I have my compost bin out in the back but i only really filled it up
just as it froze last fall. So i'm not expecting to have a whole lot
ready for this year. Even if everything in there composted instantly
it still wouldn't be much.

I have a new garden plot (grown one season of veggies so far) that is
pretty much clay with the small amount of topsoil i dumped on it last
year. All the advice i've got is to dig a lot of compost into this
plot. So where does a city bound veggie gardener get compost?

Will the nurseries (where i buy tomato plants) sell bags of it?
I know supermarkets have bags of peat moss and potting soil, do they
also have compost?
I'm going to check if my city might be giving out compost to residents
at some point this season.
I've never actually met a farmer in person so i can't imagine choosing
a random farm, driving up, knocking on the door and asking if they
sell compost.

So what do i do?

wrote in message
om...
I have my compost bin out in the back but i only really filled it up
just as it froze last fall. So i'm not expecting to have a whole lot
ready for this year. Even if everything in there composted instantly
it still wouldn't be much.

I have a new garden plot (grown one season of veggies so far) that is
pretty much clay with the small amount of topsoil i dumped on it last
year. All the advice i've got is to dig a lot of compost into this
plot. So where does a city bound veggie gardener get compost?

Will the nurseries (where i buy tomato plants) sell bags of it?
I know supermarkets have bags of peat moss and potting soil, do they
also have compost?
I'm going to check if my city might be giving out compost to residents
at some point this season.
I've never actually met a farmer in person so i can't imagine choosing
a random farm, driving up, knocking on the door and asking if they
sell compost.

So what do i do?


Your garden centre or nursery will have all manner of composts and soil
additives, and depending on your local circumstances, your nearest waste
disposal site may well be involved with composting and sell you back the
weeds etc you dumped there last year:-))

As regards your nearest farm, they will be glad to see you disappearing over
the horizon with as much manure as you can carry, although that might be
best left for autumn so it can rot down somewhat before being applied.
Riding stables likewise. If the city you are in is London, the household
cavalry may help out :-)) Ask, they can only say no.

Incidentally, you don't knock on the door at farms, you pull into the yard
and stop, then wait until the supply of dogs dies down. Then assess the risk
according to the numbers and types before getting out.

HTH

Steve

wrote:
I have my compost bin out in the back but i only really filled it up
just as it froze last fall. So i'm not expecting to have a whole lot
ready for this year. Even if everything in there composted instantly
it still wouldn't be much.

I have a new garden plot (grown one season of veggies so far) that is
pretty much clay with the small amount of topsoil i dumped on it last
year. All the advice i've got is to dig a lot of compost into this
plot. So where does a city bound veggie gardener get compost?

Will the nurseries (where i buy tomato plants) sell bags of it?
I know supermarkets have bags of peat moss and potting soil, do they
also have compost?
I'm going to check if my city might be giving out compost to residents
at some point this season.
I've never actually met a farmer in person so i can't imagine choosing
a random farm, driving up, knocking on the door and asking if they
sell compost.

So what do i do?


If there is a mushroom farm within 100 miles of you, it would be
worthwhile to drive there (assuming you have access to a heavy-duty
pickup truck, or a small pickup with a 2-axle trailer) to buy their
spent compost. Just be forewarned that if the compost is wet when they
load it it is *very* heavy, so make sure the weight is evenly
distributed or you'll ruin a tire. Don't ask me how I know this. I
used to put sideboards on the truck just in case the stuff was dry (as
it was occasionally) so I could haul twice as much.

Check with your county's solid waste disposal folks. Here, they compost
tons of yard waste every year and used to give it to county residents
free of charge. Now they sell it, but it's still pretty cheap.

Best regards,
Bob

In article ,
wrote:

I have my compost bin out in the back but i only really filled it up
just as it froze last fall. So i'm not expecting to have a whole lot
ready for this year. Even if everything in there composted instantly
it still wouldn't be much.

I have a new garden plot (grown one season of veggies so far) that is
pretty much clay with the small amount of topsoil i dumped on it last
year. All the advice i've got is to dig a lot of compost into this
plot. So where does a city bound veggie gardener get compost?

Will the nurseries (where i buy tomato plants) sell bags of it?
I know supermarkets have bags of peat moss and potting soil, do they
also have compost?
I'm going to check if my city might be giving out compost to residents
at some point this season.
I've never actually met a farmer in person so i can't imagine choosing
a random farm, driving up, knocking on the door and asking if they
sell compost.

So what do i do?

If you are willing to work for it, you can get it for free at my place
in San Marcos. G

K.

--
Sprout the Mung Bean to reply...

"There are many intelligent species in the universe, and they are all owned by cats! -- Asimov

,,Cat's Haven Hobby Farm,,Katraatcenturyteldotnet,,
http://cgi6.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...user id=katra

On 29 Mar 2004 06:13:24 -0800, wrote:

I have my compost bin out in the back but i only really filled it up
just as it froze last fall. So i'm not expecting to have a whole lot
ready for this year. Even if everything in there composted instantly
it still wouldn't be much.

I have a new garden plot (grown one season of veggies so far) that is
pretty much clay with the small amount of topsoil i dumped on it last
year. All the advice i've got is to dig a lot of compost into this
plot. So where does a city bound veggie gardener get compost?

Will the nurseries (where i buy tomato plants) sell bags of it?
I know supermarkets have bags of peat moss and potting soil, do they
also have compost?
I'm going to check if my city might be giving out compost to residents
at some point this season.
I've never actually met a farmer in person so i can't imagine choosing
a random farm, driving up, knocking on the door and asking if they
sell compost.

So what do i do?
If the other ideas don't help, you should be able to find composted
manure in bags at home centers (home despot, lows, etc) and nurseries.
If you want a lot, you can probably find a listing in the phone book
for landscaping supplies or similar and they will probably deliver for
a fee.
Near me, there is a horse operation with a sign by the road begging
for people to come get manure. might just be a matter of keeping your
eyes open in the right area.

K
For more info about the International Society of Arboriculture, please visit http://www.isa-arbor.com/home.asp.
For consumer info about tree care, visit http://www.treesaregood.com/

I have had the same problem as yourself. Couldn't find a store selling the
right stuff. What is labeled as composted manure is generally too strong to put
in your garden. Other composted variations turn out to resemble ordinary black
dirt. The closest I found were bags of mushroom
compost, the drawback being their cost, which is not deserved since this
stuff is basically straw mixed with leftover mushroom bed material. I finally
resorted to building my own compost bins and collecting leaves from all my
puzzled neighbors, who dump this stuff out on the street. For
this season, I wouldn't give up on what you started. You can accelerate
the cooking process by turning the pile over as many times as your back
will allow. Also, mixing in some accelerators, like fertilizers will also
speed up the process. In the meantime, think about expanding your existing
mulch pile. It's cheaper and usually better quality than anything you can buy.

Sherwin Dubren

wrote:

I have my compost bin out in the back but i only really filled it up
just as it froze last fall. So i'm not expecting to have a whole lot
ready for this year. Even if everything in there composted instantly
it still wouldn't be much.

I have a new garden plot (grown one season of veggies so far) that is
pretty much clay with the small amount of topsoil i dumped on it last
year. All the advice i've got is to dig a lot of compost into this
plot. So where does a city bound veggie gardener get compost?

Will the nurseries (where i buy tomato plants) sell bags of it?
I know supermarkets have bags of peat moss and potting soil, do they
also have compost?
I'm going to check if my city might be giving out compost to residents
at some point this season.
I've never actually met a farmer in person so i can't imagine choosing
a random farm, driving up, knocking on the door and asking if they
sell compost.

So what do i do?

Look in your phone book for a waste management center or your local trash
companies. They usually have an area that they use to make leaf mulch and
compost from pickup from residential customers. It's the most cost
effective place to get quantities of it.

Here in Raleigh, NC, we can get a whole pickup load for $18 on compost and
$12 for leaf mulch. Leaf mulch is very good for plants too because it
decomposes into the soil while retaining moisture and keeping weeds down.

If you only need small quantities, you can get bags of compost from Home
Depot or Lowes Home Improvement or a local garden center. You'll pay more
in the garden center though.

I'm renting a large pickup this Friday and getting as many loads as I can of
leaf mulch and compost to mulch under newly planted trees and to fill raised
beds and to spread over a large hill that I'm planting perennials on (bad
run on sentence). My veggie garden has already been tilled with
compost/manure this past fall, so I won't need any there.

Good luck,

Penny
zone 7b - North Carolina
wrote in message
om...
I have my compost bin out in the back but i only really filled it up
just as it froze last fall. So i'm not expecting to have a whole lot
ready for this year. Even if everything in there composted instantly
it still wouldn't be much.

I have a new garden plot (grown one season of veggies so far) that is
pretty much clay with the small amount of topsoil i dumped on it last
year. All the advice i've got is to dig a lot of compost into this
plot. So where does a city bound veggie gardener get compost?

Will the nurseries (where i buy tomato plants) sell bags of it?
I know supermarkets have bags of peat moss and potting soil, do they
also have compost?
I'm going to check if my city might be giving out compost to residents
at some point this season.
I've never actually met a farmer in person so i can't imagine choosing
a random farm, driving up, knocking on the door and asking if they
sell compost.

So what do i do?

Penny,
I find it interesting that you make a distinction between leaf mulch and
compost. I thought that leaves are a possible component of making mulch.
I mix in leaves with grass clippings, etc. (browns and greens work well
together) to produce a black mulch after they are composted. I would not
recommend putting uncomposted leaves directly into the garden. I also like to
get leaves that have been run through a lawn mower. It helps them
break down faster. Some of the stuff at these waste management places are
just straight leaves scooped up from the curb where they were raked. When
I scavenge for leaves, I look for those where the resident used their bag
catcher to cut the lawn and pick up leaves at the same time. This gives the
advantage of chopped up stuff with leaves and grass together. My neighbors must
think I'm nuts going down the streets poking into different
piles looking for the right stuff.

Sherwin D.

Penny Morgan wrote:

Look in your phone book for a waste management center or your local trash
companies. They usually have an area that they use to make leaf mulch and
compost from pickup from residential customers. It's the most cost
effective place to get quantities of it.

Here in Raleigh, NC, we can get a whole pickup load for $18 on compost and
$12 for leaf mulch. Leaf mulch is very good for plants too because it
decomposes into the soil while retaining moisture and keeping weeds down.

If you only need small quantities, you can get bags of compost from Home
Depot or Lowes Home Improvement or a local garden center. You'll pay more
in the garden center though.

I'm renting a large pickup this Friday and getting as many loads as I can of
leaf mulch and compost to mulch under newly planted trees and to fill raised
beds and to spread over a large hill that I'm planting perennials on (bad
run on sentence). My veggie garden has already been tilled with
compost/manure this past fall, so I won't need any there.

Good luck,

Penny
zone 7b - North Carolina
wrote in message
om...
I have my compost bin out in the back but i only really filled it up
just as it froze last fall. So i'm not expecting to have a whole lot
ready for this year. Even if everything in there composted instantly
it still wouldn't be much.

I have a new garden plot (grown one season of veggies so far) that is
pretty much clay with the small amount of topsoil i dumped on it last
year. All the advice i've got is to dig a lot of compost into this
plot. So where does a city bound veggie gardener get compost?

Will the nurseries (where i buy tomato plants) sell bags of it?
I know supermarkets have bags of peat moss and potting soil, do they
also have compost?
I'm going to check if my city might be giving out compost to residents
at some point this season.
I've never actually met a farmer in person so i can't imagine choosing
a random farm, driving up, knocking on the door and asking if they
sell compost.

So what do i do?

Penny,
I find it interesting that you make a distinction between leaf mulch and
compost. I thought that leaves are a possible component of making mulch.
I mix in leaves with grass clippings, etc. (browns and greens work well
together) to produce a black mulch after they are composted. I would not
recommend putting uncomposted leaves directly into the garden. I also like to
get leaves that have been run through a lawn mower. It helps them
break down faster. Some of the stuff at these waste management places are
just straight leaves scooped up from the curb where they were raked. When
I scavenge for leaves, I look for those where the resident used their bag
catcher to cut the lawn and pick up leaves at the same time. This gives the
advantage of chopped up stuff with leaves and grass together. My neighbors must
think I'm nuts going down the streets poking into different
piles looking for the right stuff.

Sherwin D.

Penny Morgan wrote:

Look in your phone book for a waste management center or your local trash
companies. They usually have an area that they use to make leaf mulch and
compost from pickup from residential customers. It's the most cost
effective place to get quantities of it.

Here in Raleigh, NC, we can get a whole pickup load for $18 on compost and
$12 for leaf mulch. Leaf mulch is very good for plants too because it
decomposes into the soil while retaining moisture and keeping weeds down.

If you only need small quantities, you can get bags of compost from Home
Depot or Lowes Home Improvement or a local garden center. You'll pay more
in the garden center though.

I'm renting a large pickup this Friday and getting as many loads as I can of
leaf mulch and compost to mulch under newly planted trees and to fill raised
beds and to spread over a large hill that I'm planting perennials on (bad
run on sentence). My veggie garden has already been tilled with
compost/manure this past fall, so I won't need any there.

Good luck,

Penny
zone 7b - North Carolina
wrote in message
om...
I have my compost bin out in the back but i only really filled it up
just as it froze last fall. So i'm not expecting to have a whole lot
ready for this year. Even if everything in there composted instantly
it still wouldn't be much.

I have a new garden plot (grown one season of veggies so far) that is
pretty much clay with the small amount of topsoil i dumped on it last
year. All the advice i've got is to dig a lot of compost into this
plot. So where does a city bound veggie gardener get compost?

Will the nurseries (where i buy tomato plants) sell bags of it?
I know supermarkets have bags of peat moss and potting soil, do they
also have compost?
I'm going to check if my city might be giving out compost to residents
at some point this season.
I've never actually met a farmer in person so i can't imagine choosing
a random farm, driving up, knocking on the door and asking if they
sell compost.

So what do i do?

Penny,
I find it interesting that you make a distinction between leaf mulch and
compost. I thought that leaves are a possible component of making mulch.
I mix in leaves with grass clippings, etc. (browns and greens work well
together) to produce a black mulch after they are composted. I would not
recommend putting uncomposted leaves directly into the garden. I also like to
get leaves that have been run through a lawn mower. It helps them
break down faster. Some of the stuff at these waste management places are
just straight leaves scooped up from the curb where they were raked. When
I scavenge for leaves, I look for those where the resident used their bag
catcher to cut the lawn and pick up leaves at the same time. This gives the
advantage of chopped up stuff with leaves and grass together. My neighbors must
think I'm nuts going down the streets poking into different
piles looking for the right stuff.

Sherwin D.

Penny Morgan wrote:

Look in your phone book for a waste management center or your local trash
companies. They usually have an area that they use to make leaf mulch and
compost from pickup from residential customers. It's the most cost
effective place to get quantities of it.

Here in Raleigh, NC, we can get a whole pickup load for $18 on compost and
$12 for leaf mulch. Leaf mulch is very good for plants too because it
decomposes into the soil while retaining moisture and keeping weeds down.

If you only need small quantities, you can get bags of compost from Home
Depot or Lowes Home Improvement or a local garden center. You'll pay more
in the garden center though.

I'm renting a large pickup this Friday and getting as many loads as I can of
leaf mulch and compost to mulch under newly planted trees and to fill raised
beds and to spread over a large hill that I'm planting perennials on (bad
run on sentence). My veggie garden has already been tilled with
compost/manure this past fall, so I won't need any there.

Good luck,

Penny
zone 7b - North Carolina
wrote in message
om...
I have my compost bin out in the back but i only really filled it up
just as it froze last fall. So i'm not expecting to have a whole lot
ready for this year. Even if everything in there composted instantly
it still wouldn't be much.

I have a new garden plot (grown one season of veggies so far) that is
pretty much clay with the small amount of topsoil i dumped on it last
year. All the advice i've got is to dig a lot of compost into this
plot. So where does a city bound veggie gardener get compost?

Will the nurseries (where i buy tomato plants) sell bags of it?
I know supermarkets have bags of peat moss and potting soil, do they
also have compost?
I'm going to check if my city might be giving out compost to residents
at some point this season.
I've never actually met a farmer in person so i can't imagine choosing
a random farm, driving up, knocking on the door and asking if they
sell compost.

So what do i do?

City folks may want to be friends with the local barbers.. Hair is rich
in nitrogen. Anything that was once alive is good for your garden.
Dried blood $$$ or butcher remains.. ?

Gardening is Death reborn into life.

End of Sermon.

Bill

City folks may want to be friends with the local barbers.. Hair is rich
in nitrogen. Anything that was once alive is good for your garden.
Dried blood $$$ or butcher remains.. ?

Gardening is Death reborn into life.

End of Sermon.

Bill

On 29 Mar 2004 06:13:24 -0800, wrote:

I have my compost bin out in the back but i only really filled it up
just as it froze last fall. So i'm not expecting to have a whole lot
ready for this year. Even if everything in there composted instantly
it still wouldn't be much.

I have a new garden plot (grown one season of veggies so far) that is
pretty much clay with the small amount of topsoil i dumped on it last
year. All the advice i've got is to dig a lot of compost into this
plot. So where does a city bound veggie gardener get compost?

People have suggested a few places - here's a few mo

1. Does your city have an industrial composting program yet? The City
of Toronto (Ontario, Canada) does, and you can take away as much
compost as you can shovel into your vehicle from the pick up point at
Centennial Park in Etobicoke.

2. Police horse stables. If you don't add the poop to your beds
directly (and wait a year) add it to your compost to decompose. Your
pile will heat up in a hurry.

3. Dig chopped leaves into the beds in the fall. The earthworms will
munch down on them during the rest of the fall and early spring.
Presto! - instant soil improvement.

Will the nurseries (where i buy tomato plants) sell bags of it?

Yes.

I know supermarkets have bags of peat moss and potting soil, do they
also have compost?

Possibly.

I'm going to check if my city might be giving out compost to residents
at some point this season.
I've never actually met a farmer in person so i can't imagine choosing
a random farm, driving up, knocking on the door and asking if they
sell compost.

Ask around your office or shop and find out who rides horses. Then,
ask if they or their stable would mind if you removed some of their
manue pile. That's what I did, and I got a free supply as a result.
Horse manure contains a lot of undigested grass and grain seeds, so
adding it to the compost heap for further processing is a good idea.
The heat generated will kill the seeds.

Shirley Hicks
Toronto, Ontario

A mukluk wearing troll wrote in message . ..
On 29 Mar 2004 06:13:24 -0800, wrote:

I have my compost bin out in the back but i only really filled it up
just as it froze last fall. So i'm not expecting to have a whole lot
ready for this year. Even if everything in there composted instantly
it still wouldn't be much.

I have a new garden plot (grown one season of veggies so far) that is
pretty much clay with the small amount of topsoil i dumped on it last
year. All the advice i've got is to dig a lot of compost into this
plot. So where does a city bound veggie gardener get compost?

People have suggested a few places - here's a few mo

Thanks to everyone for the replies.

1. Does your city have an industrial composting program yet? The City
of Toronto (Ontario, Canada) does, and you can take away as much
compost as you can shovel into your vehicle from the pick up point at
Centennial Park in Etobicoke.

Turns our my city (Waterloo, Ontario) is giving out free compost and
mulch to residents on a particular weekend in May. Bring your own
container and up to X bushels per person. Can't remember exactly what
X is.

And since i originally posted this i've recieved a bunch of spring
flyers advertizing the soil/mulch/compost in bulk or yard bags from
miscellanous companies. Last year trucks could easily drive through
and undeveloped field and dump stuff right at the end of my backyard.
That's how i got my first yardbag of soil. It was easy to move it the
few yards to the garden with a wheelbarrow. But recently someone
started development of part of that area and now trucks cannot get to
my backyard. Having stuff dumped on the driveway is the only option.
I'm the middle unit of a 3 unit townhouse with a really long, skinny
backyard. My garden is 200 feet from the driveway. That would be a
long trip especially since it requires going around neighbours.

Even if i do find a good source, getting it to the garden will always
be a hassle. I guess i'm just screwed :-)

A mukluk wearing troll wrote in message . ..
On 29 Mar 2004 06:13:24 -0800, wrote:

I have my compost bin out in the back but i only really filled it up
just as it froze last fall. So i'm not expecting to have a whole lot
ready for this year. Even if everything in there composted instantly
it still wouldn't be much.

I have a new garden plot (grown one season of veggies so far) that is
pretty much clay with the small amount of topsoil i dumped on it last
year. All the advice i've got is to dig a lot of compost into this
plot. So where does a city bound veggie gardener get compost?

People have suggested a few places - here's a few mo

Thanks to everyone for the replies.

1. Does your city have an industrial composting program yet? The City
of Toronto (Ontario, Canada) does, and you can take away as much
compost as you can shovel into your vehicle from the pick up point at
Centennial Park in Etobicoke.

Turns our my city (Waterloo, Ontario) is giving out free compost and
mulch to residents on a particular weekend in May. Bring your own
container and up to X bushels per person. Can't remember exactly what
X is.

And since i originally posted this i've recieved a bunch of spring
flyers advertizing the soil/mulch/compost in bulk or yard bags from
miscellanous companies. Last year trucks could easily drive through
and undeveloped field and dump stuff right at the end of my backyard.
That's how i got my first yardbag of soil. It was easy to move it the
few yards to the garden with a wheelbarrow. But recently someone
started development of part of that area and now trucks cannot get to
my backyard. Having stuff dumped on the driveway is the only option.
I'm the middle unit of a 3 unit townhouse with a really long, skinny
backyard. My garden is 200 feet from the driveway. That would be a
long trip especially since it requires going around neighbours.

Even if i do find a good source, getting it to the garden will always
be a hassle. I guess i'm just screwed :-)