ItÂs difficult to answer with certainty without seeing this material. If itÂs mostly decayed leaves, then what you describe sounds more like leaf mold than compost. It should be excellent for mulching atop the soil in gardens and flower beds. IÂm pretty sure that if a municipality is selling their compost, that they are required to have it tested and certified safe. If you are paying, you are entitled to see the certification. Call and ask if there was any testing and certification. I use a lot of half decomposed leaf mulch from the city dump and then I add greens and finish it in my compost bins. I have also used the more finished leaf mold as a mulch in beds and around trees, shrubs and bushes just as you described. In conclusion, I think youÂd be fine using your city compost. It is true that many tree leaves have fungal organisms living on them but they present no danger to us humans as far as I know. Although IÂm not an expert on disease. -- Bill Hill

thanks for your response. This is finished compost as far as i know, but i'm also not a expert. Hence my question. they use the long row type composting machines on it. It does appear from the finished piles its mostly leaf mold. its also still cooking when they load it. And it is very nice black crumblly stuff. I was worrying more about it transferring disease to my vegetable plants and damaging them, spreading disease to my garden etc. Asking about certification is a great idea, didn't do that my first load. It cost 5.00 a full pickup load for the non screened, and 15.00 for the screened.

Leaf mold is what you have. It's good stuff but some compost wackos ooopse I mean enthusiasts think of compost as material made by the deliberate mixing of diverse browns (carbons) and greens (Nitrogen)striving for a 30:1 C/N ratio and then controlling the air and moisture by turning and areating the misture. Significant heat is frequently generated killing most pathogens and weed seeds. Those are great prices for your stuff. I would opt for the screened stuff, put it in a wire bin mixed with as much grass clippings and kitchen waste and in few months you will have the best "black gold" you've ever seen. Also, if it's still cooking, then it isn't finished. Do not till this into the soil. Just mulch with it. The microbes, beneficial orgaminsms and worms will finish it and incorporate it into your soil. If you haven't already, take a look at the FAQ for this forum for more information on composting. And personally, I wouldn't worry about disease transmission to your garden plants.

It's not 'leaf mold' if its got remains of sticks in it :-) City works department compost generally comes primarily from tree trimmings and clean up of public parks, etc. so it's likely sourced from various materials but heavy on the chipped branches and twigs and leaves. If it IS composted and looks as you described, it is safe to use in your garden. The composting process will have eliminated disease pathogens and most serious plant pathogens are rather species specific - diseases trees might get are highly unlikely to be the same issues affecting vegetables.

But it never hurts to ask about any testing :-)

In the city I get my compost from it is free if you load it yourself and 10.00 for a 5yd scoop. and they get tests done 5 times a year and the results are available to anyone who wants them. This stuff is the absolute best thing that has ever happened to my garden. It really is Black Gold. I put in 21 tons last year and tilled it all in and will be doing the same again this year. My watermelons loved it.

Dale

If the material you are getting is truly just leaves and woody material I would not hesitate to use it in a vegetable garden either as a soil amendment or as a mulch. This will provide better soil structure no matter what your soil texture might be. I have used similar material for over 20 years and it has transformed my garden soils. I have mixed as much a six inches of rotted leaves per year into my vegetable garden and never had problems.

$15 is an excellent price. That sure saves you a lot of hassle doing it yourself. I would use that stuff on top of the soil everywhere.

Once again I agree with gardengal that technically this is not pure leaf mold, but really that makes no difference. It is all compost once it's composted. Disease should not be an issue. One of the reasons we compost is to grow the microbes that eat up the disease microbes. That's part of what composting is all about. I would have thought that any discussion on this forum about composting diseased plants would have covered that aspect.

Blurb on diseased plants in the FAQ, very close to the bottom. There are some references on the net about some pathogens not being destroyed in the composting process. As far as crossover from trees to veggie plants, if GG48 says it's unlikely then I'd take her word for it.

If I were to use municipal compost for a veggie garden, I'd ask if any biosolids were used in the making of it and if the compost had been tested.

Lloyd

Thanks so much for all the info guys. i do intend to mulch my exsisting raised beds heavily with it. The price is really fantastic, and it does really resemble "black Gold" This is a new product in my area, and people haven't a clue. A lot of old timey miracle grow/seven dust gardeners around here so there isn't much advice. the extension office is also behind the times in organic gardening. I intend to heavilly till the screened stuff into a spot of exsisting virgin clay soil that won't grow a blade of grass for a new garden area. I can't really afford to amend it any another way at this time. Do you guys think it will be safe to use that ground after letting the compost steep in for several weeks? I will also heavilly mulch that area with compost after the plants come up. I know it will take several years to get it right. I don't have a bunch of time to soil test it this year after the compost is mixed in next week. And don't really know how long until it would actually have a valid test. But i figure it couldn't hurt the soil any... i plan to plant corn, beans and some toms in there in three weeks after i till. The toms will have very well amended holes.. Any suggestions about how much compost i should till in etc.?

Any suggestions about how much compost i should till in etc.?

For me, the answer would be, as much as I could afford. I don't think you can over do compost.

Val

Any suggestions about how much compost i should till in etc.?

For me the answer would be zero. Use it on top of the soil without tilling for the best effect. But still use as much as you can afford.

the problem is this is'nt soil, its a clay area that was left over from my pond being built. there is no topsoil, just hardpan. Its been three years now, and grass doesn't even try to grow there. so, i have to amend it in some way, after i've mixed the compost in to at least give it some organic matter, i don't intend to till again. just ad compost ot the top as suggested

I disagree. I believe all you have to do is put compost on top and the soil will take care of itself. Rather than rewriting what I wrote in another forum, I'll just link to it.

My SIL and BIL live on pure sand near the Texas coast. Their yard is extremely hard due to some sort of crust unless it is disturbed and then it becomes very sandy, of course. Rather than sending their oak tree leaves away with the trash every year, they rake the leaves onto their natural drive way. After years of doing this, their driveway is the softest soil I've ever seen. They have four cars driving over that every day and it is incredibly soft to walk on. As soon as you step off the driveway you are struck as to how hard the rest of the yard is compared to the area that should be the most compacted. When you sweep away the top layer of leaves you find lots of worm sized holes in the soil where critters live. This is the way Mother Nature does her mulching - She puts the leaves on top and leaves them there.

I think if you put a couple inches of mulch on top of your hardpan, in 3 months it will be very soft. And if you start last December, it will be ready now!!

In the 4 1/2 billion year history of the earth, You can till your garden once, but never again. You are so lucky to get all your black gold for next to nothing. OK you can till.

I'm sorry but I think expecting a couple of inches of compost piled on top of hardpan creating a 'very soft' plantable soil in a 3 month time frame is optimistic in the extreme. Typically, it takes multiple seasons of layering or mulching with organic matter before a hard or heavy clay soil becomes workable. And the activity of worms, ground beetles and other soil organisms, plant roots and rainfall to draw that organic matter down into the soil. That just doesn't happen overnight (or 3 months)......at least not with any clay soils that I'm familiar with. And it's fine making comparisons to Ma Nature but understand that she has infinite patience and while she may very well be willing to wait years for OM to build up to create proper soil tilth, most gardeners expect a little bit faster turnaround.

I know there are many who consider tilling to be the end of life as we know it, but it is a very rapid and efficient way to incorporate that organic matter into the soil to loosen it and to improve texture and drainage. An initial tilling will get you a whole lot farther down the road to a decent, plantable soil than piling a couple of inches on top and praying something good will happen in couple of months. It is repetitive tilling or over tilling that causes problems - a one-time shot won't hurt anything and you'll be able to plant on schedule.

And I'm with Val on this one - incorporate as much as you can manage now, then mulch with compost going forward.

Thats what i thought GG and what i'll do. I'm all for not tilling after i have amended my soil and i figure even with that it will take several years for my ground to become the garden soil i desire. heck the worms will have to find it before they can work it.. Right now, if i threw compost on top it would just wash away...I plan on tilling the whole area with a borrowed big tiller , raking it up into 3ft. wide 30ft. long raised beds, then amending that bed with wheelbarrow loads of screened compost mixing it with my mini tiller. I'll also put a thin layer of compost on top as i go to stop crusting. wait a few weeks, then start planting and then mulching deep when the plants come up with the cheaper 5.00 truckloads of non-screened compost in order to feed, ad organic matter, and keep the dreaded weeds at bay. I will also use some neptunes harvest fish/seaweed to fertilize on occasion. i also plan on using my saved leaves to mulch my paths. Will that work in that order? of course my toms will have a fish head in each hole...lol

I'm sorry but I think expecting a couple of inches of compost piled on top of hardpan creating a 'very soft' plantable soil in a 3 month time frame is optimistic in the extreme.

Agreed. I was feeling optimistic earlier. It takes a lot of moisture, too.

I am looking for a place in midtown Atlanta to contribute fruit and vegetable peels to somebody's compost. I have always composted but now I live in a highrise so can't anymore. But I hate to see those things go to waste.

ekn, why don't you get on the Yahoo Freecycle group for Atlanta (I'm sure there is one) and offer your stuff. If you dont' know about it go to www.freecycle.org and check it out. Free, all you need is a Yahoo username.

Ekn - if you post on freecycle, I'd suggest listing a route that you usually walk or travel so that if there is someone in that vicinity they would be an easy drop off spot for a regular "deposit" of your good stuff. No sense making your good deed a chore.

I have to say, the compost I get from the city here will rock your socks off! Made from those bagged leaves and shredded branches, it is 12 bucks a ton, usually costs me about 15 to 18 bucks to have the bed of my friends pick up filled. Looks like crumbled chocolate cake, with a few pieces of plastic bag here and there.

Last summer, I started a new garden at my new house. I took some leftover 6" by 6" pieces of timber that were used to frame in an old play area, and framed in my beds. I covered the thick turf with newspaper, and filled the beds up with the lovely finished compost. Planted right in it. I had an extremely successful garden. Tomatoes, lettuce, peppers, onions, beans.

And wouldn't you know it, for this year the city had to buy a temporary easement to do some necessary work on the highway, and have to back their tractors up in my garden. :-( I took apart the timbers from my last years beds, and have reassembled them in a safe place. I will be getting another pick up load of compost, and repeating the procedure this weekend.

Since I am growing on turf, I presume there isn't hard clay underneath, but this method worked VERY well for me in my situation. I love the city compost, and I usually have a big pile of it in my yard. I add a scoop every time I plant a perennial, I also top dress with it all the time.