Well-Composted Manure

On Saturday, i drove to a nearby farm and picked up a truckload of manure. I intended to top off my compost piles, but the manure was already so well composted that i decided to throw it directly onto my vegetable garden and the surrounding strip beds.

There is the occasional undecomposed woody stem. I've been to Farmer Charlie's manure piles often enough to recognize the remains of a 3-foot tall lamb's quarters or other weed. Yes, there are probably a zillion weed seeds in this gorgeous composed manure.

We go shopping. We find something beautiful. We buy it and bring it home. We don't recognize the stress that is inherent in this new thing, which turns into clutter or becomes something we don't even see. New clothes! How wonderful! Until our drawers are overflowing, and our closets are stuffed. In the morning, we lie in bed for an extra 15 or 30 minutes just trying to figure out what to wear. New clothes are stress in sheep's clothing.

But for now, the vegetable garden is beautiful with its cover of rich, dark, well-composted manure.