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I’m SWEATING from catching up here!
@CapricornFarm you might already be on the road for your appointment, but my thoughts and prayers are with you on so many levels today dear friend, (and I don’t mean the republican kind- i mean the most genuine, truly from my heart kind.) regardless of the outcome- you are one of the toughest gals I’ve ever met. (In the best way) YOU GOT THIS. And you have us.
@Rubysword thanks for being you.
You bring us youthful cheer every time you you pop in.
@Redhead Rae that little MD never fails to bring a smile to my face. Oh how I loved shadow play with my kids when they were little...
And long walks on crunchy paths...
Thank you for sharing him with us.
@pitbullmomma
I’m loving seeing how these chickbabies and being away from your job have healed your spirit.
@Smuvers Farm
So many points for you.
Buy topsoil in bulk and amend it yourself.
I’ve fooled around with the bagged stuff for three years now and it’s crap.
Last year was particularly bad, even the big name brands like “miraclegro”
Mostly uncomposted mulch.
Dismal garden year.
Jsyk - 1cubic yard of soil =
27 small bags of packaged soil. (The bags labeled 1cubic foot or approx. 25 dry quarts.
Sometimes they sell on special at 5 bags for $10.
Since I’m a visual person I went to the topsoil place to eye ball what a cubic yard of dirt actually looked like.
1/2 yard =1 LEVEL bobcat scoop.
Full yard = 1 heaping scoop.
Average cost in my area:$36/cubic yard.
Maybe you’re wondering how far would a cubic yard of soil go?
Answer: It would fill a 4 ft x 8 ft raised bed.
Delivery is where they get you if you don’t have your own truck.
$49 / per delivery!
I wanted to get 6 cubic yards but DH almost fell over about the cost of that so we settled on 3 and then spent most of the weekend moving it from our driveway into the backyard.
Here’s what that looks like when it got dumped.
Not all that much.
But in reality it was a good twenty-five or more wheelbarrows full.
The square it’s sitting on is a car’s length and width. *Neighbors car for reference. Lol
Honestly wish I’d gotten more. Like the 6 cubic yards I wanted in the first place. We have a lot of places that need leveling out in the back yard to attempt to get grass growing again.
View attachment 1303572 View attachment 1303573
Things to consider when buying topsoil :
Where did it come from?
You do NOT want a shrug as an answer!
They know where they got it from and shouldn’t mind telling you.
If it came from a local construction area -that’s fine- BUT NOT from a road widening project!
The probability of the soil being contaminated with heavy metals is too great.
It’s toxic. And you can’t get it out of your land EVER unless it’s dug out -as in with a back hoe.
Also a lot of places are happy to sell you a “mix” of topsoil with some kind of compost.
Here it’s turkey compost.
But the guy couldn’t answer my more specific questions such as:
Turkey poop or carcasses?
Answer: wow. I couldn’t tell ya.
How long has it been composting?
Answer: uh, it came in about a month ago
So I just got the plain topsoil that came from 4 miles away where they built two huge retaining ponds next to the home depot and staples store.
How am I supposed to work with those guesses about the “turkey compost” though?
Could I potentially bring in a poultry disease and kill my chickens?
Would the ammonia levels be so high that it would just burn the roots of anything I planted?
Is it contaminated with pesticides or antibiotics or who knows what?
As far as “steer” manure from a store...
In my area there’s a product available at all the big box places, it originates from Florida I think.
It’s called BLACK KOW
they also have BLACK HEN
I like it. It’s not terribly expensive and it seems to work well.
Also I always recommend copious amounts of Epsom salt (magnesium) and ground egg shells (calcium obviously) I’ve been saving eggshells all winter.
I’ll have to ask @rjohns39 agsin for his recipe, because I think he suggests lime as well.
C&Ped this into a Word doc to read and reread! Lots of info, thanks Stacey!!!
NEVER SEND ME INTERESTING LINKS THAT COST MONIEZZ!!
