Our New Supply of Compost is Coming In Handy

Every year we struggle with our yard.  The soil is so sandy that it doesn't hold enough moisture and nutrients.  It is green in the Spring, but soon only the weeds survive.  It means we don't have to mow as often as many other people but that is the only advantage.  I won't use chemicals and tons of water on the yard, so that is the way it is.  Next to our sidewalk, near the front porch, the grass does not survive the winter and the soil somehow erodes away.  My husband usually takes some our our good compost mixed with some top soil, and fills in the space.  Then he puts down grass seed.  We water it often and eventually get some decent grass in that area.  At least it looks nice for most of the summer.

We are always making compost.  We have two compost bins.  One is an active section and one just sits until the compost is ready.  Last week my husband cleaned out the left side of the picture.  The right section will now become the inactive section and the empty section on the left will get the new scraps.  We put almost everything in the compost except meat and things that don't decompose.  Some shredded paper and peelings go into the worm farm but most end up in the compost bin.  http://www.thecabincountess.com/2014/05/a-return-visit-to-worm-farm.html

This is the compost we get.  It takes several years to get this beautiful dirt.

It is a good thing we have a fresh batch of compost.  We definitely need it.  As I mentioned we plant grass seed next to our front sidewalk near the porch.  It has been growing great and was almost ready to mow.  Now we have to start all over again.  When I went outside this morning, this is what I saw.

A snapping turtle had piled up all the new grass and dug down into the soil to lay some eggs.

I thought she was dead.

She was fine and here she is leaving the scene of the crime.

Either this turtle or another had already dug up another area of the yard to lay eggs.  Then, as usual, a raccoon came along and dug them all up.  It is amazing we get any baby turtles.  I guess they lay so many eggs because they know that most of them won't make it.  I have written about this subject for years.  Here is one blog from a couple years ago  http://www.thecabincountess.com/2013/06/turtles-are-finally-laying-their-eggs.html

The raccoon really dug up the yard searching for turtle eggs.

This happens every year so we as humans have to learn from it.  We need to be patient and plant new grass seed after the turtles are finished and not before.