salad wrote:

Hi: I have an area that used to be a childrens playground area in my
back yard. I am going to convert it to a garden. There is a brick
retaining wall surrounding the new garden area.

I expect I'll need between 8 and 10 cubic yards of dirt/compost for the
garden. At our local landfill they sell some really excellent compost,
reminds me of the land I see when I go thru Iowa. But compost really
isn't dirt/top soil.

Could I use all compost for my garden? If not, what would be a good
ratio for compost to dirt?

Thanks all for your input. I never thought of the pesticide issue
regarding compost from the dump. I was planning on having it mostly be
a flower garden but also wanted a few vegetables...there's enough space
for them. I'll reconsider my options now.