Heaps of information at new compost demonstration site

A person putting vegetable cuttings into a compost bin.

A new Compost Demonstration Site which aims to encourage home composting is opening in Kendal this weekend.

The second of three Compost Demonstration Sites in Westmorland and Furness is set to open this weekend (Saturday 13 July) at Appleby Road Community Garden at The Queen Katherine School in Kendal.

Thanks to funding from Westmorland and Furness Council, and additional funding from Cumbria Action for Sustainability’s Community Fund and the Frieda Scott Charitable Trust, the new composting site has been established to allow the public to learn how easy it is to compost at home.

The site will be used by volunteer Master Composters from organic gardening charity, Garden Organic, to explain the various composting systems. Garden groups and other organisations will be able to book visits to the site for talks and demonstrations, and a series of interpretation boards will also allow people to look around the site unassisted.

For several years, Garden Organic has been contracted by the council to train Master Composters to provide home composting advice to residents across the area. As part of this work, the volunteers give presentations and attend events to promote and encourage home composting.

For more information or to book a group visit to Appleby Road Community Garden compost demonstration site, please email mccumbria@gardenorganic.org.uk or chris.arcgarden@gmail.com.

Everyone is welcome to attend on Saturday, just come along any time between 10.00am and 3.00pm for a cup of tea and a wander around the garden, or have a go at some family friendly activities including outdoor mosaic, messy seed bombs and more.

Councillor Giles Archibald, Cabinet Member for Climate, Biodiversity and Environmental Services, said:

“I’m very pleased the council is supporting and helping to fund Appleby Road Community Garden in Kendal as the second of three compost demonstration sites we’re launching across Westmorland and Furness.

“It’s an excellent location managed organically and will be part of a wider network of similar sites across Westmorland and Furness and Cumberland, set up by Garden Organic’s Master Composter programme in collaboration with partners around the county.

“Home composting organic waste not only helps reduce carbon emissions but is a good way to reduce the amount of waste sent for treatment. We want even more people to get involved in composting at home so I’m sure this site, along with another coming soon near Penrith, will be valuable in showing people how easy it can be.

“I urge everyone to give home composting a go, and for those who live in the area and interested in learning more to visit Appleby Road Community Garden.”