With autumn well upon us it’s time to think about clearing up the garden and preparing the soil for the spring – and a great way to help is by composting your green garden waste.
Home composting not only helps to significantly reduce carbon emissions it is also an effective and sustainable method to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill.
To encourage households to home compost, the Merseyside and Halton Waste Partnership* and www.getcomposting.com have teamed up to offer reduced price compost bins, from as little as £16 (plus £5.49 delivery).
Since the scheme began in 2007 approximately 10,000 compost bins have been sold in Merseyside and Halton.
The wet summer has encouraged plant growth and created an abundance of garden prunings, spent bedding plants and grass cuttings, which could all be recycled over the coming months to produce a nutrient-rich free supply of compost.
It’s important to have a good mixture of materials if you want to make good quality compost. As well as green garden waste, you can compost fruit and vegetable peelings, egg shells, tea bags, pet hair, and even a small amount of shredded paper. Try to aim for a 50/50 mix of ‘greens’ (vegetable peelings, old flowers, grass cuttings, spent bedding plants) and ‘browns’ (garden prunings, coffee grounds, tissues and paper napkins, cardboard, vacuum cleaner dust).
Chairperson of MRWA, Councillor Joe DeAsha, said: “If you get it right you can produce a free supply of soil conditioner to help your spring planting and produce an abundance of flowers, fruit and vegetables next year.”
To order your compost bin call 0844 571 4444 or visit online at www.merseyside.getcomposting.com. A variety of sizes and composting accessories are also available at special offer prices.
