At this time of year grass cuttings, dead heading plants and generally keeping the garden tidy, not to mention ‘green’ waste from the kitchen all take up vital space in the grey rubbish bin – but they needn’t!

Composting garden rubbish, as well as vegetable and salad waste, means that you have more space in the grey wheelie bin while converting the unwanted greenery to valuable compost to enrich the garden soil.

Composting isn’t difficult – in fact it is as easy as finding a space in the garden for a composter, ideally on soil to allow the worms to do their thing, and then filling it with the right ‘ingredients’.

Garden waste is quite literally vegetation, such as grass cuttings, leaves or prunings, twiggy things benefit from being shredded or cut small to help them rot down faster. Add to this waste from the kitchen such as uncooked fruit and vegetables, teabags, coffee grounds, and egg shells – and just sit back and wait (between six and nine months), for it all to break down into valuable compost.

A gardening magazine even suggested adding paper towels and napkins )as long as they haven’t been in contact with meat), shredded non-glossy paper, straw and hay, sawdust, cardboard and egg boxes.

DON’T add any cooked foods, meat or fish bones, cat litter, weeds that have gone to seed, bread or plate scrapings.

When ready the compost has turned into a crumbly, dark material – like moist soil, and gives of a fresh earth smell. It can be used to enrich borders and vegetables patches, plant up new containers or feed the lawn.

As you do have to wait for a while for the compost to break down it could be an idea to have two composters – one that is in current use and one that is in the process of breaking down the matter to become compost.

Great Yarmouth Borough Council can offer some good deals on garden composters, all of which are delivered free. To order a composter all you have to do is ring 0845 077 0759.

For more information, please contact:

Karla Symonds
Great Yarmouth Borough Council
Town Hall
Hall Plain
Great Yarmouth
NR30 2QF
or email krs@great-yarmouth.gov.uk by August 1.