A Hard Day in the Garden
Harvesting compost from my hot composter and replenishing my containers
I am aching almost everywhere as I write this.
Today I have been tackling two big jobs that are best done together - getting some compost out of my Hotbin composter and sorting out some of my containers ready for re-use.
Tackling the Hotbin for the first time each year is always hard work, because its contents have compacted over the winter. But with Matt’s help we put down a tarpaulin, get the front panel off, and then carefully shovel out the contents.
I say carefully because it is important not to damage the inside of the bin. It is also important not to let the contents higher up in the bin, which have not yet turned to compost, fall down and mix with the compost being removed. Sometimes this is unavoidable, and then the uncomposted material needs to be separated out and put back in the Hotbin - not the easiest task.
Today all went well, and we removed a really good batch of ready-to-use compost. It was not too wet and there was no hint of bad smells. So I was a very happy composter!
Getting the hang of using a Hotbin composter takes time and practice. For it to work well you need to add sufficient material regularly (not always easy in winter), prevent it from getting too wet and get the mix right.
I have been known to get it wrong, and once ended up with a horrible wet slimy mess that reeked of hydrogen sulphide and could probably be smelt several streets away. Sorting that out was so unpleasant (and embarrassing) that I was tempted to give up there and then, and take my expensive Hotbin to the local tip!
I am so glad that I persevered, though. I still struggle to keep it hot through the winter months, but I now get really good compost several times a year. And it is so satisfying to know that we are utilizing all our garden and kitchen waste - this has to be one of the most environmentally-friendly things a gardener can do.
If anyone would like a more detailed post on my experience of using a Hotbin do leave a comment!
Today’s other big task was sorting out the containers that had stood dormant over the winter. I have a lot of containers in my garden, as you can see in the photo below (and these are not all of them!)
I like to leave many of my finished plants at the end of the season to provide shelter for insects and other creatures over the winter.
So today I was removing the dead plants from last summer, checking for any creatures as I went (I did find a few ladybirds which I moved to other containers!) The dead plants were then cut up into small pieces to provide new material for the Hotbin.
I then had a good rake through the remaining compost in the containers to check for pests. I found some vine weevil larvae, but fortunately only in one container. I took time to thoroughly search and remove these one by one, put them on a plant saucer, and the blackbirds had a feast!
I then topped up the containers using the compost freshly harvested from the Hotbin. This replenishes the used compost, adding plenty of nutrients and organic material. So I now have a supply of containers ready and waiting for this year’s seedlings when the danger of frosts has passed.
One final, but very important, task was to protect my newly prepared containers from the blackbirds. They absolutely love rummaging through any exposed compost looking for worms. That in itself wouldn’t be a problem, but they have a habit of throwing the compost out of the containers and all over the garden, making a real mess!
I find that the round plant supports in the photo below work perfectly, and are easily moved from pot to pot as needed.
There is no doubt that gardening can be hard work, especially when you are not as young as you used to be. But the satisfaction of a job well done makes it all worthwhile!