tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7797396120087729156.post1296141244186784582..comments2024-03-27T00:25:28.696+11:00Comments on Garden amateur: Getting a wriggle onJamiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14653345793213312242noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7797396120087729156.post-36399053547817913902012-10-17T10:26:20.814+11:002012-10-17T10:26:20.814+11:00Yep, that 'sticky lid' thing can be a prob...Yep, that 'sticky lid' thing can be a problem if the bin is neglected for a couple of weeks (eg, when we go away on holidays... I am sure it would never happen while we're at home!) Being Mr Keen, on a day-to-day basis, being opened three or four times a week, it's not a problem.<br /><br />The other bit of muscle work that is sometimes needed is when the bin gets half full but has sat around for a couple of weeks without being spun. All of it settles down one end, and that first spin can sometimes take some effort. I don't think Pammy could turn it over at that stage, for example, because I do find it one hell of a heave and, well, I am bigger and stronger (but not wiser or braver) than my darling. <br /><br />Oddly enough, the fuller a bin becomes the more well balanced it becomes and it spins quite easily.<br /><br />Jamiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14653345793213312242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7797396120087729156.post-58755212998803454732012-10-17T09:20:14.784+11:002012-10-17T09:20:14.784+11:00What an inspirational post! I love the sugar cane ...What an inspirational post! I love the sugar cane idea. I had a Tumbleweed years ago but abandoned it at the last house as the lid frequently became so 'glued' on with moisture and grass bits that I just couldn't open either end without calling in the 'XY' cavalry. Have you had that problem?Catherinehttp://www.gardendrum.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7797396120087729156.post-62832568478902771942012-10-17T08:16:49.238+11:002012-10-17T08:16:49.238+11:00Thanks Charlotte, it was your recent kind tweets a...Thanks Charlotte, it was your recent kind tweets about my other compost postings that prompted me to do this update. Thanks, too – every time you mention me in a tweet I get another dozen or two new followers!<br /><br />With the paper, I'd just keep an eye on how it's breaking down. It's a great way to get rid of office paper, though!<br /><br />I found shredded paper to be a bit on the slow side in breaking down, while the mulch gets incorporated quickly and also seems to slurp up extra moisture in the mix more readily. But you do have to buy the mulch and the paper is cheap as.<br /><br />Last idea: scoop some of the worms into the tumbler bin, as I suspect they'll love it there and will multiply rapidly.<br /><br /><br /><br />Jamiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14653345793213312242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7797396120087729156.post-341239649580731482012-10-17T08:08:49.915+11:002012-10-17T08:08:49.915+11:00Such a timely post for me Jamie, it's wonderfu...Such a timely post for me Jamie, it's wonderful to see you back so actively on the blog (must take a leaf from your book...). I'm becoming obsessed with our new tumbler compost bin. We have a worm farm which couldn't cope with the volume of our kitchen scraps so I'm thinking that we will alternate between the two - the worms get a chance to really work through all the trays of scraps as we focus on the tumbler, and then when it's full it will be back to start from scratch on the worm farm. We hope. <br /><br />I wonder if it's time we started adding the sugar cane mulch or similar. I've been thrilled to have something to do with the office paper (I have a shredder so it's not a big deal to do, although my husband finds if very amusing that I shred the paper and then stand there cutting up the ribbons with scissors into smaller lengths) and have become obsessed with chasing down every stray leaf that floats into the courtyard and escorting it into the compost. It looks okay, smells fine, has loads of vinegar flies and a bit of activity I think, but I wonder if the paper will take too long to break down. <br /><br />Anyway - so much fun I don't really care. Amazing to be so engaged and amused by such minutiae! Thanks for your very clear instructions and pictures, SO helpful. XCCharlottehttp://www.howtoshuckanoyster.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7797396120087729156.post-84669632715219650882012-10-17T00:15:14.934+11:002012-10-17T00:15:14.934+11:00Interesting that you rely on ordinary earth worms....Interesting that you rely on ordinary earth worms. Here, we tend to start off compost with brandling or tiger worms - once the colony's got going , you don't need to add any more. They like breeding! Maybe the difference is the tumbler aspect. (Never tried that - only the traditional bin or heap.)Lucy Corrander Now in Halifax!https://www.blogger.com/profile/14685242329129914772noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7797396120087729156.post-78555359550655756082012-10-16T14:37:37.004+11:002012-10-16T14:37:37.004+11:00My old man has a worm farm, & uses them as bai...My old man has a worm farm, & uses them as bait, river fish loves them. He feeds the worms everything, & tends to them with great care. Saucy Onion has a balcony worm farm but I'm not sure what direction her balcony faces (http://saucyonion.blogspot.com). Best. :)Lithopslandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06550514571430359240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7797396120087729156.post-44880626935155528582012-10-16T12:10:36.535+11:002012-10-16T12:10:36.535+11:00Hi Missy Piggy, my bin is in almost the opposite p...Hi Missy Piggy, my bin is in almost the opposite position to your balcony: it's shaded by an olive tree and hardly gets any sun on it at all, so overheating never happens.<br /><br />More generally, the tumbler bins generally don't get 'hot' the way proper 1 cubic metre sized heaps get consistently hot and stay hot inside, no matter what the weather. I'm really not sure how worms would go in a tumbler bin that is set out in full blazing sun all day long. I just don't have the experience to know.<br /><br />You're right about your balcony and the worm farm, though. The poor little worms would cook. They do like the cool shade.Jamiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14653345793213312242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7797396120087729156.post-28948162996554420522012-10-16T11:36:25.747+11:002012-10-16T11:36:25.747+11:00If your compost bin got very hot wouldn't the ...If your compost bin got very hot wouldn't the worms "cook"? I'd love to have a worm farm on our balcony but we face due north and it's VERY hot out there...too hot for worms I think.Melhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11907743046211723083noreply@blogger.com