog, everything we do is as environmentally friendly as possible. Our recyclable packaging ensures that we send as little as possible to landfill. This year, we are in the process of planning our compost bins, to recycle natural waste too!
But what is composting?
Composting is decaying natural material, like food waste, twigs, leaves and banana peelings. When certain types of natural waste are put together into a compost pile, over time, you will be left with nutrient rich fertilizer that is extremely beneficial to gardens.
There are many misconceptions about what can go into a compost pile. Anything carrying harmful bacteria, like animal droppings will render your compost unusable due to the risk of disease.
It will take a few months for the material to turn into soil, but you should see some changes after a few weeks to a month. You are aiming for a balance of nitrogen-rich “green” and carbon heavy “brown”.
Green materials usually are moist. This includes fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds and tea leaves. The brown materials usually are dry - this includes, newspaper clippings, flowers or plants. It's a good tip to make sure that flowers and plants are not carrying disease before you add this to your compost pile.
How to compost:
Find a spot in your garden, either on a patch of ground out of the way or in a bin. (if you are making a heap, place a small fence around it to keep small animals out).
Gather composable material and start placing it on the designated area or in the bin.
Every week turn the compost/materials with a shovel. Water it occasionally to keep it moist and keep an eye out for anything that could be harmful.
You can compost:
Pasta
Apple cores
Leaves
Small twigs
Stale bread
Carrots
Potatoes
Coffee
Egg shells
Do not compost:
Meat
Fish
Butter
Yogurt
Milk
Cheese
Animal feces
Compost cannot really go bad, the worst that happens is it gets too dry, too wet or too old. Simply add water if its too dry and add some sawdust if it gets too wet. If it's too old, it simply means its lost its nutrients, you can fix this by adding it to a fresh heap of compost. Over all composting is a great way to help the environment from home, it is also a valuable tool for budding gardeners too.
- The Caffi Clywedog Team