HUNDREDS of keen East Cambridgeshire gardeners have bagged a bargain. Four tonnes of soil conditioner, made from recycled garden and food waste, were shovelled into bags and given away free to residents during a special composting week. The great give-awa

HUNDREDS of keen East Cambridgeshire gardeners have bagged a bargain.

Four tonnes of soil conditioner, made from recycled garden and food waste, were shovelled into bags and given away free to residents during a special composting week.

The great give-away, organised to mark Compost Awareness Week, formed part of a roadshow which visited Ely during a countywide tour.

Gardeners learnt more about the benefits of home composting and the use of peat-free soil improver.

Victor Perez, waste campaigns officer for Cambridgeshire County Council, said: "We had an excellent response from East Cambridgeshire residents who took advantage of the tonnes of free soil improver.

"We shovelled more than 20 tonnes of soil improver into bags and bins for residents during the week and gave away four tonnes in Ely alone. "Dealing with garden waste as well as fruit and vegetable peelings at home is a great way to reduce our carbon footprint, as we cut down the miles our waste travels, preventing the associated air emissions."

Almost 65,000 tonnes of garden and food waste were turned into compost last year in Cambridgeshire - that is almost a quarter of the total waste produced in the county.