Buying compost.. which is better?

[Binkalette]

I went out looking for compost today, two stores have it, but not in stock yet... both will be getting it in the next two or three weeks. The first store sells Composted Manure for $4.29 a cubic foot and regular Manure (what is the difference?) for $3.49 a cubic foot. The second store sells Organic Composted Manure for $1.85 for 40 pounds, and Mushroom Compost for $3.97 for 40 pounds.

Our yard is all clay, but our garden is a raised bed, 2ft deep of just regular black dirt that we hauled in. I want to add the compost to this soil.. Which should I choose? What is the difference between 40 pounds and a cubic foot?

[smokensqueal]

For me I've never found a good way to compare the cubic yards/foot to pounds but I don't let it worry me to much. Typically, any one type of compost that you can buy is never perfect. The best thing to do is buy both the composted manure and mushroom compost and mix them into your garden. You could add the regular manure to your home compost to really get it cooking but depending on what type of regular manure it actually is I wouldn't add it to you garden until fall when you don't have anything planted or plan on not planting anything for a while to allow it to break down.

[gixxerific]

It's odd that the mushroom compost is roughly twice as much. Most people seem to thing that mush compost is pretty well used up and possibly full of salts. Check that out.

I normally buy by the yard so can't say too much. What you should do is find the source where they are getting their compost, you might find it cheaper. I must be somewhere if they say they don't have any in stock, that means that it is somewhere already done that they are buying it from.

[GardenJester]

I never could bring myself paying for compost manure. you are literally buying poop. I mean $3, $4 for a small pile of poop? Not when you can compost for free and almost no work.

[The Helpful Gardener]

Make a one foot by one foot by one foot box...

Fill.

Weigh.

Multiply by twenty seven.

You now have pounds per yard.

HG

[cynthia_h]

Sorry; I didn't realize earlier today that it was the density of (maybe?) soil that was being discussed.

Please do *not* fill a 1' x 1' x 1' box of soil and LIFT it without good lifting protecting & excellent lifting technique; according to at least three sites I just checked, including https://www.concrete-catalog.com/soil_compaction.html , normal densities of soil are approx. 100 to 110 lb/cubic foot (American system).

Which means 2,700 to 2,970 lb/cubic yard. One ton = 2,000 lb, so it all depends on the size of the job you're looking at as to whether you need to purchase by the bag (1 or 2 cubic feet), pounds, or truckloads.

Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9

[gixxerific]

A yard of compost is no way a ton. I just had 3 yards on my 3/4 ton ton truck, if it were 3 tons my truck would not have made it so well.

[The Helpful Gardener]

Yeah I'm with gixx, while topsoil usually weighs in around a ton (we sort of used ton and yard interchangeably back in my LS days for topsoil), mulch, compost and that sort of thing were much lighter (11 or 12 yards of mulch was fine on a three ton truck).

Now dump a yard of stone dust in your pick-up and watch it squat...

HG

[cynthia_h]

Agreed: soil would be denser than compost (pore spaces in compost being larger--that's part of the point of it! air! oxygen!), but at least it's a starting point. Compost => lower density. Rock dust (rocks) => higher density.

And let me tell you about my Honda Accord when I had a load of river rocks in it one time....

Cynthia

[Sage Hermit]

XD

[hay]

Here is what I would do....If you have leaves and newspaper then rake the leaves and tear newspsper in strips and buy some bone meal and dried blood and garden lime. Put down a layer of newspaper strips and a big layer of DAMPENED leaves(preferably shredded) and sprinkle the bone/blood/lime on top. Water lightly until water just runs out of the bottom of a container. Keep building layers the same way. When full get another container and start over. Do as many as you have space/time/energy to do. Let them all sit outside uncovered in sunglight for at least one year ( two or more if you want crumbly compost) and you will have the best leaf mold compost for your garden. IT IS a LOT OF WORK, but it pays off in better plants and veggies.