To enrich our soil, we use compost. Lots of it. What exactly is it?

Simply put, all organic matter rots. Over time, bacteria and other organisms break down everything from chicken poop to old zucchinis into a dirt-like substance that’s highly nutritious for plants. Compost is fantastic for building fertility, giving soil structure so it can better absorb and retain water (always an issue in dry California), and even suppressing certain plant diseases. It also increases the microorganisms in the soil, which helps our plants and trees produce better-tasting fruit and vegetables for you.

What goes into our compost? All of our plant waste, paper products, clippings from our vineyards and orchards, and feathers and manure from our goats, chickens, ducks, and bunnies. We use our final composted products (sometimes supplemented by worm castings) in our starter soil for greenhouse seedlings and in the fields before planting cover crops.

At the Urban Edge Farm, we produce several forms of compost:

• Compost (“regular” compost created from plant, animal, and paper residues)
• Vermicompost (soil that has been digested by earthworms and microbes)
• Compost Tea (compost that’s been steeped in water to make a “tea” that is sprayed directly on plants as a natural fertilizer)