Wednesday 25 July 2012

Composting nettles



Nettles have a bad reputation. They sting and they're invasive – what good could they possibly do? Quite a lot actually. You can eat young, fresh nettle tips (yes, really), they're a magnet for beneficial wildlife, they make great plant food, and they're just the thing for kicking your compost heap into action. And they're free. What more could you ask for in a plant?

The nettle we're used to in this country, Urtica dioica, is a perennial plant full of iron, calcium and magnesium – handy if you're looking for a superfood. It's also full of nitrogen, which is why it is perfect to add to compost heaps.  Like any green leafy plant they add lots of Nitrogen to your compost so its good to balance that off by also adding drier brown Carbon materials like cardboard, straw or shredded paper.

Some people avoid adding the root incase they spread within the compost bin.  The root part is perhaps best left for the Councils industrial composting processes to get through although they will compost too if you compost heap is getting hot enough. 

Other uses


Alternatively you can soak your nettles in a bucket of water for at least two weeks or so to create a liquid plant feed.  Its greener to use rain water but tap water works fine too and you will make a nitrogen-rich feed plants will love.

At Shropshire Master Composters we tend to advise people to cut or crush the nettles into small pieces and stuff as many as you can into a large container.

Warning! It will get smelly so it is best not to leave it too close to the house!  But trust me it is  worth it, you will get excellent (and free) plant food.  Once its 'brewed' we suggest you further dilute the intense green solution to make a liquid plant food suitable for direct application. Use roughly one part of concentrate to 10 parts of water.





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