To pee or not to pee

[sabelmouse]

Staff at Wimpole Hall using their new

Staff at Wimpole Hall using their new "pee bale" to aid composting. Photograph: National Trust

Have you heard of a "pee bale"? It's the latest measure adopted at the National Trust property Wimpole Hall in Cambridgeshire to both save water and ensure efficient composting.

As the name suggests, a 3m-long series of straw bales has been installed alongside the compost heaps in the walled gardens so workers (well the male ones anyway) can relieve themselves. Urine has been long-established as a free compost "activator" (aka "liquid gold"), because it's full of nitrogen, but there are other benefits too. Tamzin Phillips, the NT's "compost doctor" is quoted in the press release as saying: "What's so great about the pee bale is that it's using a natural solution to help the garden while saving flushing the loo for only when it's really necessary."

Apparently the pee bale is only used outside visitor hours "because we don't want to scare the public" and logistically, women are counted out of participating, but it's still a good idea that saves several litres of water for each toilet flush avoided. Presumably the pee-soaked straw will be added in layers to the Hall's existing compost heaps.

If you're female, don't find an al fresco urination an attractive option, or don't have space for a straw bale in the garden, a plastic drinks bottle filled in the comfort of the bathroom and decanted onto the heap will serve just as well.

What do you do to kickstart your compost heap? Would you use a "pee bale" at work? Share your thoughts below.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/gardening-blog/2009/nov/13/c...

[sabelmouse]

* Comment is free
* Cif green

Is the National Trust taking the piss?

Encouraging gardeners to urinate on compost heaps makes perfect sense. Just leave the tea-and-cake brigade out of it

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* Leo Hickman
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o Leo Hickman
o guardian.co.uk, Friday 13 November 2009 13.30 GMT
o Article history

compost toilet

9/7/99 INS NEWS GROUP LTD...PIC ASHLEY BINGHAM PIC SHOWS THE ALTERNATIVE MODEL FARM IN WATLINGTON. THE BUILDING OF A COMPOST TOILET. Photograph: Ashley Bingham/Advert

There was plenty of mirth and tittering across the airwaves this morning as news broke that the National Trust is currently running a trial in which gardeners at Wimpole Hall in Cambridgeshire are being asked to urinate onto a straw bale both to help save water and to increase the efficiency of their compost heap.

My first reaction was mild surprise: isn't this already a well-established habit among many serious gardeners? After all, it's been known for centuries that the excrementitious fluid excreted from the blood by the kidneys – as the Oxford English Dictionary describes urine – is a rich (and freely available) source of nitrogen and potassium. Furthermore, it acts as an excellent activator for compost.

My second reaction was to reach for my shelf and pull down an excellent little book devoted to this very subject – Liquid Gold: The Lore and Logic of Using Urine to Grow Plants, by Carol Steinfeld. It contains the obligatory factoids – for example, every day the people of Britain excrete about 18m gallons of urine, enough to fertilize up to 6,000 acres of maize a year – but it also has an interesting chapter on the "science and technology" of using urine in the garden. When peeing on a compost heap, for example, ratios are very important, as anyone who's seen a brown patch on their lawn caused by a peeing dog will testify. Ideally, you want one part urine to 25 parts "carbon" (sawdust, shredded paper, wood chips etc). If you want to dilute it to use as a fertiliser, then you need to mix one part urine with eight parts water.

I was intrigued, though, by the claim on the news items this morning that male urine is better for the garden than female urine. Philip Whaites, Wimpole Hall's head gardener, says male urine is "less acidic". It is possible to test for gender when examining a urine sample (the difference in hormone levels must presumably be the reason), but it would certainly make for an interesting segment on Gardeners' World. Which urine-laden test bed would produce better results – Carol Klein's or that of her arch-nemesis Toby Buckland?

But if the National Trust really wants to grab our attention it might like to implement a "humanure" trial at one of its stately homes. Well, if they're going to make good use of their gardeners' urine, why not put their faeces to work, too? Better still, they could make provision to collect all the visitors' "daily offerings"?

Although, having said that, I can't imagine the tea-and-cake brigade being best pleased when directed to a compost toilet. That might well be taking the piss.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cif-green/2009/nov/13/natio...

[Dr. Capt. Doughnuts McCoy Jr. IV]

Highly logical, urea is one of the most efficient nitrogen fertilisers around. Organic farms already spread cow urine and manure over crops, why not this?

I think it is a great idea.

[sabelmouse]

me too. maybe i can finally get that compost going as it should.

[President Clive-φ-Davidson]

Well, I doubt this will get massive contribution, but I will certainly consider joining in. There are people in Africa who have to walk miles for water, but we waste it every time we flush!

[danman]

It is a good idea, however you are stating the wrong reasons. It is analogous to saying how we waste air by exerting ourselves in sports, while people on space stations have to conserve every lungfull

[Dr. Capt. Doughnuts McCoy Jr. IV]

Well, all the best reasons had already been taken. ;)

The best example of his point would be in a drought, when it could be dangerous to waste water in any way, the idea is helpful because not only do you save having to flush water down the drain, you also have less need to use a hosepipe on the garden.

[danman]

Well, when working outside, men usually go to urinate on the manure heap - it is just natural.
So not much new in the article in terms of method, just it is a good use of both straw and urine (they do not get folk pissing on streets).

But another thing they should do is make straw matresses - it is inexpensive to produce and apparently they are quite healthy for the back

[sabelmouse]

they can be amazing for the back unless you can't take hard.

as for peeing in the compost. i never heard about it.

[Leanne]

"Honey, Timmy wet the bed again!"
"That's okay. Just throw it on the compost heap."

[Mr. Morozov]

I think this is a bit extreme. People also thought the idea of the Internet was extre-... oh no...