Thread for COMPOST, compost discussion, compost tea, etc.

I get left with all these weird ghostly plastic tea-bag exoskeletons blowing around the place.

this is a problem with the big pile I was talking about, it is maybe 75% paper, and we have to be extra vigilant about hot tea/coffee cups in particular - they have what we call "cup condoms" inside that shiny white paper, a plastic lining that never (well, almost never) breaks down. a big part of our job is educating people about those, and trying to get vendors to stop using them (they are cheaper than the compostable hot cups, money talks at festivals)

universal problem with laminated products i guess, hard to recycle cos it's not easy to separate the layers

so L is now trying this fancy brand for her compost tea starter:

http://earthfort.com/

she made up the first batch last night - unlike the previous method, where you just mix all the compost and starter into the water, this one requires you to mix the starter and some fish emulsion directly into the compost, then let it sit for 36-72 hours while (I assume) the microbes multiply. After that, you can put it in the water. The fish emulsion is super stinky, hope that all goes away during the brewing process. It should be ready to put into the water tonight or tomorrow morning.

I've got one of those bins that you can buy cheaply from the council and get a curious enjoyment from thinking "It's full" and then finding that a couple of weeks later there is plenty of room for more weeds/kitchen scraps. I don't think I've ever used any compost though.

If any Londoners want to know about COMPOST, we are doing a COMPOST WORKSHOP at the Streatham Community Garden on the 31st of August. (registration may be required, I shall ask if anyone has any interest in attending) Come and learn everything you ever wanted to know about COMPOST!!!