IF YOU have never considered composting as a way of recycling your kitchen and garden waste, the autumn is a good time to start.

Preparing the garden for the winter months by pruning back plants and shrubs can provide some valuable cuttings to kick start the compost heap with dead plants, leaves and grass clippings.

Add to that the kitchen waste such as vegetable peelings, egg shells, mouldy fruit and teabags, paper and cardboard and you are on your way.

Yor compost will need a good mix of green and brown waste to make sure it breaks down properly and stays aerated But next summer the waste will have turned itself into the perfect food for new plants and vegetables, as well as improving the soil and helping maintain moisture levels.

And it is free.

Welling resident and vice-chairman of the St Michael’s Residents’ Association Gardening Club, Peter Weston, has been composting for several years.

He said: "I never have to buy compost.

“I get such a sense of achievement when I see our plants, fruit and vegetables, knowing I produced them all by myself."

Some other less obvious materials can also be composted including hair, coffee grounds and vacuum dust.

But do not use cooked food, meat, dairy and fish as they will attract vermin.

For more information on composting and to find out about how to get a discounted home compost bin go to bexley.gov.uk/composting.