How to Make and Use Compost: The Ultimate Guide - Couverture souple

Scott, Nicky

Couverture souple

ISBN 10 : 1900322595 ISBN 13 : 9781900322591

Editeur : Green Books, 2010

Synopsis

Rare book

A propos du livre

Revue de presse :

'Clearly written and cross-referenced, this book obviously draws from a wide range of composting experience. I would certainly recommend it.'
--Sue Stickland, gardening writer, author of Back Garden Seed Saving.

Drawing from 40 years of composting experience, Nicky Scott's latest book will inspire confidence in beginners and give new techniques to veteran composters Making things rot is, you would imagine, a job best left to nature. As far as compost is concerned however, there is a big difference between throwing your leftovers on a heap at the bottom of the garden, and producing the kind of high-grade potting mix on sale at your local garden centre. Fortunately, for those of us who have tried unsuccessfully to produce one from the other, Nicky Scott's latest book How to Make and Use Compost tells us exactly how to do just that. Admittedly compost is something which, as Scott joyfully points out happens'. Given the right conditions, anything that lived recently, and quite a few things that were living hundreds of years ago, can be composted,' he writes. The skill, it appears, is in balancing the right ingredients in your compost heap to create the perfect conditions for soil microbes to flourish. Get this right and they'll do all the hard work for you. According to Scott, the secret of healthy compost is a combination of browns' and greens'. The browns (dry leaves, stems and twigs) create air pockets for aerobic digestion, while the greens (sappy materials, grass cuttings, peelings and skins) encourage fungi and bacteria. In this way your compost heap mirrors the natural environment of a woodland floor where the microbes you are trying to attract feel most at home. Scott accepts that composting is certainly a skill which has to be learnt, but he also encourages you to experiment. He provides a step-by-step guide to creating your first compost heap and offers invaluable advice for the beginner on troubleshooting common problems. He points out that matured compost has a variety of end uses, from allotments to flower beds, house-plants and window boxes, and, as well as the satisfaction that comes from making your own, its also likely to save you money. Written with humour and flair, How to Make and Use Compost will either give you confidence as a beginner or improve your technique even if you're a habitual composter. As Scott points out, the concept of composting is really simple: once you really take on board that composting is a living, dynamic, natural process then you stop thinking of your heap as a kind of dustbin and more as the living, breathing entity that it actually is a bit like a pet really!' Equally relevant to domestic gardeners, market gardeners and teachers, the book highlights the growing trend of gardening in schools and evaluates several larger models of compost bin available commercially. Further chapters cover nutrient budgeting, hot-composting, making a wormery and community composting networks. This is the third book Nicky Scott has written on the subject, drawing on nearly forty years of first-hand experience. At this rate he is in danger of becoming recognised as a national composting guru. --Ed Hamer, The Ecologist www.theecologist.org

Présentation de l'éditeur :

How to Make & Use Compost features an A-Z guide, which includes a comprehensive list of what you can and can t compost, concepts and techniques, compost systems, and common problems and solutions. It includes how to: - Easy to use A-Z format. - Compost your food waste safely. - Get the best out of a Dalek-type plastic composter. - Make your own seed, plant and cuttings compost. - Create liquid feed for your plants with a wormery. - Make compost in your flat or on your balcony. - Learn about school and community composting. By making your own compost you can feed your plants, increase the fertility of your soil, and help reduce the amount of waste going to landfill at the same time.

À propos de cette édition

• Éditeur: Green Books
• Date d'édition: 2010
• ISBN 10: 1900322595
• ISBN 13: 9781900322591
• Reliure: Broché
• Numéro d'édition: 1
• Nombre de pages: 200