Mushroom compost is one of my favorite soil amendments. Derived from a variety of organic matter, it turns Florida sandy soil into amazing beds of garden soil. We have a local supplier nearby enabling us to get the compost by the trailer load. It’s not as convenient as buying bags of mushroom compost from your local garden center, but it is a lot cheaper.
Getting the compost off the trailer and into the garden is another story. Thankfully, I have a husband with a tractor and a teenage son in search of earning extra money. The two went to work and after a few hours of diligent physical labor, they had the compost spread throughout my entire garden.
Organic Soil Amendment
Using mushroom compost in your garden is the perfect soil amendment, however it must be mixed in well, or plants won’t survive possibly due to high salt levels in the compost. A great article on the subject can be found at Gardening Know How. I’ve never had problems planting with it, but it’s something to keep in mind. Here’s a close image of the compost. You can see bits of hay or straw in it. What you can’t see is how awful it smells. Not pleasant!
But if you can get past the stink, you’ll see the results are truly amazing. Over the next few months, I’ll be planting potatoes, sweet onions, garlic, sugar snap peas, carrots, broccoli, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts. I’ll keep you posted on how well they grow so you can get your mushroom compost in time for spring planting.
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