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Category: Environment & Green Gardening

Tips for ecologically friendly gardeners and gardens that green and protect the environment.

High Fibre Composting

High Fibre Composting

compost bins

A cold composting process with the addition of crumpled paper and torn cardboard has been named High Fibre Composting. Promoted by the Centre for Alternative Technology the compost making process is simple as could be.

Step by Step Cold Composting

  • Add waste to the compost heap or plastic bin as and when it is available.
  • Mix kitchen and garden waste with crumpled paper and torn cardboard.
  • The ratio of waste doesn’t matter but avoid thick layers of any one material.
  • There is no need to turn the heap.
  • The compost should be ready to use in 3 months during summer. In cold weather it will take a little longer.

Pros and Cons of High Fibre Composting

  • As the compost will not heat up weed seeds and plant diseases will not be killed. Do not try compost seed heads and infected plants.
  • Leave the heap open to rain as the heap needs moisture. Water the paper and card if the heap seems dry.
  • Worms are a great help in composting. You can buy extra worms from a fishing tackle shop, go for red worms called ‘Dendrobaena‘.
  • This composting adds carbon back into the soil and will condition your garden.
  • Compost will not have high levels of nutrient so you may need to manure some parts of the garden as well.
  • Given time anything that has grown will rot down using a cold process. However avoid large twigs and lumps of wood and aim for variety of composted material

Enjoy making compost it can be therapeutic for you and the environment.

What to do with Garden Non-compostables

What to do with Garden Non-compostables

Waste bag

It seems a waste to put non-compostables into landfill if there is an alternative. Fortunately our local authority provides a green bag and collection service. Your local tip will probably have separate areas for hardcore and other garden waste.

Composting Means and Methods

  • Garden compost heaps are for short term rotters taking 6-12 months.
  • ‘Green bag’ council schemes are better able to cope with problem rotting and are suitable for items listed below.
  • Landfill is far longer term rotting but even this is not suitable for Japanese Knotweed which needs burning.
  • Wormeries are fine for green waste and cooked food and scraps.

What do you Avoid on your Compost Heap

  • Anything that you avoid putting on your compost heap is classified as non-compostable for this purpose.
  • Roots particularly from trees are often too slow to rot down and I green bag them.
  • Pernicious roots sometimes survive the heat of my compost. Then they regrow loads of new plants when the compost is spread. So weeds and perennial roots  get green bagged.
  • Seed heads are green bagged so the council can compost them on an industrial scale.
  • Diseased and infected plant material is also green bagged except honey fungus
  • Excess of one waste product such as twiggy slow rotting stalks sometimes end up in my green bag.
  • Ruble and pure clay can’t be green bagged and needs to go to landfill unless you can create a new use for them like a base for a raised bed or pond.

Read about beginning a compost heap to get more tips and ideas.

Autumnal Compostables and Leaf Mold

Autumnal Compostables and Leaf Mold

mushrooms, leaves and horse chestnuts

I am an avid composter but it is worth considering what is going into your compost this Autumn.

This photo contains several items that are not idea for my compost heap.

  • When I spread my compost I do not want lots of new saplings springing up in my garden. Some seeds and nuts are likely to survive composting as the heat will not be as great through winter.
  • Leaves particularly Oak,  Horse-chestnut and broadleaved trees will be slow to rot down.
  • Leaves do not provide much sustenance but are great conditioners if rotted down over a couple of years into leaf mold.
  • I have to admit to being uncertain about composting fugus. There seems to be little food value in these mushrooms and they may be spread via the composting process. On the other hand fungi are key parts of a soils organic activity and on balance I would compost these. I would not compost Honey-fungus or anything growing near my fruit trees.

Tips on Making Leaf Mold

  • Rake your leaves together into a pile. Bits of soil,  grass and a variety of leaves are not a problem but make the pile predominantly leaves.
  • Then there are a couple of options:
    • Put the leaves in a wire cage cover and leave to rot.
    • Put the leaves into a large plastic bag and puncture to allow air to enter.
  • Leaves should be damp and can be lightly watered but not left soggy. The rotting will not create heat like normal compost and decomposition will be slow.
  • It may take over a year for the leaves to breakdown and the volume will be a tenth of the leaf pile you started with.
  • Conifers and evergreen leaves will take   three years to compost and are best added in small quantities.
  • Shredding leaves or chopping with a lawnmower first  helps to speed up composting.
Good Soil and How to Get Better Soil

Good Soil and How to Get Better Soil

Book Cover

Soil that is fit for purpose will help your plants grow, thrive and even excel.
Some plants need special soils or composts but good general principles are discussed below and this book will provide detailed information.

Purpose of Garden Soil

  • Soil provides the base to anchor plants through their roots.
  • Good soil holds moisture and air necessary for the health of plant roots.
  • Soil feeds plants with nutrients (NPK) and makes other trace elements available.
  • Soil recycles dead matter and hosts a variety of life forms.


Features of Good Soil

  • Soil consists of “the living, the recently dead and the very dead.”
  • Soil should be able to hold moisture but not become water logged.
  • Excess water should drain away and not puddle under the plant. To prevent puddling the sub-soil, or lower layer of soil below cultivation depth, should be broken up and not compacted.

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Wild Flower Bed with Companion Plants

Wild Flower Bed with Companion Plants

Meadow

An effective way to use wild flowers  is to mix in some trusted garden plants. Using some  trusted garden stand-bys will provide extra colour and structure to a wild area.

Plants to Support Wild Flower Beds

  • After the Aconites, Snowdrops and Marsh Marigolds the first blooms may be from Primroses or Day Lilies followed by Dianthus to give a mix of vibrant colour.
  • Evening Primrose has yellow bell shaped flowers. Oenothera tetragona flowers in spring on reddish green stems, Oenothera missouriensis  later in the year
  • Campanula the blue white or sometimes pink Bellflower can also look good.
  • Foxgloves give height and structure and you could add some Delphiniums.
  • For some white flowers choose Sneezewort ‘Acillea ptarmica’, Candytuft , Ox-eye daisy or Anthemis punctata
  • Heliopsis, Rudbeckia and Achillea are good looking yellows.
  • Cranesbill geraniums and Columbines can also complement wild flowers.

Wild Flowers

  • You can buy seed mixtures aimed at different locations such as Cornfield mix and others from Thompson & Morgan
  • Many individual plants appeal as wild flowers particularly the daisy and buttercups. Still more wild flowers are scented.
  • The red Poppy is potentially one of the most popular varieties and I would opt for Papaver rhoeas.
  • Wild Orchids are harder to grow but if you have the patience they can be rewarding
  • See also Wild Seed Suppliers
  • Do not forget the humble Dandelion in various leaf forms.

Tips on Wild Seed Sowing

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Getting Biodiversity in your Garden

Getting Biodiversity in your Garden

Wild meadow

Wild Areas

  • Leave an area in your garden to grow wild. Let it do as it wishes and follow the seasons.
  • Log piles and rotting brash provide protection, food and habitats.
  • If you have a wild flower meadow grow native plants and grasses.

Native is Best

  • Flowers and plants native to your area feed indigenous populations of birds, insects and fungi.
  • None native plants can take over or undermine local plants.
  • Double flowers and over-bred plants often take up space but offer no food value for wild life.

Variety and Diversity

  • The wider the range of plant families and flowers the better for wild life.
  • Look after the soil to help diverse plants to thrive. It will also help fungus and bacteria which is a good place to start achieving biodiversity.
  • Rotating crops breaks up disease and feeds the soil.

Balance the Elements

  • Create wind breaks or sheltered areas.
  • Ensure a supply of accessible water.
  • Provide some shade in hot areas of the garden.
  • Consider the tops of trees and the roots of plants as habitats. Again variety is a key.
Good and Bad Environmental Companion Plants

Good and Bad Environmental Companion Plants

A good plant for attracting wildlife is the Poached Egg plant Limnathes douglasii. (Poached Eggplant sounds like an Aubergine recipe).
A bad companion plant would be the Black Walnut that produces a chemical and heavy shade both of which can inhibit growth.

Creating Microclimates
Hedges, trees and shrubs can provide microclimates by stopping wind. They shelter for a distance up to 10 times their height.
Roots can change microclimates by creating space for air and water to percolate. They also draw different combinations of nutrients.
Weeds try to destroy microclimates by competing for water – get rid of them!
Ponds, bog gardens and streams help make microclimates.

Environmental Companion Tips
Plant a range of different plants including local endemic species
Some plants repel or attract insects and gardeners. Plant big open flowered plants and umbellifers for hoverflies.
Use green manures when the ground is not in use.
Use leguminous plants like peas, beans and clover to fix nitrogen in the soil.

Clover

In Praise of Clover

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Harlow Carr Library & Learning Centre is Eco Friendly

Harlow Carr Library & Learning Centre is Eco Friendly

HHarlow Carr Library & Learning Center

Harlow Carr continues to be a rising star amongst the Royal Horticultural Societies Gardens.
Opening in the next few weeks will be the new library and learning centre at the gardens in Harrogate.

‘The building, designed by one of the leading practitioners of sustainable building architect Andrew Yeats (Winner of the Queens Award For Sustainable Design), is designed to be one of the ‘greenest’ buildings in the UK with a zero carbon footprint.’ (Dean Peckett)

Eco Friendly Features
Super insulated, low energy consumption building.
It will have integrated renewable energy technologies including  rainwater harvesting and a grey water recycling system.
A small wind turbine will provide energy to the building and a ground source heat pump will help with the minimal heating requirements.
A sedum roof design to help blend the building into its surroundings and provide an insulating surface, promoting biodiversity and assisting with  the absorption of carbon dioxide.

Other Energy Saving Features include:
• Solar panels and Sun pipes
• Wind turbine
• Cement replacement concrete
• Clay blocks
• Natural ventilation
• Timber from sustainable sources.
These will all be incorporated by the main contractor William Birch of York.

If you are interested in ‘Homes for a Changing Climate’,  Will Anderson has a new book out.

Book Cover

Pollination Makes The World Go Around

Pollination Makes The World Go Around

Reflective Pollination

Without pollination there would be no new seed, no new crops for animals and no food in our supermarkets. (No supermarkets may be good news for several reasons but I will put up with them to keep being fed).

Wind pollination may work for some plants particularly those with catkins that shed pollen in copious quantities. The main pollinators in a garden are insects and they deserve our respect. There have been scare stories about the declining population of Bees so I was pleased to capture (in photos ) these bees hard at work on my Crocus crop last week.

Pollination crocus

Tips to Aid Pollination

  • Avoid using pesticides.
  • Grow plants that attract and feed butterflies, birds and insects.
  • Make insects safe and at home in your garden.
  • Do not expect F1 plants to pollinate.
  • Hand pollinate your curcurbits (courgettes, marrows and cucumbers).
  • Tap flowering greenhouse tomato plants to get the pollen into the air and thus other flowers.