It seems everyone has an opinion when it comes to Cedar Grove Compost. Some love it and some could live without it. Part of the reason this is, is because in the past many people have received a truck load of compost or soil from Cedar Grove only to be dismayed when they have found more than a few pieces of plastic and inorganic material- glass, styrofoam ect. It turns out the issue was really you and me! The ‘Organics’ garbage bins that are now common place throughout cities and cul-de-sacs were often filled with items that were far from organic. This alien material made its way to Cedar Grove composting facilities which in turn made its way into their finished compost products. I have heard my fair share of Seattleites complain of this problem. And one can understand where they are coming from! No one wants to see plastic blowing in the wind as it surfaces in what was once a pristine garden bed! But that was then, CG has admitted to the problem and has taken steps to fix it. New, better processing equipment and technologies are in place and whats more is they no longer take ‘organics’ from the city of Seattle- where the worst offenders resided.
We got the chance to talk with Joseph Anderson- a Cedar Grove representative and hear more about CG and the many benefits and advantages of their compost.
We are constantly being asked as to what we recommend as a compost for gardens, and we have been hesitant to recommend any particular compost provider. Though the verdict is still out for us and CG we have pleased with the couple cubic yards that we have picked up from them. We will continue to trial it along with other composts and let you know our thoughts!
On another note, one interesting thing about CG compost is that they use zero biosolids or animal manures making them the go to option for those who are vegans and wish their garden inputs to be vegan as well. Happy gardening! 🙂
Have you ever just walked into a environment and had this ‘sense of place‘? Like the moments you were now spending meant more than most others? In Christianity we would define this as a holiness- there is something in that moment or place that is ‘set apart’. We don’t show up to every job we do expecting this but we did find it when we visited with Dave and worked on his property this Wednesday Jan. 31! Dave is an Orthodox practicing Jew who lives in Seattle, WA with his family. They have invested heavily in their backyard to make it a beautiful place of rest and rejuvenation, and you could feel that as you walked through it. Along with a real “Sukkot” in their backyard (A booth or dwelling used to live in during the feast of Tabernacles) they also had a life sized chess board measuring about 14×14′! Talk about a cool spot! But what I really wanted to get to was something that I learned from Dave. Every year, around this time there is a jewish holiday where Jews are instructed to take trees and plant them! Jews all over the world on January 31 were planting trees! Dave’s children in their school were taking time out of their studies to plant trees. Wall street execs and business CEO’s were planting trees. The elderly were planting trees. How cool! I will let Dave in this video explain it better than I can:
This is definitely something we can get on board with at Restoring Eden. We often share with people that there is just something so profound and spiritual in touching the earth, in putting your bare hands in soil and just letting it ground you. Remember this is the material we came from- everyone basically agrees on that! Cultivating and caring for the land and the earth is not something we can just delegate to a few large corporations and agricultural companies. Its something that we must experience for ourselves, not only is it instructed in many religious texts but our souls themselves cry out to be reconnected to the earth as well. As any gardener can attest, working with and touching soil is beyond just stress relieving and rewarding, it can, if allowed transport us, realigning us with something much bigger than ourselves.
Ever since we started using raised garden beds it has been hard to want to use anything else! Oftentimes our clients ground is so rocky and infertile that the effort to remove the grass, till the soil, then take soil samples, come back with the correct amendments and till those back in is just not worth the work. Not to mention you will be fighting weeds from here to eternity. Although we still have a garden plot at Restoring Eden that is simply hilled dirt we are considering converting the 1200 sq. ft. plot to only raised beds! Some of the keep benefits of raised beds are the following:
Very little, if any weed pressure
You can import your soil which means higher fertility and nutrient uptake vs. native soil (Try “lasagna gardening” in raised beds!)
No soil compaction means roots easily establish themselves leading to healthier more robust plants
Easy installation and maintenance of drip irrigation
Less bending over to tend to plants, easier harvest!
Less pest pressure
Although there is an upfront costs to raised beds, they are a more productive and effective means to garden for the home and hobby gardener. They promise you years and years of some of the easiest gardening you will ever do! We enjoy time in the garden as much as anyone but why do more work than you have to? Its better to spend that extra time enjoying the fruits of your labor with friends and family.
If your interested in raised garden beds please dont hesitate to call us! We would be glad to answer any questions you have. And if you would like us to do the work for you then we would love too! We offer design, delivery and installation of garden beds in the Puget Sound area. Thanks! -Troy 2532025587
