Review by John Adams and Maddy Harland
“My supply of seed and potting compost is now entirely home-made.”
Over the years I have tried various composting methods, but until now I had not found one that truly met my needs, until Maddy showed me her HOTBIN. I was very impressed because it works even in winter, and because it produces usable compost in about 90 days. In addition, the HOTBIN can even handle cooked food scraps. I just had to have one!
"I was mean to my HOTBIN and placed it in a shady, narrow path, handy by my back door. If it could get hot there and compost year-round, then it could work anywhere.
I mainly use the HOTBIN for composting kitchen waste (cooked and raw) and add shredded paper to ensure I have enough volume (carbon) and air in the mix. I tried adding cardboard and found that even this had disappeared within a few weeks.
It can also handle grass clippings, but these must be well mixed with the other material. I have also successfully composted our autumn leaves.
The HOTBIN definitely gets hot. Last summer I was quite impressed (up to 60ºC). There are never any odors from the bin and the process is fast. Also, there are no flies, because their eggs cannot survive the heat in the bin. At the bottom of the bin there is a good layer of compost ready for the sowing season. Because it has composted at such a high temperature, I am sure there are no viable weed seeds in it. I remove this layer before winter begins, because the bin needs good airflow to prevent it from getting cold. Like a fire, it needs oxygen to function well.
Now that we are heading into winter I have to keep the compost hot (40ºC), so I will pay special attention to the mix of volume with kitchen waste and the volume of any garden trimmings. It is a bit more effort than a normal system, but the results are so good that it is worth it. My supply of seed and potting compost is now entirely home-made.
Because we both love this product so much, we have added it to our Green Shopping catalog."
What is permaculture?
Permaculture Magazine describes permaculture as: encouraging us to be resourceful and self-sufficient. It is not a dogma or a religion, but an ecological design system that helps us find solutions to the many problems we face – both locally and globally.
