My compost won't!!!

[Peggy Sue]

Slimey gunk usually means too much wet green stuff- you often get it if it's too much grass clippings. More shredded paper/card or the marvelous muck will resolve that. Part of the composting process is all about aeration, wet green veg tend to seal out air so the whole process will become anaerobic, and anaerobic bacteria are smelly...and worse they produce acidic by products. Thats why muck and pee are so good, they contain ammonia which raises the pH, good for the soil and encourages the worms.

Thats also why turning it is helpful, if you don't have enough fibrous stuff to create aeration then turning it is even more important. It will all compost in the end, its just matter of when you want to use it, with muck and turning it will be beautiful enoigh to sleep on in a few months...I do love this subject....I'm better at making compost than growing anything in fact!!

[Thomzo]

The only problem is that I have those useless plastic bin things, they make it so difficult getting the compost out without making a right mess. When they finanlly give up the ghost I'm gonna make wooden ones.

I have two of those that were given to me. I put one straight on a corner of the veg patch. The worms quickly find their way in if it's on soil that already has compost in it. As the contents decompose, the liquid drains into the soil. I stop filling it about now and just leave it over the winter. Then, before I plant in the spring, I lift the dalek off and spread the contents around. It may not be perfect but it seems to do well enough. Turning does help though when I can be bothered. Then I put the dalek in a different corner and fill it up over the summer. I do add fresh chicken manure regularly.

Zoe

[red]

[ I do add fresh chicken manure regularly.

Zoe

hm yeh chicken poo is sposed to be a good accelerator. We have one compost heap full of ready for the garden compost made before we got the hens, but the other two are getting weekly dressings of newspaper and chicken poo, due to us cleaning out the hen house weekly - will be interesting to see how much faster it composts

[invisiblepiper]

Ok then - I'm going with the horse manure for my daleks! - They dont turn easily - but I will try to remove some shovelfuls from the bottom to the top.Thankyou for the advice so far. (Love the 'daleks' name!)

[Green Aura]

The other thing you need is air - I've got what looks like a walking stick with a propeller screwed on the side at the bottom. You push the stick down and when you pull it back the propeller turns out and loosens the plant material.

It's good because you don't have to turn it, which is a nightmare in a dalek.

[red]

the only other way to turn compost in dalek is to empty it out and put it all back agian.. messy business....

we dont bother anymore. probably makes it slower

[ashamomodablam]

hi just been on a composting course(very exciting) and yes it sounds like you have too much green waste in there. for good compost the waste is split into 2 groups green waste grass, peeling etc and brown waste which is cardboard paper etc, which is equal amounts of both. if you have a dalek the best thing is to tip it out then fill it up again with layers of brown and green waste , but if you just have a fixed heap then turn it over then add scrunched up newspaper. then the most imporant thing is to then is to leave it to do its thing by having another composter so you are rotating ( one breaking down one filling up) . hope this is some help