National Compost Week: 3rd May - 9th May 09

Yes it’s National Compost Week!

For those of you who don’t know much (or anything) about it, National Compost Week is organised by WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme).

WRAP estimate that every year each home throws away 200kg of waste which could have been composted. National Compost Week aims to inform people of the benefits of making their own compost.

This year’s theme is ‘Food for thought’, and focuses on using compost to grow your own food. This theme is perfect because not only is it the right time of year to start planting, but growing your own fruit and veg has been made even easier by ‘Rocket Gardens’.

Now I love Rocket Gardens because they take the hassle out of gardening. You simply find and purchase a voucher for the garden you want, Children’s garden if you have kids, herb garden if you like to cook, patio garden if you don’t have a lot of garden space etc. Once your voucher arrives you return the freepost card telling Rocket Garden where you’d like the garden delivered and then a box of baby plants arrives straight to your door ready for you to plant.

Not only are these gardens easy but the plants are 100% organic, reared in soil approved by the Soil Association and are kept free of chemical pesticides, which will be delivered straight to your door.

They also make wonderful eco gifts because you have a variety of gardens to choose from, and you can give the voucher itself as a gift or arrange for the garden to be delivered straight to the birthday boy or girl.

Some of the benefits of growing your own fruit and veg using your own compost include:

• You help the environment by reducing the amount of waste going into the landfills.
• You can use your home made compost to grow your own fruit and veg; which will save you money on fertiliser.
• Growing your own food will reduce in your shopping bill and ensures your food will be 100% organic and environmentally friendly.

So if you want to make the most of spring, start making your own compost and growing your own food, you now know where to start.

Dig for Victory

Planting a tree in National Tree Week will boost your health and the health of the planet. We are continually hearing about the benefits of surrounding ourselves with greenery as they release oxygen and absorb the emissions from computers, Mobile phones and other gadgets...

I have a cactus on my desk, does that help?

From today until 7th December the UK will be celebrating National Tree Week, the UK's largest tree celebration annually launching the start of the winter tree planting season.

There are a great number of events going on around the country hosted by the tree council. They also have a wealth of information about how to buy, prepare and plant trees.

How about giving a plant as a gift this Christmas, something that gives back... Here are a few ideas:

Ready to plant: Tree to my door
This company is amazing, and has, it seems, any type of tree you want... and they deliver! Perfect...

For the cook: Chilli pocket garden
Grow this on the mantlepiece, and it produces a multitude of chillis for use in cooking - My brother-in-law had just one of these and now has 5 pots of chilli plants growing around the house! (If you want to re-plant the chilli seeds I have it on good authority that you leave them on the plant until they are dried out)


For the garden: Grow your own wine rack
when grafted to itself, willow will bind together... so graft it in this formation and after 2 years it is a strong wine rack, all in one piece! Whilst it is in the graden it is providing habitat for birds and butterflies and generally cotributing to biodiversity. Definately the most unusual and greenest gift under the tree...

Stocking filler: Grow your own mushrooms
This kit + second hand paperback = a very unique gift.
The recipient can grow a batch of yummy mushrooms (ON A BOOK!) in just a few weeks without even having to go outside. My Dad got 3 batches of his kit last year...loved it!


For the full experience: Plant a silver birch tree
Start this off py planting the seed provided into the soil in the pocket. When it has got to a certain height on your windowsill, then simply plant the compostable bag in to the garden and the tree will continue to grow. A great gift for kids to watch the progress from seed to tree.