M.T.Water Tanks - Compost Bays

Composting is a natural process, harness this at home and create a rich, safe soil conditioner, your plants will love it!

Ingredients:
• Dry ingredients - dry leaves, shredded twigs and branches, straw, sawdust, sugar cane waste, pine needles and dry shredded paper.
• Wet ingredients - grass clippings, kitchen scraps, old cut flowers, tea bags, coffee grounds and egg shells.
• Extra materials that will add great value to your compost are old compost or soil, comfrey leaves (herbaceous plant), kelp (seaweed) and manure (from herbivores, eg cows, sheep, chickens).
• The smaller/finer the ingredients, the faster they will break down.
• Avoid weeds that have flowered, diseased plants, dairy, meat and bones, dog or cat manure.

F.A.Q:

Where is the best position for my compost bay?
Place your compost bay in a position where it will be exposed to some sunlight and making sure it is on a flat soil surface so that worms and other soil creatures can get into the compost heap.

How do i start my compost?
Start by layering ingredients (see above), a good tip is to start with laying twigs and small branches down first so that the heap will have good air circulation and drainage and try making the other layers as thin and as different as possible so it will be faster in breaking down.
After adding the ingredient layers, cover the compost with a piece of hessian, old carpet or cardboard this will help to suppress any food smells and retain moisture in the compost heap.

How long will the compost take to establish?
The layering process will take some time to gradually prepare but once the compost heap is about a metre high, you will need to maintain the compost by adding water, and turning it over with a garden fork.
In about 8 weeks, it will have turned into dark and nutrient-rich compost ready to be used on your garden.

My compost bay smells what should i do?
If you find that your compost smells it can mean that its too wet or their isn’t enough air circulation in the heap.
This can be easily fixed by adding more sticks to the base of the heap to help with the air flow and mixing more dry ingredients to the heap, for eg: leaves, sugar cane mulch a handful of wood ash, garden lime or dolomite to neutralise any acidity and combine shredded newspaper or sawdust to any new wet ingredients going into the compost.

How can i stop my pet dog from getting into our compost?
Our compost bays have an optional gate which is ideal for keeping dogs or other animals that may want to explore through your compost heap.
Some pests and rodents make their homes in dry, warm, still conditions. If your compost is well maintained, that is turned regularly and wetted down regularly, these pests will not move in.

My compost doesn’t seem to be breaking down?
If your ingredients are not breaking down into compost in around 12 weeks, you can speed things up by fixing it.
Try turning the compost once a week and Checking and adjust the contents by add moisture if it is too dry and turn more regularly if it is too wet.

What is the best way to feed my plants with the compost?
Compost is a natural fertiliser and can be used to feed almost any plant by placing around the dripline of the plants where the feeding roots are located, but avoiding contact to the trunk or stems of the plants.
Make sure you mulch over the compost so that it does not dry out and the plants gain maximum benefits from your endeavours.

Benefits in making your own compost:
• Provides nutrients for your plants
• Prevents soil erosion
• Retains moisture in the soil
• Increases soil aeration
• Increases the number of soil creatures your garden
• Recycles waste into usable material
• At the ready when needed
• Saves you dollars

All compost bays can be custom made to suit your needs