Cmoposting soil?

[RyanVolle]

i'm just curious so i expect this thread to be gone in less than 5 days

i have lots and lots of garden soil and paper that i've been shredding and they're from my old notes last year or maybe test papers, which is actually a good and greener way of making me free (my teacher said burning notes keeps us free but i go green) anyway, so ive shredder a lot of paper and i have a lot spare garden soil but i dont have much greens, ill probably have them by the next week or so 'cuz my uncle just moved and transplanted his greens today and i cant trim them so soon

what can i do? can i get weeds in my town? or can i add the growth fertilizer which i have no idea of the NPK proportion?

[ErraneousHerbalist]

So..... you're asking if you can add shredded paper to compost in place of leafy greens?

[RyanVolle]

yeah, that and if it's okay or is there any substitute for the nitrogen in the leaves

[planthelper]

paper can be added to your compost, but mostly it's used as mulch.

you could soak the paper in liquid fertilizer for a day or less, to help it break down, or mix fertilizer pellets with the paper.

if you have a compost bin, you can add paper, but it doesn't compost well. collecting (weeds) as you say to add to the compost would be ok, but it's labour intensive. in short, i would not add paper to my compost, unless it's just a little bit, but for mulching it's ok.

mulching with paper / cardboard attracts white ants, so keep it, well distanced from the house.

mulching your, papers, means aswell, that you don't have to shred them, but still get, piece of mind.

Edited April 22, 2012 by planthelper

[Jumpstarter]

Would there be a concern with the lead and/or ink from written material on the paper which in turn would leach into the ground?

[RyanVolle]

Would there be a concern with the lead and/or ink from written material on the paper which in turn would leach into the ground?

 

i dont think so... my garden is a container garden and after everything has been composted, ill leave it for 2 another months to make sure everything's good to go

[ThunderIdeal]

ink is usually soy based.

using NPK is a bit pointless, use urea to get your C/N ratio

edit: not pointless, but wasting all the P, K and whatever else when all you need is N

Edited April 23, 2012 by ThunderIdeal

[RyanVolle]

ink is usually soy based.

using NPK is a bit pointless, use urea to get your C/N ratio

edit: not pointless, but wasting all the P, K and whatever else when all you need is N

 

urea? like urine? cool finally i can use my urine

[ThunderIdeal]

Pee to help make your garden grow

Head Gardener Philip Whaites says using the bale also saves using water for toilets

Gardeners at a National Trust property in Cambridgeshire are urging people to relieve themselves outdoors to help gardens grow greener.

A three-metre long "pee bale" has been installed at Wimpole Hall.

Head gardener Philip Whaites is urging his male colleagues to pee on the straw bale to activate the composting process on the estate's compost heap.

He said the "pee bale" is only in use out of visitor hours, since "we don't want to scare the public".

He said: "For eight weeks now, male members of our garden and estate teams have been using the outdoor straw bale when nature calls.

"The pee bale is excellent matter to add to our compost heap to stimulate the composting process; and with over 400 acres of gardens and parkland to utilise compost, we need all the help we can get.

"There are obvious logistical benefits to limiting it to male members of the team, but also male pee is preferable to women's, as the male stuff is apparently less acidic."

By the end of the year, it was calculated that the 10 men from the 70-strong garden and estates team will make more 1,000 individual trips to the pee bale, contributing towards the compost for the estate.

The estate said it will have saved up to 30% of its daily water use by not having to flush the loo so many times.

Rosemary Hooper, Wimpole estate's in-house master composter, said: "Most people can compost in some way in their own gardens.

below is the rest of the article although i believe it is misleading. depending on the situation pissing on a heap might kill it. depending on the conditions, it may or may not optimise those conditions.

"Peeing on a compost heap activates the composting process, helps to produce a ready supply of lovely organic matter to add back to the garden.

"Adding a little pee just helps get it all going; it's totally safe and a bit of fun too."

UREA is a potent nitrogen fertiliser but maybe pissing is the cheaper solution. one way to find out. it probably makes more sense to use your shredded paper as mulch but that's up to you.