Posted by Jaques d'Alltrades on November 11, 2005, 5:42 am
> Jaques d'Alltrades wrote:
> > Je suis le tireur qui descend les rats.
> :o))) Lovely. I see you've travelled a bit, Leon d'Alltrades <g>
Écosse, Le Pays de Galles, Douvres...
--
Rusty
horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co full-stop uk
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/
Posted by Nick Maclaren on November 10, 2005, 1:05 pm
>from nmm1@cus.cam.ac.uk (Nick Maclaren) contains these words:
>> |>
>> |> Surely one can put more in a wormery - cooked food etc. that one
>> would not
>> |> want to put on the heap?
>> Not at all. One can put anything on a cold heap that one can put
>> on any other form of composter, and then some. And many of us
>> do ....
>But that's (preferably) only a rat-proof composter.
>I haven't put anything like that on my heap, and it has rat holes in it
>now. (And the heap's in such a position that it would be dangerous to
>try to pick them off with the air rifle.)
Well, perhaps you SHOULD put stuff like that on - I do, and don't
have a rat problem :-)
All of the evidence from posters to this group is that, generally,
the claim that cooked food attracts rats and uncooked food doesn't
is an old wife's tale. And the same applies to meat products versus
vegetable ones. But please note the "generally" - some people have
provided evidence that, at least sometimes, it can make a difference.
Normally, however, what you put on the heap has essentially no
correlation with whether you have rats infesting the heap.
Regards,
Nick Maclaren.
Posted by La puce on November 10, 2005, 2:37 pm
Nick Maclaren wrote:
> All of the evidence from posters to this group is that, generally,
> the claim that cooked food attracts rats and uncooked food doesn't
> is an old wife's tale. And the same applies to meat products versus
> vegetable ones. But please note the "generally" - some people have
> provided evidence that, at least sometimes, it can make a difference.
> Normally, however, what you put on the heap has essentially no
> correlation with whether you have rats infesting the heap.
Interestingly I've just found my old and loving book Common sense
compost making by the quick return method, Maye E. Bruce. She never
mentions anything about rats, but swill. She says that meat, bones, fat
or cooked stuff has oil, creates greasy water and this makes a scum and
keeps out the air which leads to putrefaction, smell and flies. She'd
risk it in a large farm heap with manure but advise against it. Some
think animals that die go back to the soil. She says that we are
dealing with a few square feet - not an entire say forest where you'd
perhaps find one body of a dead animal. One or two odd mice or birds
buried in the heap is ok but a weekly offering would over balance the
heap and go beyond nature's own scheme.
I'm also in trouble - the leaves I add every year is a bad idea as it
surpress the air. I can't find a date for this book, but it's ancient
(and smells lovely).
Posted by Jaques d'Alltrades on November 10, 2005, 6:26 pm
from nmm1@cus.cam.ac.uk (Nick Maclaren) contains these words:
> Normally, however, what you put on the heap has essentially no
> correlation with whether you have rats infesting the heap.
Quite - it's large, soft, warm, and where they have gone, dry.
--
Rusty
horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co full-stop uk
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/
Posted by cineman on November 10, 2005, 3:01 pm
> Snip
> I must have said here before that I think wormeries, as such, are an
> interesting hobby for a while but otherwise pretty pointless.
> --
> Mike.
Hi Mike,
It isnt pointless if you go fishing, tench, chubb, barbel and other
species, especially bottom feeders. love the small red worms found in most
heaps.
regards
Cineman
>
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> > Je suis le tireur qui descend les rats.
> :o))) Lovely. I see you've travelled a bit, Leon d'Alltrades <g>