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Adding still warm compost
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Posted by ninjabut USDA z 8,CA (My Page) on Sat, Feb 6, 10 at 21:11
It's almost asparagus season, and I'm told I should be adding some sort of manure/fertilizer to the bed before it starts to sprout.This will be my first year harvesting.
I don't have a source of "aged" manure at this time, but have a bin of almost done compost. It is still warm/hot .
Can I top the gus bed with this stuff while still warm/hot?
TIA |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Adding still warm compost
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| Can you still identify the various ingredients? If so, you would be putting down more mulch than compost. It's still only early February. I would think that it might be better to turn your compost once a week for maybe four weeks, encouraging it to break down more, and then put it down on the asparagus. No facts to back it up, though, just a feeling. Sue |
RE: Adding still warm compost
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Adding compost to an Asparagus bed before the growing season does little to help what is growing there this year. Better would be to wait until harvesting is done and then cover the soil with compost, and maybe some other material, as mulch to aid in "weed" suppression, soil moisture retention, soil temperature control, and to add more organic matter to the soil.
Why were you told to add some kind of "Fertilzer/Manure" before the Asparagus sprouted? |
RE: Adding still warm compost
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| .. I can't see that it would be a major disaster if you did. I'm just not sure it would benefit anything at this point until later. It would just be a mulch at this point which is fine by me. to sense .. |
RE: Adding still warm compost
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| Yes, it will work well as a mulch, and the worms that it may attract will work their fertilizing magic. |
RE: Adding still warm compost
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| Unfinished compost can be useful, but I'd wait until after the asparagus is already growing before using unfinished compost. Unfinished compost contains certain acids (such as butyric and oxalic) that inhibit root growth and seed germination. Those characteristics would be useful for preventing weeds, but they can be hard on young vegetable plants. I have learned this the hard way. Wait for the asparagus to sprout and get established before applying unfinished compost. As an experiment, you might try applying your compost to some of the asparagus to see if it delays ripening; a way to extend the season. While the compost finishes in your garden bed, it might slow down the asparagus enough to ensure a late-season crop. My local big-box home improvement store sells an organic fertilizer. I'd buy and use something like that on the soil to prepare it for spring. I'd also use it to help the compost finish. |
RE: Adding still warm compost
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