Compost. Is there any way one can have home made compost tested at maturity to find out its nutritional value and whether it has

maitai2, Dec 7, 8:30pm
Is there any way one can have home-made compost tested (at maturity) to find out its nutritional value and whether it has all the good things one's plants need!

My compost bins are 25 feet long, by 5 feet wide, by 4 feet deep. They are divided into about 6 foot lengths. I have all the garden pruning and weeding materials in, plus lawn clippings, plus horse manure straight from the trotting club and I go around the streets and collect leaves. So they have all the goodies, except seaweed, which is unavailable in Tasman Bay.I need a trip to Ward Beach with a truck !I don't need to turn the bins as they mature naturally over 12 months with hundreds of worms. I am at present cutting a "coal face" 5 feet wide by 4 feet high of "black gold".

lythande1, Dec 8, 5:03am
What! Just use it.

kateley, Dec 8, 6:29am
There's no reason to test it - the proof will be in your marvellous garden

BTW - I'm very jealous

graham14, Dec 8, 11:22am
I'm Jealous and in Awe.

samanya, Dec 8, 5:59pm
FGS! why are you even asking!
It sounds as if you have a wonderful compost set up!
Bung it on your garden & then if you get a weed or 10 .pull them out!
I have several compost bins & I'm buggered if I can get the weeds killed through enough heat .but I can put everything through the bins & pop it on my garden & then kill the b'stard weeds by manual pulling (plus a bit of round up)
Go for it!
Be thankful for your wonderful climate & get growing!

cantabman1, Dec 9, 6:02am
The natural tester you already have are the worms. Compost in general allows airation of the ground incouraging you plants to spread their roots.
I too gathered over 30 wheel barrows of leaves in the Autumn, mixed with kitchen scraps and coffee grounds.I dont put any onion or citrus in the mix. Come spring time every blackbird around here comes and feasts on worms for their young, as i spread it thru the new seasons garden.