Another thing I do is to take Rubbermaid containers of very mature, finely sifted compost to garden clubs or other venues with gardeners. It is such a high to see these (usually elderly) people shove their hands into the 'post and pull up a big handful to their noses. These people "get it" and need no explanation. I suspect a lot of people on this forum are like that. Once they see it, they "get it". Lloyd P.S. I keep a tub in the house over the winter to get my "fix" now and then.

Thanks! As a hypothetical question, how do wood chips suppress weeds? If I had wood chips, should I be putting down newspaper/cardboard/landscape fabric under them too? I thought they supressed weeds by creating a surface, an upper/top surface, that any seeds that blew onto it couldn't grow on, because the surface was wood. But I wonder if you're saying that the weeds I need to worry about are coming from underneath, up through the mulch? In which case, is there anything about wood chips that stops that better than compost? Like the robbing-nitrogen-from-the-soil stuff I've heard about wood chips?

I think that some people have more land to work with, and are willing to wait longer for finished compost. We have a large maple tree in our front yard, and the city of Madison is not very prompt at picking up leaves left on the curb. It makes sense for me to rake them into a windrow, and chop them up with the lawnmower. This reduces the volume considerably, so when I put the chopped leaves on the compost pile, it ends up being 6 feet high, and 8 feet in diameter. That's a pretty big pile, for our yard. The finished compost goes on our garden plot, in May, when I dig out the pile. If I lived in a rural area, on a larger plot of land, I might rake the leaves into a pile, and just let them sit for a few years, until the compost was ready to use.

kimm I believe the calculation is correct. Let's try it slowly: Average large egg shell = 7 grams. 12 shells per week = 7 x 12 = 84 grams per week 52 weeks per year = 52 x 84 = 4,368 grams per year Eggshell composition is 94% calcium carbonate or lime (CaCO3) 4,368 x0.94 = 4,105 grams CaCO3 4,105 grams = 9.04 lbs CaCO3 Please tell me, kimm, where is the calculation wrong? Now, for application rate of lime, many soil authoritarians recommend a limit on lime application of 50 lbs/1,000 sq ft for residential applications, and no more than one application per year, unless the current pH indicates a need for more than 100 lbs per 1,000 sq feet. When current conditions indicate a need of more than 100 lbs per 1,000 sq feet, then up to half of the amount indicated may be applied in the first year alone. Subsequent years should be limited to the 50 lb per 1000 rate, or less. The reason behind the recommendations is because, as you indicate, it is slow acting and it is easy to overshoot and end up adversely affecting pH in the alkaline direction. Also, as you suggest, the rate of availability will be strongly influenced by the particle size. But don't take my word for it, how about that of the Ohio State University, linked below. MSU also recommends a limit of 50 lbs per 1,000 sq feet per year on residential lawns. edit added - Different soil authorities will allow for different maximal rates for lime applications. Some will allow for as much as 100 lb per 1000 sq ft per year, but not more than 50lbs/1000 sq ft per application. Regardless of the varied maximal liming recommendations that may exist, the point was to know what you're putting in your compost, and in turn your soil (1 doz eggshells per week equals 9 lbs of lime per year), and make sure that's what you want. kimmsr, is there any part of that with which you disagree? There is nothing wrong with using eggshells, provided that you want the lime they bring. I don't, and there are many others in the U.S. who are in the same position as me. Here is a link that might be useful: Lime and the Home Lawn This post was edited by TXEB on Mon, Aug 26, 13 at 11:17