Preparing Your Soil for Laying Turf (While also using organic compost)
If you want your new lawn to look magnificent and eye-pleasing, you need to lay turf as professionally as possible. Before you even apply one single blade of turf, you need to prepare your garden’s soil accordingly. It’s no secret that a good lawn means good preparation. You need to allow plenty of time to get the soil ready for your turf laying, and sometimes it will even mean adding organic compost to improve the soil’s nutrients.
Clear the Area
Every last bit of plant scrap needs to be removed from the lawn area. This means every pinch of wild grass, plants, leaves, roots, twigs, stones, etc. In short, everything. If there is a carpet of old grass before, this can be composted down and made into organic compost. If you use a systemic weed killer, wait at least 3 weeks after application before cleaning out the soil.
(more…)- Published in Garden Landscaping
It’s All About the Potting Mix and Organic Compost
The pandemic has created a huge following for container gardening. Urban and small-space gardening is still on the rise, houseplants and even vegetables are filling up social media posts. However, some beginners seem to get confused between potting mix, topsoil, and organic compost.
Potting mix and topsoil
A potting mix contains inorganic and organic materials and may also include mineral soil and a little sand. Bags of potting mix marked as “sterilised” means that the mix can kill weed seeds and pests. Some potting mixes are marked as “soilless.” Instead, they contain peat moss and organic compost for moisture retention, and vermiculite or perlite for drainage. Some potting mixes are specially made to accommodate the needs of specific plants. These will usually be labelled as orchid mix, flower potting mix, etc.
(more…)- Published in Garden Landscaping
Four Tips to Continue Gardening with an Extended Pandemic (Don’t Forget the Organic Compost)
These are troubling times as most of Australia is in lockdown again as a “second wave” is hitting the country. But, for many, they see a silver lining as they continue to tend to their gardens. For those who now want to start their gardens, we offer these four tips for you. And yes, do prepare to get some organic compost from your local landscape supply (In South East Queensland and Brisbane, that would be Labrador Landscape Supply).
Embrace the opportunity
Firstly, before you even start, get to know what’s around your garden-to-be and how much area you want to cultivate. Time will seem to move slowly during lockdowns so embrace the time to garden. So, go into the area where you intend to garden and observe what’s going on.
(more…)- Published in Garden Landscaping
The Basics and Benefits of Mushroom Organic Compost
Organic compost, which is basically decomposed organic matter, is used as a fertiliser, soil conditioner, and natural soil pesticide. In maintaining a healthy and chemical-free garden, landscape, or organic farm, make sure to add compost to your soil as it is packed with nutrients. There are a plethora of organic materials you can use to make your compost. In this article, we will focus on mushroom compost, specifically. Let’s start with the basics.
What is mushroom compost?
Mushroom compost is a kind of slow-release, organic plant fertiliser also known as mushroom soil. To the unfamiliar, they would assume that it is an organic compost made solely out of mushrooms—it is not. To make this compost, you must use soil that has been used to grow the mushrooms. It is comprised of various materials, including:
(more…)- Published in Landscape Supply
Types of Organic Compost Sold by Labrador Landscape Supplies
The Importance of Composting
Composting is the process of turning organic matter that is ready for disposal into something beneficial. It is important because it converts organic materials (except anything animal-based) such as vegetable matter, eggshells, coffee grinds, tea bags, paper products, trimmed grasses, twigs/leaves, and the like by allowing them to decompose into a rich form of soil. This organic compost matter is chock-full of vitamins and helps in growing plants in any space. Compost is also crucial because it wards off harmful pests.
At Labrador Landscape Supplies, we understand that the right type of organic compost can make all the difference in a garden. Thus, Labrador Landscape provides only high-quality compost and soil combinations for any garden across the Brisbane and Gold Coast regions. Take a look at our unique soil and compost mixes.
(more…)- Published in Garden Landscaping
Make Organic Compost during the Pandemic
Now that the coronavirus pandemic is still driving people to stay and spend more time at home, many people are turning to gardening. Whether the gardening is for ornamental landscaping or to grow vegetables for consumption, making your organic compost may be a good idea for the garden and to help with the environment by curbing organic and food waste.
Food and yard waste for organic compost is more manageable than most people think. Composting is a great idea and one of the best ways to prevent organic waste from entering the waste stream. While most food and yard waste can be composted, the following cannot be composted:
(more…)- Published in Landscape Supply
Advantages (and Small Disadvantages) of Using Organic Compost
If you’ve taken up gardening on a more serious level due to the lockdowns from the pandemic, you’ve probably been encouraged to use organic compost with your ornamental or vegetable garden. Organic compost is used as a fertiliser and mixed into the soil so the plants can absorb the natural nutrients. Organic compost can be made up of plant or animal waste. There are advantages in using organic compost, though with a few disadvantages as well. However, the disadvantages can be overcome with a few compromises.
(more…)- Published in Garden Landscaping
Cat and Dog Waste Mixed with Soil Creates Organic Compost
We all love our four-legged canine or feline family members. However, the by-product of these dogs and cats is the unwanted “poop.” In Australia alone, a large percentage of the population owns either a cat or dog, or both. This roughly amounts to more than 10 million cats and dogs. An average pooch or feline can approximately produce about 180 kilograms of animal waste in a year. So, all this waste can pile up even when it ends up in a landfill. Rather than throwing it away, you can use animal waste as a sustainable source of organic compost.
(more…)- Published in Landscape Supply
Turn Your Dog’s Poop into Organic Compost
Creating your own organic compost from your dog’s poop is a way to start creating a healthy vegetable bed in your yard. Since dogs are 40% commonly found in the household, you can gather plenty for your next composting project. So how do you turn your dog’s, or perhaps your neighbour’s dog’s poop, into an amazing compost? Here’s how you get it done.
Mark the area where you will be composting
If you have a large yard, you can build a compost bin out of old wooden pallets that you can get for free. Make sure that your compost bin is not near your house and not in easy access to children.
(more…)- Published in Landscape Supply
Everything about the Fundamentals of Organic Compost
Organic composts are considered as soil’s greatest friend. Organic compost can keep your soil healthy, and plants grow if they are added to your garden patch. It is a perfect fertiliser for your flower beds, a garden patch, house plants, other planting areas and trees that surround your property. For crops and produce, it could increase the quality of your yield, too. Now, isn’t that a wonder?
While the whole organic compost is truly a wonder of its own, it is best that we also have to take notice of the fundamentals of great organic compost.
- Published in Landscape Supply