Solving Omlet Smart Auto Door Timing Issues with Alexa Routines

[emmalou]

I have never been a huge one for composting. We have a small bin but it takes ages for veg peelings and lawn clippings etc to mulch down and is getting rather full. I am soon going to be getting chickens and it appears I can intergrate the poop into the bin. However i am a little worried that a season of poop will take over my compost bin and indeed the garden? It looks like I need to get a second bin, just for the poo but sounds like they produce loads and not sure how to manage it all if it takes a season to mulch down? Also I presume a compost bin needs to be a sealed one rather than a caged one for ouder reasons? I am also not sure the wood chippings will mulch down that quickly either.

[grahamrhind]

How many chickens will you be getting? I have variously two or three and I find the amount of droppings (mixed with straw, not wood chippings) very manageable. I compost them in an open bin. They will help speed up the composting process in your bin so I don't think you'll end up with a major problem unless you're about to adopt a huge flock ....

[emmalou]

Well no more than 6 birds but with a modest size bin may take sometime to compose. Should I add anything to aid the process or is the poop integrated with everyday peelings etc enough? I presume after a year I can use it safely on the garden? Thanks for the response.

[grahamrhind]

I find that a fork-full of horse manure really speeds things up, but otherwise I just leave things to take their course. When it's brown enough, it's ready . I don't put grass clippings into the compost - I have a mower which returns the clippings to the grass to mulch down, and as my field is a meadow rather than a trimmed suburban lawn, that's no problem. I find the grass clippings "drown" the compost. If you could dispose of those in a different way, that might help.

[emmalou]

Yes I think we will need to. The grass is the problem. Thanks

[sjp]

I use an open muck pen as I like the wind and rain to flush any unwanted chemicals out of it. plus the smell of a muck heap only lasts a few days to a week in an open pen but in at covered one or a bag it goes sour

adding horse muck isn't necessary as it doesn't make chicken muck rot quicker more the other way round. but again it's if your going to poo pick every day then that can go into the compost bin as it'll be of benefit to the compost it's s full clean out that'll give you the most but if you do fill a compost bin up it'll soon settle as it rots down so you can add to it next clean out

[mullethunter]

I have 4 bantams and anoles compost heap just over a metre square. All chicken waste and all compostable kitchen waste goes on there, and to be honest the level hasn't changed that much in the 8 months we've lived here.

[Luvachicken]

Can I put poop in my leaf bin - basically a big wire box with leaves in ?

[jasperaliceuk]

These are a tad expensive but work really well. Most of my compost is the kitchen waste, garden stuff and all the chicken waste. Once that goes in it works wonders. The bins get really hot and actually steam. Consequently they compost quicker. I found one wasn't quite enough for me as I have quite a large garden so have two. When the compost is ready or nearly ready it goes into a wooden open compost to finish and store while I compost more in the hotbins.

 

http://www.hotbincomposting.com/

[Luvachicken]

Mine cost nothing as it was part of a rabbit run we no longer needed

This was the first year we decided to do it but strangely there weren't as many leaves as there have been before

I will put the odd poop here and there amongst the leaves then, as long as next door don't complain that it smells.