Hello and welcome to The Compost Bin. I'm Compostwoman and I live with my family in rural Herefordshire. We have nearly four acres of garden and woodland, all managed organically and to Permaculture principles, which we share with Chickens, Cats and assorted wildlife. We also grow a lot of our own food, run courses in all sorts of things and make a lot of compost!

I am a Master Composter and have spent more than a decade as a volunteer Community Compost adviser with Garden Organic and my local Council.
I'm a self employed Environmental Educator so I run workshops and events where I talk about compost, veg growing, chicken keeping, cooking, preserving and sustainable living. I also run crafts workshops and Forest School/outdoor play sessions in our wood.

We try to live a more self sufficient lifestyle here, as best we can, while still having a comfortable life and lots of fun.


To learn more about us click on the About Compostwoman tab and remember to click on the photos to make them full size!


Thursday 20 June 2013

RHS Hampton Court Flower Show here I come :-)


I'm so excited that thanks to Ecover UK I am going to the fantastic RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show this year :-)

It's the biggest flower show in the world! Fortunately for me for 2013 the Show has introduced themed zones to create different moods for visitors to enjoy. The new zones are Inspire, Grow and Escape. They have been planned to help visitors navigate their way more easily through the diverse and exciting range of exhibits. So hopefully I will be able to find my way around fairly easily.

Ecover UK are sponsoring the Inspire Zone which contains show gardens & trade stands. There are 8 Conceptual Gardens – designed to challenge design concepts, many with a sustainable theme. There are 4 Low Cost, High Impact Gardens – gardens designed on a budget of £7k, £10k, £13K and £15k. And there are Show and Summer Gardens – new trends in outdoor living, plus lots of other things for me to look at.

Award winning designer Matthew Childs is back at Hampton Court ( after winning gold last year) taking on the challenge of the show garden for Ecover. I am intrigued by his ideas and the design drawings I have seen; the main theme of the garden is ‘Water is Life’, highlighting the minimal impact Ecover products have on aquatic life, as well as the continuous effort Ecover makes in making a healthy and sustainable lifestyle an easy option. 



Can you spot the Ecover product shapes?

I can't wait to have a good look around the Inspire Zone and see Matthew's Ecover Garden, as well as the inspirational Ecover planters that have been designed by eight gardening celebrities. The planters will be on display throughout the Inspire Zone and will be donated to community-based projects after the show. I am particularly looking forward to seeing the Jekka McVicar and the Anne-Marie Powell planters.

I also can't wait to see The Bee, an amazing sculpture, opposite The Ecover Garden, made out of scrap materials and Ecover Plant-astic bottles. This giant bee and some stunning flowers, made by artist Ptolemy, has been designed to spread the word about the Ecover Message in our Bottle campaign. This very exciting art installation will be premiering at Glastonbury Festival and complementing the garden at Hampton Court, also.

I'm not going to Glastonbury Festival (shame) so I am really pleased I will still get a chance to see what The Bee looks like and how it is made :-) Ecover also have some good information on their web site about helping bees, with advice from Matthew Childs on planting and info from Buglife.

I also can't wait to see all the other wonderful show gardens and displays in the Inspire Zone. I am really looking forward to visiting the Escape Zone and seeing the Celebrity Henhouses ( I will not be bidding for one - honest!) and the Butterfly Dome, and in the Grow Zone looking at the plants ( and maybe buying some if I can carry them home?)

I am so looking forward to going to this event, especially as I had to miss the last event Ecover invited me to. I have been given two tickets so I am taking one of my best friends with me. We will have a long day as we are travelling by train (and water bus at the end!) but we should have a wonderful day out. Thank you so much Ecover UK :-)

I'm so excited!

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