Are you talking about bagged soil, Lilacs? Bulk soil is sold by the cubic yard, so since youÂre talking about cubic feet, I assume thatÂs what you mean. If thatÂs what youÂre looking for, you donÂt need a truck at all. I donÂt see how HD can possibly be quoting you $200 for 30 bags of soil. Even if theyÂre charging you $50 for delivery, thatÂs still $5 a bag. Are they selling you bagged gold dust! ;-)

WalMart has several different bagged soils, and from what I saw, theyÂre all under $2 a bag. IÂve been buying a bagged cow compost, and while you wouldnÂt want to use that as a basic planting soil, (IÂve been mixing it in my natural soil to improve it), itÂs only 98 cents a bag. IÂd go there and check out the other bagged soils they have. YouÂre just going to be planting veggies in itÂyou donÂt need anything fancy. Most of us plant our veggies in the good old native clay, and, for the most part, they do fine. Since you canÂt tell for sure what the soil in the bag is like till you get it home and open it, I recommend buying one bag of the 2 or 3 kinds you think will be the best and take them home and open them to decide which one you want more of.

Last time I got some, I got 10 bags, and could easily have gotten more in my trunk, and hadnÂt used the back seat at all, so you could possibly get all 30 bags at once, or, worse case scenario, youÂd need to make 2 trips. (I put an old blanket in the trunk and/or back seat when IÂm hauling stuff like that.) And you should be able to easily move individual bags yourselfÂIÂm 5'3" and 110 lbsÂand IÂm 63 years old! (somebody at WM will load it for you)

If you want to add anything to the bagged soil, I recommend just using Canadian peat. You can get the large bale probably still for under $15 (might need to go to HD or Lowes for thatÂnot sure if WM carries it), and then mix in about 20% peat after you dump out the bags.

If you want to get it bulk, Pioneer has locations all over Denver and has all kinds of landscaping supplies, including soilsÂbut I think theyÂre pretty expensive for their stepping stone type stuff. DonÂt know about soils. YouÂd need 3 yards, but then theyÂll dump it in the drive or somewhere when they deliver it and youÂll need to move it yourself to your beds. (Anywhere you get bulk soil will do it that way.)

Timberline gardens is on the wrong side of town for you, but they list their prices online, so you can at least use if for a comparison. Paulinos is closer, but still not too close at I25 and 58th Avenue, but they donÂt list their prices online, so youÂd need to call or stop by for prices.

For what you want to do, I sure would check out the WalMart option first. Compared to clay, your veggies are going to think they died and went to heaven in any bagged soil you use.

Hope some of this helps,
Skybird

Pioneer Sand: http://www.pioneersand.com/locations.htm

Here is a link that might be useful: Bulk...

Look for coupons at some of the nurseries nearby. Right now they seem to be offering ones for soil. And I too would rather have the bags than dumping a bunch, only to have to shovel, wheel, shovel, dump. Walmart, yes for price.

Also, skybird invited me to go to the plant swap. I know you are working so this is a tough call on the Friday scheduled. But I have tons of lilacs which come up around the yard. I posted asking how to replant these on another thread. Would be willing to share some with you.

Just a note, if you have bulk delivered, put down a tarp before they dump. You will spend less time trying to get the last little bit and cleanup will be easier, pick up the tarp at the end. Of course you will need to be careful not to tear the tarp while shoveling. I bought some organic potting soil at a dollar store a while back that was really nice stuff in good size bags.

B

I recently got a load delivered of some coarse planting mix from Crystal Landscape in Fort Collins/Loveland...I'm very pleased with it.

Here is a link that might be useful: Rachels Hosta Site

Lilacs, If you are in need of 30 cu. ft of soil, but don't have a way to transport, I might be able to help you out. I live in Larkspur and work up at old Lowry Air Force Base (Yosemite and 6th)- sounds like you are near there and with a 40mile each way commute a few more miles to help out a fellow garden is no problem at all.
I can probably fit at a minimum half of what you need into my suv and make a couple trips after work or during lunch or drive my truck up for a one punch deal.

Pacu, that would be great! Thank you. Yes, I am fairly close to Lowry. And both Home Depot and Lowes are within a mile from me.

Hey Lilacs, I was just at Pioneer yesterday here in Berthoud and they are selling topsoil for $20 a cubic yard. That's not delivered though.

Lilacs,
Here is my email address- pacula@netzero.net
We can work out the details like what day/times work best, your address and of course, the shopping list!
Pete.

PIONEER = WORST SOIL EVER !!!

soo disappointing...
i got a yard and a half of "planters mix" which Pioneer employees told was their best, and ready for my vegetable garden. I had high hopes, was glad to not have 25 or 30 empty plastic bags, so i borrowed a truck and drove quite far to get "soil" - soo disappointing... i've found ground up wood with PAINT chips... clay, clay and more clay, with little rocks, and is that a piece of a shoe ?? too late now, but i wish i'd known. DO NOT GET SOIL FROM PIONEER, at least not if you want to feel good about eating the vegetables that grow out of it.

We just bought 2 pickup beds full of planter's mix from Pioneer in Boulder and it was nice quality, compost enriched soil with no clay, paint chips, or other debris in it. The only "chunks" I found were a couple of manure balls that hadn't fully broken down yet. Maybe the quality varies by site, but we've been pleased with our soil from them this time and in the past.

I have to second smuir's comment about the poor quality soil at Pioneer. I got 1.5 cubic yards of their planters mix for my raised vegetable beds and the soil is horrible. It's mostly clay with large clods that are impossible to break up. The soil surface would crack easily and be difficult to re-wet. I had to mix in a few bags of compost to make it usable for this year. Had I known how poor the soil was going to be, I would have paid a few more dollars and gotten some better quality stuff at one of the local nurseries.

BTW, I got the soil at their Aurora (6th & Chambers) location. Perhaps some of the other locations are better.

I've purchase alot of things (planter's mix, compost, wood chip mulch,stripstone, sandstone, rock etc.) from Pioneer in Aurora and have not been disappointed.

Their planter's mix does contain a good amount of clay but I don't have a problem with that.

I bought 28 yd3 of Pioneer's planter's mix for the big raised bed. I did a settle test and the texture was loam with a touch of sand. No complaints. We've spent a lot of money there and very satisfied - and I used to own a landscape design & construction business.

Dan

I'm in the process of building retaining walls for my garden. In the next week or two I'll be filling them with planter fill. I'd like to start out right if I'm going to haul dirt into the garden for days. Anyone ordered lately? Still having luck with Pioneer (or not)? Suggestions? Thanks in advance for any suggestions or words of advice!

We built raised beds last year - 15x7 and 15x5 and used a soil mix from timberline. We did haul it ourselves, but have been pretty happy with it.

Hi Curler,

Since you're in Lakewood I'd recommend you run over to Timberline and check out their mixes. Kelly makes some of the mixes he sells himself, and since he's a real gardener himself he knows what it takes to be able to grow things! If you go and have any questions, ask for Kelly, and if he's there he'll be able to help you find the best thing for whatever you're gonna use it for.

I've never bought bulk soils, but I suspect that at Pioneer (and some of the posts above bear this out) you may get a different quality depending on what location you happen to go to. If you decide to get some at Pioneer I'd definitely recommend you go to the location you're planning to get it from and check it out in person before you order it and pay for it.

Welcome to RMG. We're glad you found us!

Skybird

Here is a link that might be useful: Timberline - Bulk materials page

I filled in my whole garden last year with the planters mix from Sate Fe Sand & Gravel. I am really happy with it. Everything I planted grew like gangbusters and this year, when I was out there working the compost into it, it was darn near as soft as it was the day I bought it. It sure wasn't cheap though, not sure how it compares to others as far as price.

Thanks for the suggestions! I stopped in at Santa Fe and their customer service was not great but they were pretty busy. And I can get a discount at Pioneer but I'm not sure it's worth it. I'll head over to Timberline and then make a decision.

I'm covering what to my untrained eye looks like clay with fairly high organics and lots of worms - but trampled some due to pulling a dozen stumps and putting in the retaining walls. Should I do anything before adding the 6 to 18" of planter mix? If the soil is too good will I be creating a bathtub if I just throw the new mix on top?

I can't decide if finding this forum is going to help or make me paranoid lol

Anyone know about A1 Organics compost? Seems like they have a location in stapleton and some places carry their stuff. Is it worth it?

I know This thread is years old, but it seems like people are still posting in it on occasion. I wanted to let everyone know that if you get your soil, compost, planters mix, or whatever from Santa Fe, Pioneer, Timberline (now closed) that it ALL comes from the same place: A1 Organics in Greeley, CO. That is all.

I have some planters mix from Santa Fe Sand and Gravel. It is beautiful dirt and absolutely no apparent clay. I have also been to A-1 organics off of Santa Fe Rd, in either Littleton or Englewood. Their compost labeled "command" is sold in bags. You do have to load it yourself and the bags were dirty with a few holes in them. But the quality of the compost was better than anything I have seen from other stores. A-1 does not deliver and the two times I have been there I was the only non professional.

I guess I should check out A-1 's dirt too.