Cool composting

Composting is a great activity for children, enabling them to see the entire cycle of how scraps from the kitchen can be turned into a useful product to nourish the garden. 

To get started you will need to palce a compost bin on a well-drained, level spot. If it is sunny, all the better, as sun speeds up the decomposing process. You need a balance of 'greens' and 'browns' to reap the best compost. Greens are wetter and quicker to rot and include vegetable and fruit peelings, tea bags, plant prunings and grass cutting, whereas browns are dryer and take longer to rot. These include egg boxes, waste paper and fallen leaves. Don't add meat and dairy products, as they will smell and encourage pests. 

Every now and then, give the compost a good mix. In six to nine months, it will be rich and crumbly, ready to spread on your flowerbeds and help your garden grow.