I am looking for photographs of indoor composting to illustrate a book. I am not interested in  kitchen caddies that are called composters but are only used to hold the organic materials for a few days before it is taken to the real compost bin, or wormeries and Bokashi systems   If anyone has an indoor system using bins or pottery containers and would be prepared to help please email me at carryoncomposting1@gmail.com

The pictures should be at least 2,000 to 3,000 pixels or higher.

I will be giving a talk on Composting on Allotments and Community Gardens at the National Allotment Society stand on Saturday 18th June  at 11am and 2pm . Come along and have a chat The NAS have organise 26 talks over the four days 

BBC Gardeners’ World Live is back at the NEC from 16-19 June!

Look forward to an inspirational day out filled with plants, shopping, live entertainment, expert advice and your favourite Gardeners’ World presenters. Experience stunning Show Gardens, Beautiful Borders, the Floral Marquee and Plant Village to shop from a vast array of nurseries with an unbeatable variety of plants. 

Plus, tickets include entry to the BBC Good Food Show Summer packed with tasty, seasonal treats, live workshops and hundreds of artisan producers – so that’s two great BBC Shows with just one ticket!

Book tickets today at bbcgardenersworldlive.com

Plastic strands (not unlike a cassette tape) have appeared in the compost, and material submitted for composting,  on our allotment for the whole of the time that I have provided a community composting service. I have mention this before as it  comes from the woven plastic weed suppressant fabric which is sold on the site but news of more microplastics in the Antarctic makes it relevant, 

Today when  turning the first in our row of pallets bins, I found strands of this fabric,   pieces  of pea netting, small bits of plastic sheeting  used for ground cover, plastic "string" and pieces of plastic  flowerpot.

One of the reasons for composting is concern for the environment and I appreciate that the types of waste mentioned above  are insignificant when compared with other plastic waste sources but  should allotment societies, community groups and home composters look again at their use of alternatives to plastic.

We are advised to add a layer of twigs at the bottom of the compost bin so as to assist with aeration of the bin and this works well if the contents are not being turned. If the contents are being turned it is likely that many of the woody items from the bottom of the initial bin will end up spread throughout the contents wheb turned or end up on top of the bin. Woody items in the composting material will continue to aid aeration and any that have not been broken down during composting can be removed at the end of the process. However, those  in the top layers of the bin can look untidy and put off new composters. They are not a problem and can be  removed  to reuse as the base of the next bin to be filled if a row of 3 or 4 bins are being used  In this way they can be reused several times and never make the exciting journey along the row of bins.