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Black Gold

June 11th, 2014

A week or two ago I had a five yard load of compost delivered. If you remember, last year I ordered 28 yards of compost – that’s a lot of compost – and I have the biceps to prove that it was all spread with a shovel, by me, alone.
Compost (1)
This year I purchased compost from a different company. It’s not that I wasn’t happy with what I got last year, I actually loved the compost and will be purchasing from Kinney Compost again next year. This compost is made from lobster, fish and leftovers from local seafood restaurants.
Compost 1
This compost is made right down the road, only a few miles away.  I saw a sign for Earthly Compost at the post office and called to chat with them about their product. It sounded great and I had a five yard load delivered. This compost company is close so I don’t have to pay for delivery, I can also get five yards at a time instead of all of my compost at once. I’ll probably be calling them again in a few weeks to have another five yards delivered.
Compost 2
Compost 3
Since this compost is made from fish waste it will contain different micronutrients than the manure based compost I purchased last year. It’s always good to alternate different kinds of amendments and composts in your garden. This will help balance things out so you don’t end up with too much of one thing and not enough of another. I feel very lucky to have two fantastic sources of quality compost so close. When we lived back in Ohio it was hard to find places that made good compost, the one company I purchased from was fare away and delivery was pricey!

Do you ever purchase compost from local companies? Have you discovered any great sources in your area?

12 Comments to “Black Gold”
  1. Lemongrass on June 11, 2014 at 5:41 am

    Fish compost…………your plants will be smiling. I have been composting my veggies scraps combined with dried banana leaves——Grenada has tons on banana leaves. Last month I was passing by the fish market and thought of getting some fish trimmings to compost. I did not have a small bucket with me, so I put the idea on the back burner, Reading your post reminded me to carry a bucket next time I pass by the fish-market.

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  2. Marina on June 11, 2014 at 5:44 am

    Black gold it is!
    I get my compost from the same guy I get my maple syrup from, an organic grass fed beef farmer who lives down the road and is such a nice person to boot. So I get his compost from super healthy manure and it’s beautiful stuff. On my 2 acres, it’s hard for me to produce enough compost for all my raised beds.

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  3. Jennifer Fisk on June 11, 2014 at 6:07 am

    That is gorgeous stuff. I had planned to take my trailer to Kinney’s in Thorndike for some of theirs but life got in my way. Next fall perhaps. Your plantings will be very happy.

    Reply to Jennifer Fisk's comment

  4. Adriana on June 11, 2014 at 7:19 am

    We are lucky to have generous neighbors. We get cow and horse manure from two neighbors. We compost it ourselves with our own chicken and duck bedding, leaves, grass, etc. Sometimes we treat ourselves to seafood and the shells go in the compost as well.

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  5. Misti on June 11, 2014 at 9:23 am

    I’ve always wondered what kind of heavy metal content compost from fisheries might have. Is there any information on that from where you got your compost?

    Reply to Misti's comment

    • Susy on June 11, 2014 at 11:21 am

      The mycelium in the composting process would help mitigate some of the heavy metals, this particular lobster compost is long composted which would make it even better. I also add activated charcoal to my soil on occasion to help and since I don’t till and work the soil the mycelium structure is very good, which also helps mitigate heavy metals and other toxins. I know that the other place I get compost from has their compost tested and this place does too I believe. I didn’t ask for the information, they are certified by our local organic gardeners & farmers association which gives me more peace of mind.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  6. Sarah Kincheloe on June 11, 2014 at 11:28 am

    I haven’t found a good local source for compost. I have more than I need from my own compost pile which now includes chicken and rabbit manure, but I usually by composted cow manure a little at a time by the bag for my trees and to occasionally add to my pile. Not sure where it’s sourced from though :/

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  7. Lindsey @HalfDimeHomestead on June 11, 2014 at 5:21 pm

    I haven’t ever had compost delivered – I have such limited beds that I just buy bags of the local stuff from the hardware store every couple of weeks and tote it home. I also make our own but it never seems to be enough! This stuff looks awesome.

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  8. Cheryl on June 11, 2014 at 8:41 pm

    I have bought Black Gold here in our community, but I only use it in non-food producing beds. Our black gold has hu-manure in it. I feel squeamish about growing food in it. But, there is hope. Compost is available in our community that is made of green waste and pasta. Yes, Pasta. We live near a large frozen Italian foods producer and so the waste from their operation is composted and made into green waste mulch. It is not as dark or “delicious” to the plants, but it is recycled without making me feel squeamish. Too bad I can’t get the black gold my mother buys. It is based upon chicken manure. The human – manure idea is still hard for me to wrap my head around.

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  9. Teresa on June 11, 2014 at 10:03 pm

    I got loam with compost for our new beds this year and the plants in those beds have taken off like crazy. Alas, they don’t sell just compost. I’m pretty much stuck with what I make. The town has a composting site, but my husband was warned by someone from the DPW not to use it for the vegetable garden since they don’t monitor what goes into it.

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  10. Chris on June 12, 2014 at 10:11 pm

    I think anytime you can get good, clean, composted anything right in your neighborhood, that it is a win win for everyone involved. That compost looks amazing!
    I too, switch up my compost material just to be assured that we have enough good stuff from all different sources.
    We do however, from time to time use sewage sludge here…it is called Tagro in the industry and is completely safe, sanitized, etc. etc. Although, they say it is safe for food crops, we still just use it on non-food things like ornamentals, lawns, trees, shrubs, what have you and they flourish like crazy! It’s just the ick factor of it’s origins that turn people off to it’s benefits!
    It has to go somewhere…it might as well go back to where it came from…Us! :)

    Reply to Chris's comment

  11. Lorna on June 13, 2014 at 9:29 am

    I have compost envy–that stuff sounds and looks gorgeous!
    I haven’t found a source of good, safe (and affordable) compost around here–even the local source just down the road wants a minimum of $99 for delivery, and that doesn’t include the cost of the compost! We don’t produce enough of our own to make a difference in our 3,000sqft garden, so I make sure I mineralize the soil–and what a difference that makes!

    Reply to Lorna's comment

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This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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