new to SFG; buying local Compost advice?

lavamom on 3/20/2010, 3:20 pm

Hello,

I am new to SFG. I live in Kailua on Oahu. I am starting a single 4x4 garden. I was looking for a source of coarse vermiculite here, and was glad to see the post about it being available at Pacific Ag. Hopefully medium grade will be just as good.

I wondered what other people on Oahu have done for compost? I will be buying it, and am unsure about the five different varieties to get. So far I have Menehune Magic Organic Compost with Steer Manure and Menehune Magic Organic Soil Conditioning Compost. Can anyone recommend any others, along with where to get?

Thank you!

orionsbelt on 3/20/2010, 3:25 pm

I'm not anywhere near the Pacific, but I wonder if there are any garden supply stores in your area. Hardware stores are other good places to look. Most of them usually have at least one kind of compost. Hope this helps!

lavamom on 3/20/2010, 4:57 pm

Thanks - yes, I have been to a few garden supply stores (Koolau Farmers, True Value, Home Depot) but I want to make sure I am really getting five different kinds. Also, at one store, only after talking to someone who worked there for a while did I find out that one of the composts had human waste in it - cleaned somehow - but still not something I want to use, and not clearly marked on the bag ( I think it said "bio-waste" or something like that.) So - I have looked around, just wanted to get some local advice from more experienced people before buying.

OahuSFG on 3/22/2010, 3:08 pm

Human waste?!! Please let me know which brand that was.

I have used Niu brand organic compost (a little pricey), chicken manure from Lowes, potting soil from ACE Harware, Menehune and Kellogg compost, (the Menehune & Kellogg brands are coarse. I always sift it before mixing it with the vermiculite and peat).

HawaiiAl on 3/28/2010, 11:41 pm

Menehune potting soil has vermiculite in the mix caught it on sale at wal-mart for $ 5.00 dollars a bag added 10 bags to the mix works great

nidiyao on 3/29/2010, 2:57 am

OahuSFG wrote:Human waste?!! Please let me know which brand that was.

Milorganite contains processed sludge from the Milwaukee municipal water treatment (sewers) system. It's sold as fertilizer, haven't heard of "compost" containing human waste.

I don't find the labels on compost bags to be exactly dripping with information! And I wish my Lowe's had chicken manure.

Sandy

lavamom on 3/29/2010, 9:50 am

I'll get the name and how it is referred to, just to make sure it was human waste. I remember being shocked, and discussing with the salesclerk how it wouldn't be good for growing consumables. It was the Kailua Koolau Farms.

RE: Menehune Magic compost - I liked this the least of all that I bought - it was the least broken down, didn't have a rich, earthy smell. Big chunks of woody things and clumped "mud." Ok if you have one bag, but I had two. Whitney Farms Chicken Manure was the nicest - screened well, spongy feel, good smell. Niu Valley Compost was ok - but they sell in .75 cu ft bags - a bit annoying - why not 1 cu ft?

HawaiiAl - did you leave out some vermiculite, to compensate for the verm. already in the Menehune compost you bought? Great price for sure.

OahuSFG on 3/30/2010, 6:43 pm

I love going to Koolau Farms! They have so many plants that you can't find at HD, Wal-Mart or Lowes.

There is another store in Kalihi (by the Kapalama stream) that had some unusual plants (a Japanese Maple tree in Hawaii!) and organic compost that looked really good. But very expensive at 14.00 a bag! Fukuda Seeds is in the same shopping complex and has the most local seeds in one place, that I've seen anywhere to date.

I agree about the Menehune compost. I wish it was better cooked too. I did hear that you can get a whole truckload at their site for really cheap. But if it's bad compost then, well....

Did you find enough compost varieties?

lavamom on 3/30/2010, 7:36 pm

No, I don't think I found enough compost varieties, but I grew tired of looking and went with the "good enough" approach. I have a worm bin, and will be harvesting soon, so I will put some of that on, or maybe make some compost tea.

Here is what I ended up with:

One chicken, one part steer, one full steer, two unknown ingredients. Got the two Menehunes at the Kailua Green Waste facility. Niu was from City Mill. Whitney Farms was from True Value and Gardeners from Lowes.

OahuSFG on 3/30/2010, 7:50 pm

Looks like a good assortment C: Tell me how it works out with your planting.

mikesakamoto on 6/16/2010, 5:25 pm

Menehune does sell compost by the truck loads to the public. One cubic yard (27 cu ft) fills one pick up truck and sells for about $37. I think they are 1/2" screened. They have 3/8" as well.

I've bought from them several times to use in my in-ground garden (I only got the SFG book yesterday...

) and landscaping areas. They work just fine, although the larger wood pieces take a long time to decompose. The compost is definitely not the same quality or maturity. Maybe not the best for SFG, but if you need lots of compost you can't beat the price. It helps keep the weeds down in my landscaped areas.

ander217 on 6/17/2010, 4:40 am

I'm not from Hawaii, (although we loved Kaua'i and husband would be happy to become a permanent resident there), but you seem to have a good blend of compost. Just watch your plants. If they don't grow well in your mix then give them a boost with some fish emulsion or your fertilizer of choice. Mel's Mix isn't supposed to need supplemental fertilizers, but if you can't get enough different composts to make the type of blend he recommends you may have to add some oomph during the growing season. I had to do that for a batch made with only three composts.

I've started my own compost pile and I hope I won't run into this problem again.

Retired Member 1 on 6/17/2010, 5:17 am

lavamom wrote:I'll get the name and how it is referred to, just to make sure it was human waste. I remember being shocked, and discussing with the salesclerk how it wouldn't be good for growing consumables. It was the Kailua Koolau Farms.

Human waste fully composted is a wonderful fertilizer for everything including edibles. I've used it for years. After the composting process all pathogens are completely killed. We are destroying our planet by using potable water to flush human waste away and by not composting and using humanure. The Humanure Handbook book by Jenkins is an excellent source to dispell myths about using humanure. The previous edition is available free on-line. http://humanurehandbook.com/index.html

OahuSFG on 6/17/2010, 4:34 pm

mikesakamoto wrote:Menehune does sell compost by the truck loads to the public. One cubic yard (27 cu ft) fills one pick up truck and sells for about $37. I think they are 1/2" screened. They have 3/8" as well.

I've bought from them several times to use in my in-ground garden (I only got the SFG book yesterday... ) and landscaping areas. They work just fine, although the larger wood pieces take a long time to decompose. The compost is definitely not the same quality or maturity. Maybe not the best for SFG, but if you need lots of compost you can't beat the price. It helps keep the weeds down in my landscaped areas.

Did you know that Menehune compost comes from our own back yards?

I like the idea of using our island yard wastes instead of putting it in our very space limited landfill. That's why I still buy the Menehune even though it's not the best out there. Plus it supports buying local. I do wish it was better made though.

mikesakamoto on 6/18/2010, 12:06 pm

OahuSFG wrote:
Did you know that Menehune compost comes from our own back yards?

I like the idea of using our island yard wastes instead of putting it in our very space limited landfill. That's why I still buy the Menehune even though it's not the best out there. Plus it supports buying local. I do wish it was better made though.

Yeah, Menehune uses our green waste to make compost and other products. They have a very nice, informative webpage. Search Hawaii Earth Products.

You're right about buying local. Rather than buying compost that's shipped from the mainland, buying local products is part of being more "organic".

new to SFG; buying local Compost advice?

new to SFG; buying local Compost advice?

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