A good way to spread compost??????????

[RonR]

Ok, anyone figured out a good way to spread compost to top dress a lawn?

I have 2,000 pounds of composted zoo doo sitting in my trailer. Best I can come up is a shovel..........................

I have a BX2200 and FEL, but don't want to kill out the existing grass that I think might happen if I use that to spread it. (also, can't get the loader onto the trailer due to trailer sides very easily)

Solutions for me need to be cheap and easy. Someone please surprise me and provide me an answer better than the shovel as I need to get another 2,000 pounds for the front yard.........

THANKS.
Ron (soon to be tired as I'm heading out to shovel)

 

[greg_g]

You haven't said if you've got a tractor. If so, I recommend a landscape rake.

//greg//

 

[jmc]

Ron,

I made a pair of ski's for my box blade: one for each end. Their purpose was to suspend the box blade and adjustable distance above the ground, say 1 to 2 inches, leaving that thickness of compost as you dragged a load. Like you, I didn't want to put on too thick a layer and kill the existing grass. Clumps were a problem as well as wet pockets of compost. It seemed to work best when the box was full. Also the weight of the box blade concentrated on those ski's left grooves in the grass. Better than a shovel but before I use it again, I'll try a rake as Greg suggested.

John

 

[RonR]

Thanks!

I'd thought about putting a set of gage wheels on my BB and could do the same thing...............

BUT, 2K pounds is on the grass spread by shovel now. Need at least one more trailer load next weekend.

By the time I could fab/install gage wheels, I could have the next load unloaded as well. /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

Oh well, it's an idea..................

Thanks.
Ron

 

[KiotiJohn]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I have 2,000 pounds of composted zoo doo sitting in my trailer. )</font>
Are you sure it's composted and not too fresh. Zoo do can have some really strong dung, esp. elephant. If it doesn't set up for a LONG time, it will be way too strong to put on just about anything. I learned the hard way when my dad brought home a huge load of elephant dung when he worked on a circus car that was on the line he worked for. It took a few months before we could safely use it. Before we found that out, we ruined a lot of garden.
GREG G, He said he has a BX2200, that's a Kubota tractor model. John

 

[RonR]

This stuff looks just like rich dirt. Didn't smell at all, until I watered the heck out of what I'd applied-then it smelled faintly like horse stuff.

In fairness to Greg G, I edited my post to add the tractor information AFTER he posted his reply. Greg had a valid question.

I'm not too concerned about the maturity of the doo. Heck, our golden retriever didn't even react much to it. A couple of nose-in-the-air sniffs and you could see her prcessing trying to id the smell. Then it was back to other stuff that interested her.

I'm really hopeful this gives my lawn a jumpstart and gets the ground conditioned more. I might verticut and overseed yet this fall in hopes that the might put me over the top.

THKS.
Ron

 

[MarkV]

Our community composts yard waste and makes it available free for the taking. I just brought home my tenth dump truck load and have been using it to help turn some of our dark red clay into some what less red clay. A landscape rake with gauge wheels has worked the best to spread it out for me. Even at that good compost is going to be damp and I generally have to go back over it after the initial spreading when it has dried in the sun a bit.

Of course this doesn’t help your present situation at all so I’ll just take an extra Advil tonight when I think of you and that shovel. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

MarkV

 

[RonR]

Hey Mark you are right on with the Advil.................

After using the "shovel to broadcast" the stuff yesterday, and raking some of the high spots, we watered the heck out of it.

I don't have a landscape rake, but might build a rake of sorts using spring tines like off of a rake. I also toyed with the idea of buying about 6 leaf rakes, sawing the handles to about 12 inches, and fitting them inside a tube. Hooking that to the tool bar I have, it could be a powered leaf rake.

But alas, doing that would take the same amount of time to just shovel it......................... and take some more advil.

Ron

 

[bigpete]

See if you can find a small manure spreader--most horse farms use them. Many implement companies will rent one pretty cheaply. After getting it on the lawn, a tine de-thatcher works well to even things out. Make sure the tines are set well above the soil line. At least 1/2" to 1". It make take several passes with the dethatcher, but it should do the trick.

 

[bigpete]

Ooops...I see you are about done. Sorry