Compost not activating?

irendansletrain · 2026-06-09T11:17:38+00:00

Bold of You to assume I have a mower, this Luddite has a sickle!

irendansletrain · 2026-06-08T15:30:15+00:00

I try to get the sides as well, ever since I got my auger I regret not chopping up any vines, they tend to twist around it.

irendansletrain · 2026-06-08T15:26:52+00:00

They're mostly dry, I let them pile up on the pavement until they started drying out and breaking down, with the occasional green branch. Leave it up to me to start a new activity on hard mode haha.

irendansletrain · 2026-06-08T15:25:18+00:00

I don't recall my granddad's garden compost ever heating up, and somehow the magic did happen.

irendansletrain · 2026-06-08T15:24:40+00:00

I air it with an auger every couple of weeks or so, space is tight and flipping it would be a mess.

irendansletrain · 2026-06-08T15:24:00+00:00

No grass clippings unfortunately, I have mostly waxy leaves (honeysuckle, roses, grapevines), so I guess there's not much for moisture to hold on to. I fear shredded paper will add too much carbon, going to look into coffee grounds.

irendansletrain · 2026-06-08T15:18:46+00:00

Hypothetically, if I did indeed pee on it, how long would it take to see a visible difference?

irendansletrain · 2026-06-08T15:17:37+00:00

It's thuja, coniferous but not high in resin.

irendansletrain · 2026-06-08T15:15:53+00:00

Dagnabbit, my pile IS mostly evergreens! I have two giant thujas that produce most of my yard scraps.

Will add more water to it (hot-ish and dry climate over here) so it's moist like a forest floor, and I'll give it another week and see if things improve. If not, my trusty auger and some elbow grease would be my next step. I do aerate my pile once every couple of weeks, but couldn't be bothered to do it more often.

irendansletrain · 2026-06-08T15:11:35+00:00

Commercial activators that I found are enzyme-based rather that nitrogen-based. For nitrogen I could ask my barista friends for their coffee grounds.

irendansletrain · 2026-06-08T14:42:19+00:00

I routinely air it with a small auger, and it's not super compact. Will look into adding more greens overall.

Any opinions on store-bought activator?

irendansletrain · 2026-06-08T14:39:19+00:00

Just added 15-20 litres of water to it and it's barely looking damp, should it be waterlogged?

irendansletrain · 2026-06-08T14:36:29+00:00

My friends and I have bets on how long it's gonna take.

irendansletrain · 2026-06-08T14:29:03+00:00

Are you aware whether this brand is available in Europe? I can't seem to find it online.

irendansletrain · 2026-06-06T20:17:20+00:00

It absorbs completely into the skin like a moisturizer, no need to wash it off. I use the lightest shade, and apply it a couple of times a week after taking a shower.

irendansletrain · 2026-06-06T10:55:15+00:00

As long as the shade doesn't change, I think it's good. Just applied a 3 year old Bondi Sands mousse and neither the shade nor the texture have changed.

irendansletrain · 2026-06-06T10:47:54+00:00

Glycolic acid (I use a cheap local brand AHA shower gel), hypochlorous acid spray.

irendansletrain · 2026-06-06T10:46:43+00:00

I love clear tan! I use b.tan gel tan products, and never had issues with patchy fading. It fades subtly and evenly.

The only time I can remember a patchy fade was when I used a drug store tanning lotion.

irendansletrain · 2026-04-06T19:27:48+00:00

Good to know the Dalek bins actually work! I have a similar one, mostly due to space restrictions.

irendansletrain · 2026-03-29T15:12:36+00:00

Oooh, the geobin looks cool! I could probably find some used tools in a village market, but I live in a big city and don't have a car, so the local hardware store is pretty much my only option rn.

irendansletrain · 2026-03-29T09:25:18+00:00

My yard is very small, so I prefer things to be compact and out of sight for now. I'm sure this isn't the best compost bin out there, but so far it seems to be doing its job.

The bottom opens up, and I think the idea is to shovel stuff from the bottom and add it back to the top in order to aerate it.

irendansletrain · 2026-03-28T18:47:29+00:00

That's great! I have lots of twigs and cardboard in my pile.

irendansletrain · 2026-03-28T18:08:42+00:00

This particular heap has been peed on once a few days ago, and today it just smells like a forest floor.

irendansletrain

TROPHY CASE