Garden waste collections

[beorhthelm]

surprised people think it good value when this is a service that councils should and used to provide as part of refuse collection. i understand it should be seperated from regular waste to encourage composting but its really something better done at scale no in each back garden. grass takes forever to break down, hedge and other trimings eons, it would be better that they collect it for industrial scale composting or bio fuel.

... Everyone in Eastbourne is being charged £15 (ish) per year for the cost of the collections through their Council Tax, whether they use them or not.

this is the point of council tax, or any tax, to distribute the costs more widely.

 

[mac04]

this is the point of council tax, or any tax, to distribute the costs more widely.

I agree. My point was that some councils (Horsham) have it both ways. They still charge everyone for the service (but pretend that they don't), and now they also charge those who use it a second time.

 

[glasfryn]

£52 a year for fortnightly collections.

The costs do seem arbitrary - often in partnership with their local contractors...

Free - Eastbourne
£35 - Horsham
£49 - Crawley
£52 - Brighton & Hove
£65 - Worthing / Adur
£65 - Mid Sussex
£70 - Lewes

like the free Eastbourne
and you can buy a shredder for less than the rest and make a great compost heap

 

[robinsonsgrin]

when i first moved in arun used to provide bags you purchased for a nominal fee from local shops to put garden waste into and would be collected from your property... THAT was a good service... alas.. all gone. i do not use my wheelie bin... too cumbersome, nowhere to store it... gave it to next door!

 

[Triggaaar]

this is the point of council tax, or any tax, to distribute the costs more widely.

I do agree, but it seems unfair on the large number of people living in flats with no garden.

 

[Paul Reids Sock]

Thanks for reminding me that I need to sign up for this

Just checked and its £31 up my way. you can put out up to two 20kg bags a fortnight for that. Seems pretty reasonable

there must also be a hell of a lot of idiots near me. This is genuinely in the FAQs

'How do I prevent my empty sacks from blowing away?
Please leave a large stone or similar weight out so that it can be put on the empty sacks to stop them blowing away.'

 

[soistes]

So do you store the bin on your property for one week, and the neighbours store in on theirs for the next week etc?

Got to find somewhere to put the bloody thing.

The neighbour keeps it in her (bigger) garden and puts it out each time (but the gardens adjoin with a gate so it's easy for me to put our stuff in there)

 

[Triggaaar]

The neighbour keeps it in her (bigger) garden and puts it out each time (but the gardens adjoin with a gate so it's easy for me to put our stuff in there)

I like your neighbour.

 

[dolphins]

Doesn't your local council provide free compost bins, so you can put all of your garden waste in.
My local council does this.
Just an idea

They sell these, albeit at an apparently reduced price...

 

[The Albion Roar]

Indeed, I have a compost bin, but it takes years for some garden waste to reduce.

'Years'? What are you composting?

It shouldn't take more than six months, especially if you get the right mix of compostibles.

 

[Triggaaar]

'Years'? What are you composting?

Garden waste. Things like grass, leaves, plants and trees that get trimmed etc.

It shouldn't take more than six months, especially if you get the right mix of compostibles.

What's the right mix?

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Good old Lewes, the most expensive. Luckily, it's not far to our local recycling area, so I just fill up a couple of plastic containers, and empty them into a green recycling skip. I've only got a postage stamp sized garden in any case.

 

[Albumen]

£65 in Mid Sussex for fortnightly.

Never seen the point myself, although I do only live a 5 minute drive from the tip.

So you see the point now?

 

[Lankyseagull]

It's free in Wealden. Sadly I don't live in Wealden.

You're right it's free, which is great when it is collected.

We haven't had our bin emptied for 5 weeks now, despite reporting "missed bin collection" via the WDC website (and Twitter feed).

Of course WDC contract out to Kier, who were a shambles when they first took the contract on for Wealden, got better for a while, but now seem to be reverting to type once more.

 

[Doc Lynam]

The council are offering brown wheelie bins for your garden waste, at a cost of £52 for fortnightly collections. It's a really useful service, I'm surprised it's taken this long to introduce it, but it seems a bit expensive. The same service is £35 in the Horsham area, so why is it 50% more expensive here?

If its possible it might be better to save the first £50 buy some treated wood, cement and build a composter.

 

[The Albion Roar]

Garden waste. Things like grass, leaves, plants and trees that get trimmed etc.

What's the right mix?

A 'good mix of green and brown'. From the BBC...

Making compost

• Once you have chosen a compost bin and site for it there are a few simple rules to follow. Ideally start your compost bin in spring and for best results combine a mixture of soft, green, nitrogen-rich material and dry, brown, carbon-rich material in roughly even quantities. The main rule is not to let one material dominate the heap. A glut of autumn leaves will decompose very slowly and would be better used making leaf mould.

• Place the more woody material at the bottom to help with air circulation and layers of different materials at least 30cm deep. Shred larger items so they decompose more easily and if the waste is very dry, spray with water to moisten the pile, but do not soak it.

• Keep adding to this initial pile at regular intervals. When the heap or bin is full, it will start to heat up as the decomposition process gets underway. After a couple of weeks when it begins to cool down, turn the heap with a fork, mixing up the contents thoroughly and adding water if it is drying out. If turned regularly and in warm conditions your compost will be ready in about 2-4 months.

• A heap left unattended and using bulkier, unshredded material may take over a year to fully decompose. When the compost is finished, the pile will be about half its original size and have an earthy smell to it.

• If you want a fast turnaround, create a hot compost heap by adding nitrogen, moisture and turning the heap regularly to improve the air circulation. When the heap begins to cool down slightly, turn the heap to introduce oxygen and undecomposed material into the centre and regenerate heating. The composting process is complete when mixing no longer produces heat in the pile

'Dry, brown, carbon-rich material' can include shredded paper and torn up cardboard boxes.

You can also wee on it to help the process. But make sure women don't wee on it.

 

[Triggaaar]

A 'good mix of green and brown'. From the BBC...

Thanks.

• Once you have chosen a compost bin and site for it there are a few simple rules to follow. Ideally start your compost bin in spring and for best results combine a mixture of soft, green, nitrogen-rich material and dry, brown, carbon-rich material in roughly even quantities. The main rule is not to let one material dominate the heap. A glut of autumn leaves will decompose very slowly and would be better used making leaf mould.

• Place the more woody material at the bottom to help with air circulation and layers of different materials at least 30cm deep. Shred larger items so they decompose more easily and if the waste is very dry, spray with water to moisten the pile, but do not soak it.

• Keep adding to this initial pile at regular intervals. When the heap or bin is full, it will start to heat up as the decomposition process gets underway. After a couple of weeks when it begins to cool down, turn the heap with a fork, mixing up the contents thoroughly and adding water if it is drying out. If turned regularly and in warm conditions your compost will be ready in about 2-4 months.

So do I need 3 bins? One that's full and composting - one that's being filled up with my garden waste - and one that's finished composting and I'm taking compost out of? And I need a shredder (or two - one for garden waste, one for paper).

But make sure women don't wee on it.

You try stopping her.

 

[The Albion Roar]

Thanks.

So do I need 3 bins? One that's full and composting - one that's being filled up with my garden waste - and one that's finished composting and I'm taking compost out of? And I need a shredder (or two - one for garden waste, one for paper).

It depends on how big your compost bins are and how much garden waste / uncooked kitchen waste you're producing. The one that's finished composting and the one you're taking compost out of ought to be one and the same, no....?

The green daleks you can get in garden centres ought to be big enough for the regular garden waste. Failing that, get a bigger one.

As for shredders - yes, you'll probably need one if you're cutting down branches / thick bushes. But when I said 'shredded paper', I only meant 'torn paper'.

For our community garden, we built a two-part compost bin (about 1m x 1m x 1.2m). The first one is just to put the garden waste into. After about three months, we turned it over and put it into the second part of the two. Just to mix it up. It was at that point that we put the paper and cardboard in. The first pieces of garden waste had almost fully composted. Good stuff.

You try stopping her.

Now there's a trick we need to see on BGT.

 

[Hillian1]

Thanks to this thread I have just purchased myself a composter for the garden.

No more trips to the dump, no more queuing for 40 minutes to get in, no more buying compost from B&Q or wherever.

Thanks.

 

[Springal]

So I shouldn't be emptying my lawn mower into a black bag and putting in the rubbish bin?