Compost expert required

Prenderb

For advice please, in relation to my compost bin. Got it about a year ago, and have been using it for garden waste (grass etc) and some compostable kitchen waste - fruit skins, veg. peelings etc etc.

Whilst the volume has gone down somewhat, there's still no actual compost in the bin at all, still recognisable fruit peelings even at the bottom of the bin. Can anyone help? Where am I going wrong?

It's a plastic bin, got it in Lidl last year. Has air vent slits and an open bottom. It's situated in (mostly) shade at the end of the garden. I've not used worms or anything else in it. Any thoughts gratefully appreciated!

10-10-20

By the sounds of it, you're not composting - you're decomposing.
The mixture should be damp, not wet, and not dry.
Too much grass will make a wet mixture - add news paper and 'packing cardboard' to bulk up the mixture.
I'm not sure what type of bit it is, but if it's on the ground, worms should be able to get into it. If it's raised up off the ground, you'll need to add worms.

ART6

To create compost you need insulation to hold the heat of digestion and a good air flow up through the organic matter to provide oxygen for the bacteria. It's the heat that the bacteria create that causes the airflow. If the waste you put in is wet and soggy you will inhibit the airflow, and equally, if there is insufficient insulation to hold the heat, then the airflow will be inhibited. If those two conditions are met then you don't need worms to get compost. In fact, worm worked compost is a very strong nutrient, too much so for most plants, and it needs to be well diluted with soil before use. If you really want worm worked, you can get the right worms by putting a thin spread of horse manure under a piece of old carpet on a patch of ground. In a week or so you will find lots of small red worms there, each a couple of inches long, and if you transfer them to the bin they will breed there. They are not the same breed as common earthworms.

As the previous poster said, if the waste is wet and soggy you might benefit from a bulking agent, and paper from an office shredder is ideal for that -- it also produces a very nice friable compost.

Personally I am very sceptical of these plastic compost bins since I have never known them to retain the heat and provide the good airflow.

Slate

Also useful with plastic bins if material has not composted fully is to empty contents completely and mix it up with a spade/forks. You could also add bacterial composter every now and then,available from any garden centre. I have 3 bins as I have large garden and they work okay. The mix of stuff you put into them is important and cut up foods/paper/twigs etc as small as possible. Would suggest putting it were it gets more heat during the day.