Composting – The First Steps On Your Road To Success……

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best compost recipes, compost, how to, make compost, recycle works

At The Recycle Works we know many wonderful Master Composters but for those of you that might be wondering where to start, we thought these tips might help!

First create a space in which to do your outdoor composting. This should be an open space preferably direct on the ground, otherwise on hard standing. Compost can be made in a heap or a suitable container can be used such as a compost bin , which we have a huge variety of available at The Recycle Works.

Gather together as much organic waste as possible and make a loose pile. These organic materials soon begin to heat up as the composting process starts. The volume then quickly shrinks. At this stage it is important to dig over the compost using a pitchfork, to introduce more air into the middle of the pile. This should be done a few times at the early stages of composting as natural compacting occurs.

The heat naturally generated quickly builds up again as microbes resume composting in the improved conditions. The temperature will quickly reach 130-I60F in a large well-mixed pile. This will help destroy weeds, seeds and disease and the materials will decompose much faster.

Turning also subjects insect larvae and spores to lethal temperatures inside the pile, which later cools as the microbial activity is succeeded by that of worms and beetles. Add more materials at any time until the pile is as big as the space will allow or the bin is full. Check regularly. Compost should be moist to give the best results. If it is dry add a bucket of water. If it is too wet mix in some brown or dry materials and cover to prevent more rain getting in. A well-balanced mixture of green and brown materials produces good compost. Compost will mature at less than half the original volume.

Once the composter is full and the contents have stopped shrinking quickly, the compost is left to mature. At this point you can start a new compost pile. In time the contents will become unrecognisable and the mixture is then ready for use. A big well-managed mixed pile can be ready for use in a few months. An unattended pile may take about a year. It is traditional to use 3 separate units, one mature and being used on the garden, another maturing and one currently being filled.

So we hope this helps you get started and here’s to lots and lots of lovely compost!

The Recycle Works End of Summer Sale Is Now On

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autumn, end of summer, recycle works, recycleworks, sale, summer sale

Exciting news – our End of Summer Sale has started!

There are lots of items that we hope you’ll love and at special prices so why not take a look and see what’s on offer.

Even if you don’t need something right this minute, (we hope we won’t be needing Snow Shovels and Snow Grippers but you never know with our British weather!) why not grab a bargain whilst you have chance?

Just to give you an idea of what’s on offer, a very small selection of some of the items in the sale are:

• Garden Tool Caddies
• Oak Boot Jacks
• Soil Sieves
• Bokashi Buckets
• Gardening Tools & Accessories
• Soil Testing Kits
• ….. and much, much more!!

To view what’s currently on offer simply click here and don’t forget that as always, we’ll deliver direct to your door from our factory floor!

Spare Boards From The Recycle Works – A Happy Ending!

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boards, compost bins, raised beds, recycle works, spare posts, spares

Well it really depends how you look at it, Ended or Non-Ended? Why did we end the supply of non-ended boards?

We have recently improved our quality specifications for the Wooden Compost Bins and Raised Beds in that we no longer include the plain boards. So, in future you will receive all Ended Boards for these products and it will cost you not a penny more.

Historically the ends for the boards were made from metal. After a time they rusted and became tricky to remove when harvesting compost. So to make it better for you from the start, 19 years ago, we alternated ended boards with plain. This did not compromise the structure and minimised the cost. Then, some many years ago we changed the ends from metal to plastic and this made the job of lifting out the boards so much easier. Now the process of fixing the ends is semi-automatic. This summer we revisited all of our products again to see how we could better their performance and add value. Subsequently we feel that assembly will be simpler if all the foundation boards for Compost Bins and Raised Beds are the same, that is, ended. So from 1st September 2014 you get all the benefits, and for no additional cost. You may be able to buy spares of non-ended plain boards for a week or two until supplies are finished. After this supply of the non-ended boards will have ended – like this rigmarole!!

We have recently improved our quality specifications for the Wooden Compost Bins and Raised Beds in that we no longer include the plain boards. So, in future you will receive all Ended Boards for these products and it will cost you not a penny more.

Historically the ends for the boards were made from metal. After a time they rusted and became tricky to remove when harvesting compost. So to make it better for you from the start, 19 years ago, we alternated ended boards with plain. This did not compromise the structure and minimised the cost. Then, some many years ago we changed the ends from metal to plastic and this made the job of lifting out the boards so much easier. Now the process of fixing the ends is semi-automatic. This summer we revisited all of our products again to see how we could better their performance and add value. Subsequently we feel that assembly will be simpler if all the foundation boards for Compost Bins and Raised Beds are the same, that is, ended. So from 1st September 2014 you get all the benefits, and for no additional cost. You may be able to buy spares of non-ended plain boards for a week or two until supplies are finished. After this supply of the non-ended boards will have ended – like this rigmarole!!