Purchasing Compressed vs Loose Soil

[ninnymary]

Sprig, you need to do this. Put your arms around her and give her a big long hug. Tell her how much you appreciate her and the reasons you love her so much. Then ask in a sweet voice if it's ok to get the compost. Explain the great price and your intentions to move it out in a month. It should work.

Mary

 

[AMKuska]

Yeah, that's what sucks . Being a one person operation I won't plant these all at once, and my wife will absolutely give me that look - you know the one - if I had a giant pile of dirt dumped in the driveway and then let it sit there for a month or two as I plant trees

Just give her this look:

 

[ducks4you]

AW, MAN!!! NOT aNOTHER INET Cat video!!!!

 

[YourRabbitGirl]

I've always bought bags of loose soil, and have generally stuck with Fox Farm as a brand, but now that I need to fill a lot of pots I'm looking around at What my best financially smart options are and I'm seeing compressed bales of soil. Seems like a 3.8cu bale is truly 7cu of soil

Does anyone have experience purchasing those? What issues or frustrations have you had dealing with them.

Example

I always use loose soil. It allows water to drain freely, preventing waterlogging, while supplying the air and nutrients plant roots need to thrive. Thank you for the brand recommendation. I will try that brand.

 

[ducks4you]

With some sweat equity You can loosen up your soil. Don't walk on it and compress it. Btw, without amendment Gravity will compress your soil when it dries out.
Growing plants in pure compost can cause problems with water retention and stability as well. When mixed with topsoil, compost works wonders with water, as it allows good drainage through heavy soil while it retains water in sandy soil. ... So while it may be tempting, planting in pure compost is not a good idea.Jul 9, 2019
Can Plants Grow In Compost Only - Learn About Growing ...

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com › planting-in-pure-compost

 

[ducks4you]

You also want to dispose of ANY weed seeds that you can find. I get pasture weeds in my hay every year. If you buy hay without them it is possible that the field may have been overpoisoned, so you live with it. My horses won't touch curly dock seed stems. I sometimes burn them, but mostly pick them up from their stalls and toss them in the barn garbage bag.
I mention this bc sometimes your compost may contain some weed seeds. If they grow up next to your tender baby plants, try cutting up paper grocery sacks up to put down and smother the small weed sprouts, if it is difficult to pull them. Carboard also works well, but it is harder to cut than paper. Newspaper and shreaded document paper works great, too.

 

[catjac1975]

if you mean screen as in they run it through a screen to remove large chunks vs. screen as in look at it to make sure it passes some sort of inspection...? a screen (in the first sense) would not have helped in my case but had i looked at it closely before i had them mix it with the topsoil i requested i would have rejected it. most of the contaminants were not easily visible until it was in place and watered. it was as if they took municiple trash, picked out the obvious pieces and then ground the rest into small chunks and composted it. what a mess...

Through a screen to remove rocks and junk. 1/3 manure, 1/3 compost, and 1/3 native soil, mixed. It is great stuff , so I think it is true. You can get municipal compost here. It used to be free to residents and a charge the professionals. I think They might be charging residents now.I would not use it on my vegetable gardens . They may add fly ash frommthe waste to energy plant. God only knows what kind of toxins are in that.

 

[valley ranch]

I've seen videos of compressed soil used for building ~ a house ```

 

[TEG Project Manager]

I've always bought bags of loose soil, and have generally stuck with Fox Farm as a brand, but now that I need to fill a lot of pots I'm looking around at What my best financially smart options are and I'm seeing compressed bales of soil. Seems like a 3.8cu bale is truly 7cu of soil

Does anyone have experience purchasing those? What issues or frustrations have you had dealing with them.

Example

Great insights! Congrats on getting featured on our homepage!

 

[SprigOfTheLivingDead]

Great insights! Congrats on getting featured on our homepage!

Thanks. I personally ended up going with a dump truck of compost, black dirt and sand mixture. I ended up using two parts that to 1 part horse manure and this has seemed to be a good mixture to be draining while still holding moisture