compost supply
Scott Koepke
Mornin, soilmates -- Just a thought about Plan Bs for bulk organic matter amendment options this fall since the City is out of compost for the year. Good problem to have, as they say, since demand remains so high. However, here are a few other sourcing options:
- Linn County Solid Waste Agency ("Mt. Trashmore") in downtown CR. Caveat here is that you'd need a Linn County resident to be with you when loading. Ethical consideration is that they prefer this resource be used in Linn County, so you'd be bootlegging it across the county line. Cost is $15 per ton.
- GreenRU (dha...@greenru.org) This is the supply that Brandi sourced for us through Field To Family/Farm To School last year (thanks again, Brandi!) -- however, some complained about the odor, especially when it was too wet/aneorobic. Another concern is that GreenRU is in Edyville, quite a haul for transport.
- S&G Materials here in IC off Sand Road. Not compost, but rich topsoil which can be supplemented with well-aged horse manure (we sourced ours from Centaur Stables this year for Earth Source Gardens). I don't recommend straight topsoil since it still contains a lot of clay that tends to dry out much more.
- Cover crops! I've been doing this with a lot of garden projects in the fall. Whether it's regenerative rye or winterkill oats/pea mix, both methods build OM for significant nutrient boost in spring. Google cover crops, and you'll find a treasure trove of suggested seed, some of which you can just buy from bulk bins at the co-op. Never know when we'll get consistent, hardkill frost nights, but there's still plenty of time to get covers germinated.
- Just so we're all on the same page, you might want to also check in with Ben Grimm at the Physical Plant before bringing significant tonnage onto school property. Our Groundscare Advisory Group hasn't really addressed soil amendments substantively yet, but we should involve him and his staff on imported applications of compost:
Again, this all speaks to the need to cook more compost all over the place! Whether it comes from public or private interests, the potential production has barely been tapped locally. Hope this helps. Happy harvest!
-sk
Scott Koepke
p.s. Just another thought I had about compost: As much as I love to teach about it and cook it, I have to remind myself that when I first started gardening many moons ago, I didn't use ANY compost, and, while not necessarily ideal, veggies still grew just fine! Just don't want people getting too anxious about finding tons & tons, that's all. I fondly remember my first garden where all I did was scuff, flop, chop & cover: severed the root system of the sod, flopped it over, chopped it up, broadcast some cover seed, let the beds marinate, and bam! Start plantin come April!
And, actually, most of you guys already have established beds, so you're one step ahead. If you can't source compost, at the very least just throw down a nice thick mat of leaf mulch.
Thanks to all who participated in the Farm To School school garden produce booth at Farmers Market on Kids Day! $230.00 sold! The next generation of soil, food and community growers!!
I think some of the most rewarding aspects of what all of us are doing is the ability to integrate all core curricula into the school garden experience. Math, science, literacy, economics, life skills, art, you name it ... as my Grandma used to say, "Everthing I need to know I can learn in the garden."
Keep on diggin,
-sk
p.s. Did you hear Tom Vilsack on NPR yesterday? Apparently the USDA is rolling out a program to help smaller farmers get their product into school cafeterias by offsetting some of the typically higher costs of local procurement by food service directors! I didn't get a lot of details, but this is encouraging news!!
Sent: Tuesday, September 30, 2014 9:56 AM
To: icschoo...@googlegroups.com
Subject: compost supply