Do gardeners know what compost can do for the garden?
Home gardeners have longed to have the rich dark cake-like soils that they see in gardening magazines and on gardening shows. What they often don’t realize is that this soil has been created over time.
Professional horticulturists understand the value of adding quality organic amendments to the soil for many different reasons. Some of these reasons are to change the soil structure to improve drainage, improve the oxygen levels in and around the roots, and to create a better overall soil structure for plant growth. Another benefit, depending on the type and source of soil amendment, is the level of nutrients the compost or manure can add to the soil for plants to use as food. Not all compost is created equally. Compost varies from product to product. Also another problem with compost is the name itself. There is no guideline to determine what compost is and is not. This leads to misinformed consumers.
MUNICIPAL COMPOST is a mixture of leaves, chipped tree limbs, yard waste, and (sometimes, but rarely) "biosolids" from various cities, composted into an earthy, well mixed organic amendment that any home gardener would be happy to use on their garden. This product has become available because many cities decided to recycle yard and park waste, rather than throw the stuff into the dump at great cost. Of course, these cities would like to turn this waste into gold, so are selling it to anyone willing to buy. There is some small amount of nutrient in the compost, but most of the value is in the organic matter, which can act as a nutrient buffer and improve the soil structure for a year or two after application.
Brightside / Waste Management Compost Sale
Each spring and fall, Brightside and Waste Management of Kentucky have a compost fundraiser. Proceeds benefit Brightside. Check the Brightside website calendar for more information.