With the Green Johanna now assembled you need to find the perfect place for it in your garden. Choosing this spot and getting the initial feed of material right are vital to successful composting moving forward.

Choosing The Ideal Location For The Unit

First of all you need to find a shady and flat patch of grass or earth. The less sun the better, as too much heat and light speed up the process, drying out the patch too quickly and meaning more maintenance for you. Ideally it should also be near the house so you don’t have a wet walk to deposit food waste in the autumn and winter. If there is a known rodent problem in your local area, it is advisable to site the Johanna away from fence lines if you can.

Getting The Base Layer Right

With the Green Johanna ideally located, you now need to prepare the unit with a perfect base layer to help activate the compost and keep the air in the composter flowing. This initially involves 10cm to 20cm of twigs and very coarse garden material spread evenly across the base. Top this with some fine garden waste such as grass trimmings, followed by a little soil or existing compost you may already have. The basic mix is now ready for food waste.

Keep The Aerator Stick Handy

Aerating the material within the Green Johanna is a vital part of the composting process. With this in mind we recommend that wherever you place the composter, you keep your aerator stick nearby. This gives you easy access to the stick whenever you add new material and reminds you to agitate the mix

Completing the set-up process and continuing to compost

With the Green Johanna well located and the base layers prepared and ready, we can now turn our attention to making the perfect compost. Just as with the set-up materials, it is vital to keep layering the waste you put into the unit.

How To Add Food And Garden Waste

On top of the base layer mixture you can add your first layer of food waste. From here on we recommend the layers are two parts of food waste to one part garden waste. Ensure all the material added is chopped finely to avoid larger, hard to break down lumps. This alternation of kitchen to garden waste is simple to follow and allows for a consistent mix, creating a healthier environment to encourage the carbon-nitrogen balance.

Order from our NEW Range of Composters from Great Green Systems - Perfect for garden and kitchen composting! https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/collections/new-composters