This month it’s all about compost in the Nursery! Composting is a wonderful way to transform our waste into a precious resource in the garden. And with autumn now in full swing, some of our favorite composting plants are available in the nursery, including Comfrey, Yarrow and Borage. All three of these species accumulate nutrients from the soil and consequently contain high levels of essential plant nutrients, including nitrogen. They also have many other functions in the garden including attracting beneficial insects and pollinators.
The nursery has been buzzing with activity lately, including a Brisbane City Council composting workshop that our very own Krystelle ran, where she introduced some of our favorite compost innovations that we have available from the nursery. These included Composta, a veggie patch, worm farm and composter all in one small unit. Bokashi, a compact unit that efficiently converts kitchen scraps to a nutrient rich soil additive, restoring microbial life of your soil. Compot, an underground compost bucket that leaches nutrients into your soil as your kitchen scraps decompose. Reln Can-O-Worms worm farms, 3-tier system with worms who work through your kitchen scraps and convert them to rich worm castings and worm juice. The castings can be added to your soil like compost and the juice can be used as liquid fertiliser. And remember, Brisbane City Council free compost caddies can be collected from our nursery if you register for the compost hub program on BCC website.
Did you know, we love getting market waste each Sunday when it comes to composting?! Three of our favorite compost ingredients from the markets right now are eggshells, banana peels and coffee grounds. Eggshells and banana peels can be added to your compost pile, soaked in water to make a liquid fertiliser or dried and ground into powder to spread on the garden. Eggshells are calcium rich and help plants to grow healthy strong roots, shoots and leaves. Banana peels are rich in potassium, phosphorous and other essential plant nutrients. Used coffee grounds are high in nitrogen and help to heat up your compost pile. They are best added to your compost and mixed with other ingredients. Alternatively, mix used coffee grounds through your soil before planting out your garden.
Happy gardening and we’ll see you in the nursery soon!