This time of year is definitely known as harvest season, it's impossible to go anywhere without seeing acres and acres of corn fields on their last leg. But if you are a grower of one of the delicious late season vegetables, whether it be broccoli or cauliflower, lettuces like cabbage and arugula, some root tubers like beets, radishes or carrots as well as seasonal squashes and many others, you may still have several weeks yet to go!
Right now, as the weather is changing, is an ideal time to add a layer of compost to these late season veggie patches. For higher value crops it's best to use a compost that will replenish your biology while also including added minerals and nutrients. This allows you to add less fertility and double your inputs in one simple step! Purple Cow Organics Activated Compost will infuse trace minerals, nutrients, and microbes into your soil, which will ensure that your vegetables will make it all the way to their late season harvest while still being as healthy and nutrient-dense as possible.
If you are a professional grower, it's likely that you are already familiar with the benefits of compost. But in addition to it's health benefits, it can also add a layer of protection against unpredictable fall weather. Here in Wisconsin, we may have a beautiful day in the 70's, but that can easily drop to a chilly night in the 40's. The frost point is never terribly far away and that added layer of compost can trap in heat to keep your plant's roots from freezing. It's also very likely that your soil has felt the effects of wind and rain quite a few times by this point in the season. Those environmental elements will only gain strength later in the season and are yet another reason to add that extra layer of protection.
We typically recommend that most growers "put their soil to bed" for the winter with a layer of compost. If you are a late season vegetable grower you could get a dual purpose application. Introducing compost and minerals in the fall (with or without cover crops) is a great way to introduce organic matter, microbes, and slow-release fertility into your soil. Doing this in the spring instead will still work, but incorporating in fall gives the compost, nutrients and microbes more time and opportunity to infiltrate the existing soil without unnecessarily tilling or turning the soil (which can break up fungal strands already existent in the soil). Similarly to the fall benefits, this layer of compost also provides a protective barrier against snow and winter erosion.
Depending on the size of your plot you will likely need bulk material for this application. We offer two types of composts, the previously mentioned Activated Compost is available in two cubic yard supersacks as well as in bulk truckloads of 25 cubic yards (Wisconsin only) or 35 cubic yards. Activated is also available in one cubic foot bags available in local independent garden centers or on pallets of 50 bags directly from us. Our second product is Classic Compost, this is the plant-based material, rich in organic matter, that is used to create Activated. Classic is a bulk-only product available in 25 CY (Wisconsin only) or 35 CY truckload quantities.
For more information on late season compost applications, the rest of the Purple Cow Organics products, or to place an order, please send us a message through the Contact tab at the top of the page.