City to give away compost

If youâÂÂre a gardener, Mollie Mangerich and her crew at the city of LawrenceâÂÂs recycling division want to help your green thumb along.

Starting today, theyâÂÂll be at the cityâÂÂs composting facility on East Eighth Street for four days, giving away tons of compost.

âÂÂItâÂÂs great stuff,â Mangerich said. âÂÂGardeners love it.âÂÂ

Last year, about 750 people took part in the giveaway. Mangerich is hoping for at least that many this year.

âÂÂWe can handle that many, easily,â she said. âÂÂPeople should be able to take as much as they want.âÂÂ

A front-end loader will be available to load compost onto pickup trucks. Those without a truck will be free to fill buckets or boxes with as much as they want.

The giveaway is intended for private use by residents – not for resale or commercial use. City officials reserve the right to limit quantities.

The compost is the byproduct of the more than 6,000 tons of grass clippings and leaves that city crews collect throughout the year.

Though the cityâÂÂs Parks and Recreation Department routinely taps the compost pile for its landscaping needs, thereâÂÂs plenty left over.

Monday morning, there were at least three rows, each about 15 feet high and 70 yards long.

âÂÂWe want all of it to go,â Mangerich said.

This winter, the 2 1/2-acre composting facility will move to a 10-acre site on East 11th Street.

The new site, she said, will let city crews pick up and recycle woody debris and small branches.

âÂÂWeâÂÂd like to do that now, but we donâÂÂt have the room,â Mangerich said.

In their compost, gardeners will notice the remains of only a few, if any, of the plastic trash bags that once held grass clippings or leaves. ThatâÂÂs because city workers separate each bag from its contents before itâÂÂs dumped.

ItâÂÂs a time-consuming process, one that Mangerich would like to see go faster.

âÂÂWeâÂÂre really trying to get people to use the paper bags – they donâÂÂt have to be cut open and set aside,â Mangerich said. âÂÂFor us, it makes things more efficient, and thatâÂÂs important because Lawrence is growing and weâÂÂre already hard-pressed to get the routes done on time.âÂÂ

Paper yard bags are available at Westlake Ace Hardware, CottinâÂÂs Hardware, Wal-Mart and Earl May Nursery and Garden Center.