Organo County Compost

Organo County Compost is produced from composted garden waste collected from the gardens of Leicestershire.

Garden or green waste such as hedge clippings, tree loppings and grass cuttings are delivered to the Recycling and Household Waste Sites and placed in special containers.

These containers are taken to one of the County Council’s two Composting Facilities at Kibworth and Lount. Lount is the largest facility with a capacity for 25,000 tonnes of green waste.

The composting process is entirely natural. No chemicals are added at any time, and the process is similar, but on a much larger scale, to that of home compost heaps.

When green waste is delivered from the Recycling and Household Waste Sites, it is checked, and any contaminants such as paper and plastic bags that have accidentally got into the container are removed. This is a labour intensive job, which is why it is important to ensure that only the correct materials are put into the container in the first place.

Machines are used to shred the green waste and it is then formed into large triangular shaped heaps, approximately 3 metres high, called windrows. The windrows are turned each week to keep them aerobic, this gives air to the microbes (friendly bugs) that break down the green waste.

After about 16 weeks the compost is ready. The compost is screened to remove any bits of material that are too big and the finished product is sold to a variety of customers.

Green Waste makes up around 30% of all the waste delivered into the Recycling and Household Waste Sites across Leicestershire. If this waste is not separated from the general rubbish, it would end up going to a landfill site, where it would be buried in a large hole in the ground, taking up valuable space and rotting giving off methane gas, which contributes to the greenhouse effect.

Composting this material produces a peat-free, organic soil improver, which can be used as an alternative to peat and chemicals in the garden.

As a soil improver, simply apply to a depth of ½ cm over the soil and dig in. To improve soil requiring more work, including sandy and clay soil, apply at a rate up to 20 to 40 litres per m², equivalent to a layer of 2-4 cm depth and leave for two weeks before digging in.

For growing fruit and vegetables, a 1cm layer along the planting trench is ideal.

For planting out, simply add a couple of handfuls with a similar amount of soil before transplanting.

For lawns and grasses, apply a ½ cm layer over the surface before laying turf, or rake into surface at a rate of 10 litres per m² before seeding. For top dressing apply a ½ cm layer in the spring or autumn.

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