Create your own Eden

“ The art of composting is as old as time itself and is a relevant in todays hi-tec, hi-speed society as it always has been”

Create your own Eden is a regional campaign between North Shore City, Auckland City, Manukau City, Papakura, Franklin and Rodney District councils. The initiative aims to reduce the amount of garden rubbish and food scraps currently going to landfill by encouraging home composting, garden collections, or taking it to a transfer station.

Free workshops and demonstrations are taught during the year throughout each district.

Composting is a process which mimics nature by recycling organic material. Composting is like baking a cake. It needs the right combination of ingredients and sufficient time for everything to “cook”. It reduces the harmful effects of organic waste in landfill (e.g., water pollution, emissions of the potent greenhouse gas methane, and bad smells). It reduces the need for chemical fertilisers in your garden. It reduces rubbish collection costs. Producing your own compost saves money. It reduces the space needed for landfills.

Compost can also be produced using worms. This is known as worm farming. It is also called ‘vermiculture' or vermicomposting. Usually tiger worms are used for worm farming in NZ, though red worms can also be used. Worm farming uses the same principles as composting, but it does not generate heat, and is best used to manage food waste form you kitchen food. Value is added to the materials when they are eaten and excreted by the worms. This produces what is called vermicast and worm tea which have high levels of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium (NPK) compared to ordinary soil. This makes them valuable for your plants' leaf growth, root and stem strength and flower and fruit set.

Generally, the ingredients used to make compost come from our gardens and kitchens (food scraps) although organic material is anything that was once living. Compost results from the eventual decomposition or break down of the ingredients. It can take anywhere between two and 18 months before compost is ready to use

See also:

How to Create Your Own Eden at home - put your garden waste to use
Smart gardening guide - planting natives, composting, mulching and grass-cycling
Free composting courses
Suppliers' guide - compost/worm bins, garden bags, transfer station locations