How to Grow More Vegetables

Turf loam compost pile

Alan Chadwick’s classic planting mixture for starting
seeds in ats is 1 part each by weight: evenly moist
compost (sifted, if possible), sharp (gritty) sand, and turf
loam. These 3 ingredients provide a fertile, loose-
textured mixture. Turf loam is made by composting
sections of turf grass grown in good soil. The sections of
grass are composted by alternating grass sides together
and soil sides together within the pile (see the
illustration above). Good garden soil, from the 9rst
trench of a double-dug bed, for example, can be
substituted for turf loam. Thoroughly mix the compost,
sand, and garden soil or turf loam and, optionally, place
them in the flat on top of oak leaf mold.