Young country diary: The summer smell of 'black gold' in our compost heap

Manchester: The woodlice, worms, slugs and snails are all working hard to make the compost as good as possible The fresh "forest floor" smell filled my nostrils as Mum twisted the lid off the compost bin. "Get a lungful," she said, sticking her head over it and encouraging me to do so. It smelled fantastic - magical almost - raw nature broken down into dark, crumbly, nutrient rich compost; not pungent and wet like in winter.We call it our black gold. We've been taking turns to stir it all year, rain or shine, mixing our compost "soup". We add layers of kitchen waste - greens and browns - fruit skins, vegetable peelings and cardboard tubes. We chop them up so they break down more easily. We water our heap when it feels dry, with the rainwater that collects in our water butt and rolls down the drainpipe from Dad's shed. Continue reading...