Making Your Own Compost

Compost in the making!Making your own compost and using it to mulch your borders is a great way to recycle waste from your garden and kitchen by putting something back into the soil. Homemade compost does not need to the finest quality to be used as mulch so it’s easy to make your own – saving money as well as ‘going green’!

Why should I mulch my garden?

Many of us don’t always get around to working in our gardens as often as we would like. By tidying the garden in spring, and applying a layer of mulch, work can be cut dramatically through the rest of the year.

Using mulch improves the soil without digging and is especially useful on heavy clay soils, which are difficult to work. Mulch will gradually be taken in to the soil by worms and weather to help break it up.

Mulch will add humus (that acts like a sponge and holds water) to light soils to help them retain moisture for longer.

Mulch adds nutrients back into the soil and acts as a weed suppressant, as well as giving a pleasing finished look to your borders.

Coarse but rotted compost - ideal for mulchWhen is the best time to mulch my borders?

The best time to apply mulch is in early spring or late autumn after you have tidied the garden. Applying mulch after large amounts of rain will help to trap moisture that is on the soil surface, making the ground dry out less quickly.

Applying mulch is easier when most of the plants in your borders have died down for the winter or before spring bulbs and perennials start to grow away.

How do I apply the mulch?

Apply the mulch by digging out the rotted compost from your heap. Don’t worry if there are some bigger pieces of woody material which have not rotted down – they will look fine on the soil surface! You may want to bag up the compost or use buckets to make handling easier.

Make sure that any perennial weeds are removed from the borders before you mulch.

Start at the back of the border and work towards the front. Tip the mulch onto the soil surface and spread it over the bare earth, using your (gloved) hands or a fork or rake. Well rotted compost can be put right up to plant stems, but be careful if you are using rotted manure – this can scorch plant stems so leave a gap!

Mulch applied to the borderWork around the plants as you get to them and don’t pile a thick layer of mulch on top of herbaceous perennials and small plants. If they are buried too deeply they may become wet and rot.

It is fine to lightly cover the crowns of perennials and spring bulbs with about 3cm (1 1/2 in) of compost – just enough to keep them cosy through cold weather!

Aim for a layer up to 10cm (4 in) deep around small plants and shrubs. Under larger shrubs and trees, spread a deeper layer up to 20cm (8 in) if you have enough compost!

Mulching even a small garden takes a lot of compost, so you may want to cover different areas of your garden on a rotation as compost becomes available.