Ready, set, dig! 14 yards of Lenz Blenz compost for topdressing. Got my work cut out for me this weekend...

Oh so pretty. Love compost, I think it smells good.

Wow, thats a lot! Looks like a lot of work!! Plants will love you for it though!

springcolor said:Oh so pretty. Love compost, I think it smells good.

Uff da. Almost 2 units. Awesome. that's the best thing money can buy.

I ENVY the quality (and quantity) of your compost!

I went to a local dirt yard and "couldn't find the compost". When I asked, he pointed to the pile of shredded wood. I gave him a sideways look, and he admitted "it's more like mulch".

The local sewage treatment engineer told me they GIVE their Class A biosolids to Cedar Grove in return for them hauling it away. They add chipped yard waste and a LOT more sawdust, compost it again, add yet more wood products which they name "soil conditioners" , then sell it to dirt yards who sell it for $35 per yard plus hauling fees.

I guess "free" isn't cheap enough for Cedar grove, they have to cheapen it further.

Or perhaps, to be fair, hauling heavy stuff around around is so expensive that even "free stuff" is expensive.

I'm not defending them, but they also are storing it while its composting more, and that could take months - so its hauling and storing fees!

It's hard for anyone to make a profit with fuel and land costs so high. But it does feel better to rail at them than sympathize!

Personally, I have no use for a product that is mostly thin-shaved wood, at any price! If they were chunks, I could use them as mulch.

My plan is to test the springs on my little Ford Escort one of these days. Lay down a tarp, fill the trunk with 5 gallon buckets, then fill the buckets with biosolids. Then learn how long the smell lingers!

I keep reading about people who can get free rotten straw, manure , wood chips and grass clippings.

I used a local supplier, Lenz Enterprises (now may be known as Lenz Earthworks), located up in Stanwood. Price was $21/yard no delivery fee, although I am quite close to the yard so they may have delivery fees for longer distances. They have a pretty impressive on-site compost facility.

There is also a private horse owner up in this neck of the woods who offers free partially-composted stall material. They will load up your pickup for you. It's good stuff, but not sterile by any means, so you have to battle with weeds. I typically use this for top dressing/fertilizing trees out in the field knowing that a bunch of grass will eventually germinate.

Nice!

Hmm, I don't see any "envy" emoticons, even though we do have two green ones.

(envy)

Here's the front bed all cleaned up and top dressed.

Looks good. I'm off you prune the few roses that I have left.

I haven't even looked at my roses this year... I have an odd mix of hardy floribundas and rescue-tea roses that get every disease/bug known to the rose kingdom. I keep threatening to yard out the tea roses and replace with more floribundas - perhaps this will be the year.

Looks really good Deb!

Nice!

Is your dog "pointing" at the compost, or just admiring? Planning to mark his territory?

Aw cute photo of pup!! Also your bed looks great Deb!!

Just saw my first two hummingbirds - zooming around the feeder and chasing each other! Love to watch their battles.

I have had a few hummers all winter.

I loaded up my feeder with some premix stuff I had for my Dad (way more expensive that homemade), and wow is it ever a sparkly red. Wonder what they use to get it that color that is not harmful to the birds?