3 recipes for using biochar in compost

Ingredients:

Greens

• 2 parts fruit and vegetable scraps, leaves or grass clippings, plastic labels removed

Browns / blacks

• 4 parts tree mulch, untreated wood chips, untreated sawdust or cardboard (cellotape and glues removed)
• 1-2 parts biochar

Method:

1. Set up a container to keep the compost pile together. Pallets or a cylinder made from reinforcing steel mesh work well
2. Stack your compost in thin layers according to the ratio above, repeating until you have finished your ingredients. 
3. Alternatively, spread out greens in thin layers into your compost pile, and cover with browns and biochar in according to the ratio above.
4. Cover the compost pile with a waterproof lid or tarpaulin
5. Water with non-chlorinated water as required to so that when it's squeezed it's damp but not dripping with water when you squeeze it
6. Your compost is ready when the bottom is a nice dark chocolate brown. It usually smells quite pleasant and will probably be full of worms 

 Important notes

You do not need to turn compost piles which have regular layers of biochar and are less than 2m by 2m, unless you're aiming to eliminate weed seeds. If this is your aim, you will need to follow a hot composting method. In that case, you may be better off stockpiling ingredients until you have enough to make a 1.5m by 1.5m by 1.5m hot compost pile and ensuring that when you turn, all the outside edges are brought to the centre of the pile to get hot enough to kill the seeds