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- Save your pee as an activator for your compost
heap and (diluted 3 water to 1 of pee) as a liquid feed for your plants.
Put on the soil not the leaves to avoid scorching the plants.
- Empty your vacuum cleaner bags onto the compost
heap, it will save space in your bin and the organic matter in the
vacuuming will rot down to make compost - the non organic matter
will do no harm and open up your compost.
- if you have a wood stove, dry any orange peel by
the stove - it makes good kindling.
- If you have chickens save your eggshells to break
up and feed back to them as a source of calcium. We store them
in the oven to make sure they are sterilised by the heat when we
cook.
- Another chicken tip - chicken mites breed in the
corners of the chicken house so clean out the dust around the ends
of the perches and in the corners of the hut and nest boxes regularly
then (carefully!) pour boiling water to kill any remnants.
Every few months paint with something to kill them - such as
Jeyes fluid, this is a poison so use the minimum
quantity and treat them with respect.. I am told borax solution is a
non toxic substitute. I have also used a pressure washer
or a blow torch (carefully!) for this.
- Its good to recycle cardboard and newspaper but
we use them to mulch our beds (remove plastic tape first) we put a
layer of compost and then the cardboard then mulching sheet or
chippings. We were able to get lots of free cotton
fabric for mulching from a business in the industrial estate.
We also use newspaper crunched up and ripped up cardboard on the
compost heap especially between layers of grass cuttings or anything
wet.
- We have used (recycled) torn strips of polyester
or nylon clothing and short sections of pipe insulation to
make our fruit tree ties when staking them.
- There are many specialist glues that make fixing
things easier these days, my current favourites are polyurethane
glues that are great for mending shoes and trainers, there is a
foaming polyurethane glue called
gorilla which
expands to fill the space that needs joining - excellent!!
- If you have a fishmonger near you ask them for
the fish heads, guts and bones to put in your bean trenches and
under sweetcorn plants (a traditional fertiliser in south America.)
We also feed them (cooked) to the hens.
- Leave your bath water in until it cools down and
gives its heat to your house.
- Join a local Eco group such as an
Transition Group and network, trade surplusses
and exchange information.
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