Grow Your Own Magazine

My new compost bin is filling up quite nicely now - I have been putting the used hay/droppings from the guinea pig cage in - can I chuck in the wood-shavings and newspaper from the cage as well? I wasn't sure if the wood-shavings would rot down properly or not?
Can anyone help?

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smiling is infectious....

http://www.thehudsonallotment.blogspot.com/ updated 28th May 2008

They will but can take longer depending on size, they will rot eventually and won't cause any harm. Newspaper has to be shredded though.

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Best wishes
Andrewo
Harbinger of Rhubarb tales

tacking onto the end of this thread - can you compost dock? was worried that they might grow from leaf bits???

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Manda.

"Wouldn't it be nice
For maybe an hour
To not have a care."

i find if you keep a good mix in the compost most(sensible) things will rot.
Did you know card board is very good if you don't put too much in at once

SBP, when it comes to perennial weeds such as dock and dandelion, don't put them anywhere near your compost bin. As the song says 'They will survive'.

I remember an old Gardeners World programme, when the great Geoff Hamilton was presenting. He had nailed a dock plant above the door if his shed, and left it there to dry for several years. Just as a matter of interest/curiosity. he took it down and planted it. It grew!!

Annual weeds, yes - perennial weeds NO.