3rd Annual Manure Fest Fundraiser – “Poopapalooza” – Sep 28, 2013

Purchase hormone and antibiotic-free manure for a small donation to Project COPE.

This is a joint venture between Colorado Springs Utilities and Ranch Foods Direct to benefit Project COPE. Project COPE provides utilities payment assistance to families and individuals struggling financially due to a personal crisis or emergency. Project COPE is the only local organization that dedicates its entire funding to utilities payment assistance year-round.

Here are the pertinent details:

When: Sep 28, 2012 – 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. – while supplies last
Where: Summerland Gardens, 124 E. Cheyenne Rd, Colorado Springs, 80906 (map)
What: 75 tons of aged, antibiotic-free manure from Ranch Foods Direct and Callicrate Cattle Co.
Cost/Donation: $20 per half yard OR $5 for two bags. Cash, check, and credit cards accepted.

How: Bring a truck, trailer, bags, or five gallon buckets to get as little or as much as you would like.

Why: Organic manure, like the material found on Callicrate’s Kansas ranch, is an excellent addition to soils, providing the nutrients needed for healthy, sustainable gardens and landscapes. Manure increases the soil’s water-holding capacity and promotes healthy populations of soil-building microorganisms.

For more information (including reserving manure), visit http://ranchfoodsdirect.com/event/poopapalooza/

And for information on using manure in your garden, see Colorado State University Extension’s Garden Note #242: Using Manure in the Home Garden

Submitted by Carey Harrington, Certified Colorado Gardener

 

Spread Manure, Sprout Hope Event – Sep 29, 2012

Purchase hormone and antibiotic-free manure for a small donation to Project COPE.

This is a joint venture between Colorado Springs Utilities and Ranch Foods Direct to benefit Project COPE. Project COPE provides utilities payment assistance to families and individuals struggling financially due to a personal crisis or emergency. Project COPE is the only local organization that dedicates its entire funding to utilities payment assistance year-round.

Here are the pertinent details:

When: Sep 29, 2012 – 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. – while supplies last
Where: Pinello Ranch, 4940 S. Hwy 85/97, Colorado Springs, 80911 (MAP)
What: 75 tons of aged, antibiotic-free manure from Ranch Foods Direct and Callicrate Cattle Co.
Cost/Donation: $20 per truckload OR $5 for a bag. Cash, check, and credit cards accepted.

How: Bring a truck, trailer, bags, or five gallon buckets to get as little or as much as you would like.

Why: Organic manure, like the material found on Callicrate’s Kansas ranch, is an excellent addition to soils, providing the nutrients needed for healthy, sustainable gardens and landscapes. Manure increases the soil’s water-holding capacity and promotes healthy populations of soil-building microorganisms.

Submitted by Carey Harrington, Certified Colorado Gardener

 

75 Ton Manure Stimulus Event! Oct 15, 2011

Well that got your attention, didn’t it? (And you’ll notice we don’t have any manure pictures…well maybe if you look reeeeeally closely at that field…)

This is a joint venture between Colorado Springs Utilities and Ranch Foods Direct to benefit Project COPE. Project COPE provides utilities payment assistance to families and individuals struggling financially due to a personal crisis or emergency. Project COPE is the only local organization that dedicates its entire funding to utilities payment assistance year-round.

Here are the pertinent details:

 

New Advice on Soil Amendments

Q: I’ve gotten my test results back from the soil lab, telling me to add some organic matter. What’s the best thing to add?

A: In the past, we’d just bop on down to the local garden center and load up a few bags of… something. Soil amendment, composted manure, planting mix, potting mix, top soil, compost… there are hundreds of products, and the names are pretty random.

So are the ingredients. Since there are no legal standards, these bags can contain whatever the manufacturer wants them to. There’s no labeling law, either. If there’s a label at all, often you’ll see something like, “Contains (peat, forest products compost, and/or compost), wetting agent, fertilizer.” You have no idea if this particular bag has peat or compost, much less what went into that compost. And what’s a forest product? Bark? Sawdust? Squirrels?