Composting by Bob Flowerdew

One of the Bob's Basics books, Composting is obviously about composting, building bins, mixing debris to create the perfect mix to easily compost, etc. The most important thing I learned from the book, oh yeah, dear Dad was doing it wrong. And considering I learned my gardening skills from Dad (and less so, from my mom), I am also doing it wrong. Opps, well, at least, I now know better.

It is actually not surprising that both me and my Dad are guilty of composting in the wrong way. After all, we both learned though example, and in conditions where compost bins were frowned upon. Essentially we learned to use trenches (which Bob Flowerdew calls a lazy way) and a single bin. I am not sure what my neighbors, or my wife for that matter, will think if I set up an additional bin--and I think that I really two more after reading this book.

One thing that this book has talked me out of is the idea that the small rotary (self-mixing) and "dalek" bins will do any good given the amount of plant debris that I have to deal with. If I am understanding the mechanics of composting properly, they are just not big enough to generate enough heat to properly cook the compost, as well as lacking proper air circulation. This bit of information probably saved me some money--I say "probably" because there always seem to be better things to spend the money on...I am never sure what I would do if I actually had money to spare.

So I am hoping that the information in this book helps me. Time will tell. I did reset my compost bin today, and utilized some of the information from this book.

On a sidenote, my wife has read a few pages of this book also, and she finds it interesting. That counts for a lot.

I am giving this book five stars.

[This book was brought at Tattered Cover, a local Denver bookstore. It was found on the bargain shelves.]