I was an inspector for DOT and your method was Not correct ...most every farmer has plenty of burlap comes in a roll ..you should have wash out thru a burlap and got the real percentage of material..
@@henclematheson6496 Thank you for the suggestion. I may make another video next year and implement some of the suggestions that viewers have made. I would be concerned that the sand would wash through the burlap though, so that's why I ran water through the bucket, knowing that the heavies would sink to the bottom, kinda like panning for gold... Thanks for watching.
Smell that black cow before using. It has been found that so e has a lot of amonia in it and its killed a whole spring plant. Remember your gov doesnt want you planting food.
Great visual test. It solidifies for me not to buy any compost ever and just make my own for free from the yard and local forest. I have clay, I have sand, I have leaf mold, I have goat cold manure and chicken manure to make compost. We burnt $8 dollars in gas to pick up 900 pounds of 2 year old composted manure off a farm giving it away for free not using pesticides, fungicides and occasional medication for new animals on naturally grazed 600 acre. Thank You for the honest review and showing whats in it. 2 are forest arbor bi-product's and one of compost and manure. I'd use the black cow mixed with equal parts of the forest blend for a container garden. Then only top dress it with home made compost every month lightly around the growing plants to feed the soil microbes. Once the plants had some height 6 inches I would mulch it with whatever was available ( Grass clippings, mulched up leaves or straw to retain moisture) I know bare ground is deadly to plants due to the heating cycle, dry wet, dry, wet stress. Mulch keeps the roots cooler retain moisture for weeks and weeks reducing watering while slowly breaking down over the year enriching the soil and feeding the soil microbes... I enjoy videos like this showing what your buying! Good job! 👍
Thanks for the great post. I remember when I was a kid, my father went to a chicken farm and shoveled up a pile of chicken manure that hadn't been composted. It was a gagging smell. Dad covered it with garden soil and mixed it up. Only a little of this, mixed into a tomato hole, would grow huge delicious tomatoes without any other fertilizer needed... Thanks for watching.
@@TheBackGardenYardchicken, pig will both burn the heck out of plants if not buried away from the roots or up against the stems. I always compost fresh manures- 6 months+. Even goat and bunny I keep away 6” out from stems unless I compost it first. My favorite home compost is premium bale of tested by the farmer (see the report, make sure it’s labeled the current year, it’s bright green including its stems and has millions of little tiny green leaves. Those little leaves are the gold. Have a concrete pad and under cover to turn the mix. If water runs through your compost, the good stuff just goes down in the dirt under the pile. Not much good there unless you will be gardening there next year. Always move your plants like tomatoes, pototes, peppers each year to keep them healthy and not diseases, pest especially nematodes. Also has no grass of any kind like Orchard, fescue, Timothy, brome, etc in it because it will give you grass seeds. Alfalfa is a legume, it’s not an issue if it has little bit of seeds, that’s good to just pull and put down in the garden, around the plants. Alfalfa fixes nitrogen in the soil, helps the plants. But I like to mix as much leaves as I can find, no wood, mixes in the 50-50 alfalfa and bunny or goat manure and compost for 6 months. Any thing that is natural meaning manure wise whether it’s chicken, turkey, cow, etc when sold commercially goes through more testing to be what it says on the bag. When it’s all or mostly wood, sawdust etc. the only adjust it seems to do on those bags is none. So without lime to get it to. A lower pH ie more acid for growing say tomatoes, peppers, potatoes at 5.5-6.5. If growing snap, butter beans etc you want it to be 6.5-7 or 6.0 to 7.0 because they want a little more alkaline soil for them to grow their best. Lawns want around 6.5-7.2. Asparagus want 6.5 to 7.5, some reports say up to 8. You should always put like plants together and fertilize or adjust the soil to be what they need. Always have your soil tested at the county extensive service. You could be wasting a lot of money putting the wrong products, too much or too little. And either can ruin your soil. I have tomatoes great big that I don’t put in until May 15 and sometimes not until June1. Have planted as late as June 15-20. And get the same size plants but a lot healthier, bigger and a lot more tomatoes than those that plant in mid April. I always put magnesium ie Epson Salts( unscented, no additives for bathes etc, just plain old white epson salts - mix 1 tablespoon to one gallon of water and let it completely dissolve and then spray the plants every other month- it helps with taking water up in the stems. Don’t mix anything else in. I also use a water soluble fertilizer each day for my vanda orchid plants , they hang on a piece of wire, no bark, moss, nothing, just hang on the wire called a S-hook basket hook. But they have to water several times a day in the summer and then hard dry. Ie the long 2’ ft roots are white when dry, dark green when wet. But in the morning I use this mix which is like 10% calcium, 3% magnesium, NPK is 12-1-1. My other orchids get a different mix once a week that has NPK, tiny magnesium and lots of trace minerals, but no calcium. So I use the other mix for the Vandas to get the 10% calcium and 3% magnesium plus trace minerals to my cattleyas, Phalaenopsis, etc. . What I was getting to was I use that high calcium mix 12-1-1 about every week or other week for the tomatoes, the peppers, and potatoes. It’s a balancing act. But if I was using just in the vegetables or flowers - I would use it once every other week and every week when they are couple months out from flowering so I get good strong blooms. Folks comment I grow pepper and tomatoes trees - about 5-6 tall, and 4+ feet wide, huge stems and lots of good size tomatoes depending on the variety. And no blossom end rot, no blight, no fungal spotting. I use a AzaMax for pests- it’s approved for organic plant growing. I spray on in late afternoon, Right at dark, it’s dry by morning, no worry about son causing issues the next day and I don’t hurt my pollinators or hummers, nor the plants with hot sun burning down on plants. And the other orchids (not the vanda) get the magnesium ie epson salts mix about every month or other month. You have to keep up with them because there are different and orchids are a bit tough to figure out. The old timers years use to say it takes a lifetime to learn to grow good orchids. I have been doing them since early 70s. Still learning every day. There is no wood chips in Black Cow composted cow manure…. Read the bag! Always read the bag. I don’t see any sand ,but it is adjusted to be .5-.5-.5 so there could be the minerals what gives you the NPK. You can’t say always it’s .5-.5-.5 with manure so they may have to adjust it with lime, and the NPK. You want some sand, it helps with drainage, but as I said, dirt will get picked up when the the machinery pick it up off the ground. It’s just some do a better job. Don’t forget cows also can get dirt or sand in their guts. Horses can get twisted guts full of sand. Sand colic. They eat the sand or dirt when grazing on short pastures, then as more sand gets into the gut over years, it drops to the bottom. It’s heavier and heavier, if the horse colics, gets to rolling around, they can get a twist, a torsion. Then the gut will start dying and before long you have a dead horse, like in 24-48 hours +/-. I have been involved in several colic surgeries in my vets office. They would call to see if we could help for horses coming in after they get home from work. I was the saline sprayer ie keeping the guts wet, you don’t want them to dry up so after the incision was made and the guts just fall out, I sprayed and kept spraying through out before they started drying. The other issue with equines is unlike us, ours is secure natural to location in the abdominal cavity. The horses are like that which is why when they colic and start to roll they get the twist and then it’s bad news. if you have to beat them, you have to do so or they will die. It’s extremely expensive into many thousands to do an equine colic surgery. It’s cow manure and it breaks down faster it’s all mostly nitrogen. You will get your value out of it. But buying cheap is what you get - cheap crap and in those cheap ones, not much of that either. You are comparing wood to manure when comparing Black Kow to those other two brands.
As you see in the video, I buy about 20 bags a year, and have been buying mostly Evergreen brand. My use for it is in the rows I plant I like to mix with my harder clay based soil to build up the area the plants are living in. I think I'm getting more out of the compost, than the manure, even though all of them grow very nice healthy plants, but 2 1/2 bags of Countryside vs 1 bag of Black Kow? Thats a lot of difference. It certainly looked like Black Kow had mixed potting soil in their bag also, (I have no firm evidence of this), which is probably not a problem, just really not a benefit unless you are using it to start seeds...
Thank you for the video! I will definitely save more money now. Human nature tells us that the “bigger brands” are better. That’s how they get us . I think I will continue to do my own compost as well as buy the countryside and evergreen when I’m in between my own ( greens and browns) composting readiness. Thank God I started my composting last October! Also thank you for the last video on how to grow from seeds with the layering so they can stay there until they are ready to be transferred. I’ve got new sprouts and I’m excited !
I'm sure the Black Kow works well, but I have always had good results with Evergreen also, and saved a good bit of money over the years. If you are comfortable with Black Kow, then why not?
@@TheBackGardenYardI will have to look harder. I've never seen anything other than black Kow. I do use it in my seed start and planters. But I mix with water and make a tea with fertilizer and chicken poop for weekly watering of fertilizer.
😢 Homestead Heart (here on YT) used Black Kow on her seedlings and lost them ALL! Turns out the mix was not fully composted and it burned up her plants. I'm talking about more than 50 pepper plants and some other crops. She's devastated as those plants represent a years worth of produce for her family and it's too late to sow again from seed. She spoke of the smell of ammonia, something she didn't notice initially.
Wow, you are about the third viewer to mention her, I'll go watch the video. I would think she could plant seeds directly into the ground still and make a crop, but I'm not sure where she is located. Thanks for the comment.
@@Beps128 I can't comment on that, but her planting method with all that ground cover is a bit unusual. But that's not new for her, so I don't want to speculate.
I've been pretty disappointed with the hit or miss quality of Black Kow over the past couple of years. I've gotten many bags that are pretty raw - seems like they just walk behind the cow with the yellow bag and throw the results on the truck to Lowes 😂. Might be a store/distributor specific problem as I've used it for many years and really only started encountering issues when I started getting bags at the Lowes in South Boston, Va. Either way, I'm going to be looking for another product. Doesn't do me much good if I need to pile it up and compost it for 3 months before it's usable in my garden. Unfortunate - that was my go to amendment as it's readily available and had been good quality.
I used the countryside today when I planted my Better Boy tomatoes, just because I think it will do as well as the more expensive brands. Thanks for watching...
Yea, they are selling earthworm droppings now for $16 for a small bag... Add compost your soil and you will have natural earthworm droppings, as the earthworms will live in your soil. Thanks for watching.
Black Kow fell to the Shrinkflation! I had a bag unopened from last year and bought 3 new ones just stocked this year and the bag weight is half! I kid you not, the bags are flatter and the amount of stones throughout are crazy. I've started making my own.
Someone I watch was using It and has for years. They used some new bags of it and all their crop died right away so they investigated it and the new bags they bought were not composted correctly and smelled like ammonia. The bags that they had left over from last year was fine.
Im gonna tell ya. I think if you dumped that out in a wheel barrow like I do when I'm mixing it for my planters. You would find clumps of manure in that black cow. I will Say in the last 3 years it has went up nearly 3 dollars a bag. It it what I use but it sure is getting expensive for some cow ####! Great demonstration.
It seems to vary, lot to lot and location to location, is the feedback I'm getting. I believe they are processing it more these days, maybe to eliminate the smell? Thanks for watching.
Yea, I think they are putting sand in the bags to make them fill heavier - and someone else suggested that they may use the sand to make a smoother mixture. But the rocks are inexcusable... Thanks for the comment.
I use black kow. It has saved my 30 year old japanese holly shrubs that were beginning to turn yellow. Now they are green and healthy. I apply black kow mixed with top soil to them twice a year. Also use in raised beds and plants are super healthy.
The yellow bag was a must-have for me until the shortages due to the illness and shutdowns. Once it was widely available again, I discovered that my bags were mostly wood chips. I never bought another bag.
Yes, I have clay based soil, so what's in the bag does help amend the soil, but I could probably get a pile of wood chips delivered and get about the same results for a lot less money. But my plants have liked the evergreen and black kow when I have used them, however they are not worth the new higher prices, imo.
@@TheBackGardenYardI will say I bought Miracle grow potting soil this year and got chunks of wood so big I could build something. Just terrible. Everything is soooo expensive thank goodness I'm not trying to buy seedlings like years ago. I'm happy to have Hoss tool seeds that give me beautiful plants. But who wants the trash they sell you in the grocery store. I'm thankful for my little garden. ❤❤ Enjoyed your video...
@@TheBackGardenYardseems like a good idea based on these bags, but don’t ever mix wood chips into your soil! Using them for mulch is ok depending on what you growing but don’t let them touch the stem of your plants.
Black Kow shouldn't stink. I've heard that they sent out tons of bags that weren't filled with mature compost/manure mix, which resulted in killing many people's crops. I now use mushroom compost or chicken manure now just to be safe. I have used black kow, but now this season.
The black kow I used this year looks really good. Very black, stains my hands. Their topsoil costs more and is equally good. If mine had wood in it I would take it right back. zThis year I spent around $400 on their manure compost and topsoil. Mostly topsoil.
It's interesting about how many different comments about the quality of the Black Kow compost varies. I was just trying to show how similar the 3 products actually are, even though the Black Kow does seem to be processed more. I have used the Black Kow before and got good results, but got equally good results with the Evergreen. This year I'm using the American Countryside on my tomatoes, just to see if they do as well. Since I also use 10 10 10 fertilizer in my planting holes, it's not really a test I can use, it will just be an opinion. Thanks for watching.
Yes, I just used the Countryside to transplant my beloved Better Boy tomatoes, and they have responded well. Since I do add 10 10 10 to my planting holes, I can't give all the credit to the compost product, but it seems to amend the soil just as well at the other brands. Thanks for the comment.
I use Black Kow and Evergreen. I also use compost from local producers. One is composted from fish products and gin trash. The other composted from food waste and chicken manure from the many chicken houses in my area. I like a mix of materials for wide diversity of micronutrients. I direct sow, so wouldnt plant directly into the evergreen product because there is a lot of chunky organic matter in it. But I always add it to my soil because those organics breakdown and create a beautiful loam. I like sand because my native soil is very compact.
Yea, I've read stories about people filling raised beds with 100% bagged compost and manure and all their plants dying. I don't think most vegetable plants would thrive in that environment at all. But 2 parts soil to 1 part compost and manure would probably make a very good raised bed filler.
I became a fan of Black Kow last year because it did my garden well. But good god is it expensive. This year I have been looking for alternatives, so I appreciate your video. Thank you very much. :)
Thank you - I'm working on another review of these compost and manure products, and this review involves a growing plants test. I think folks will be interested in the results I'm starting to see.
I buy bags of straight up composted cow manure from a local farm. It's pretty fresh so I till it into the soil in the fall. Works out great for me. I also like to add a bit of the Black Kow to potting soil for all my potted plants !
Sounds like you are doing it right. Tilling into the soil in the fall would certainly be the way to enrich the soil for spring planting. And, I also use composted manure to make my own potting mix and seed starting mix.
My local Lowes will sometimes have the black cow in two slightly different colored bags. On is a darker yellow then the one you have and the other is the same as you have. Exact same labeling. The brighter bag is usually some mulch and sand as you have and at times what looks like pure mulch. The darker one has what seems to be 99.9% pure dirt (composted manure) with no sand or wood and with very few pieces of clump manure. I always get the one in the darker bag. I may need to do a Black cow vs black cow video some day. I did post a pic of the deference's on the Lowes web site. I did question Black cow about my findings but didn't get any definitive answer.
Thanks for doing this. I have been using Evergreen for years, but will look out for the Countryside. I have two compost bins but always need to buy more compost.
I've used all three myself. Both the Country side and the Evergreen are from the same company. Even has the exact same address on the bags. You can grow vegetables from any of the three, but when it comes to nutrients in the soil for the plants, I've always had better luck from the Black Kow and knowing that they test their product for harmful contaminants before the product is shipped to the big box stores means a LOT to me.
I agree Black Kow is a quality looking product, and I've used many bags in the past. However I'm not sure it's worth the difference in price I'm seeing in the stores here in Georgia. But I am just glad to see people out gardening, whatever they use. Thanks for watching.
According to Black Kow, they test their product for herbicides before shipping. It will form a hard crust if merely surface dressing plants. Best to mix it in if you can.
Black Cow has burned my plants many times, but I still incorporate it in the late fall and by spring planting it seems fine and beneficial. Have noticed a change though, with many more stones so I am sure to sift it first.
I've tried other brands, but I have found the Black Cow brand to be the best for fall incorporation. I don't use any manure product in the early spring anymore. Zone 5b.@@TheBackGardenYard
These videos are so helpful! You mentioned straining in this video and your sweet potato slip video. Aren’t certain worms good for the soil? Should we always strain soil? I’m a newbie and I’m picking up soil and compost today and I have used soil as well. 😊
Absolutely earthworms are good for the soil, as their trails aerate the soil and their droppings are natural fertilizer. However, if you are making seed starting and potting mix from your own garden soil, I have found that straining the particles to remove large rocks, sticks, and clumps will allow the seeds to come up better, and also you need to bake the soil to kill weed seeds. The large companies selling the potting mixes do the same thing, otherwise you will be very unhappy to see all the weeds popping up with your seed starts.. Thanks for watching.
Okay I have to correct a term. SIFT dry product -STRAIN wet. Sifting is the correct term for what you were doing in test 2 and for making seed starting mix😊.
I have used Black Kow for years but last year I purchased the Evergreen top soil and the compost, because of the price. However, I ended up taking all the bags back to Lowe's, because both looked the same nothing but pine/hard wood fine. More like mulch then compost or top soil. Just fine chopped wood chips. So I will spend the money for Black Kow. Also the Evergreen does not hold on to water if you are laying the compost on top of your garden beds. However the Black Kow does and works great for starting seeds in the ground and will keep the seed moist for a few days until they start to come up.
I did comment in the video that the Black Kow does seem to be more "processed". It is ground into smaller pieces, however, I didn't see a lot of difference in them otherwise. Thanks for watching.
Nice work my friend! I do think that the Evergreen had less sand than the Country-whatever, and the residue also looked blacker. The Black Kow definitely had the least sand by a significant margin. The Black Kow is the only one on which you pointed out the guaranteed analysis, and I don't know how the others compare nutritionally to that. I do much gardening, but I have never used any of them. Thanks for your work!
Yea, it's a toss-up which had more sand, imo. I'm not sure why Evergreen quit posting the analysis, unless they changed the formula.. Thanks for watching.
The test would have been planting the same plants in all 3 mediums and see what the results of the growth would be. I get very concerned with ground pine products in the bag of compost. Notice how grass and plants don’t grow pine trees because of the pine pitch. The ground around is very acidic,not good for growing vegetables plants. Ok for acid loving non vegetable plants. Beware
I don't plant in 100% compost and manure. I always mix it with garden soil, and get great results. But I agree that planting in a mixture of garden soil and the different compost and manure mixtures may be a good test, and maybe I'll do that. Thanks for watching.
I use the evergreen a lot, also. My veggie garden is loaded with the stuff mixed with the native soil. I have been using it this spring to start a new lawn but I don't have enough info to share the results except that I do have a very nice stand of the rebels fescue grass.
Yes, I used the Evergreen about 2 years ago and roto tilled 20 bags into the yard, then seeded Zoysia grass in my front yard. I now have a beautiful yard, when before I couldn't get fescue or bermuda to grow. Thanks for watching.
Their main operation is Oxford, FL but they may have other operations in USA. The only reason I mentioned Muscle Shoals, AL for the other two, is that they seemed so similar, I am suspicious they are using the same materials... Thanks for watching.
I'm switching to 100% chicken manure compost this year, as I am now believing those that say the cow manure products may contain herbicide residue from cows grazing treated pastures. I got some terrible results from my green bean and pole beans sprouting the past couple of years, and I believe the herbicide was the culprit.
I use cowsmo compost it’s from my home state and I like it a lot and it’s good pricing but then again I run it through my worm bins for 2 years before the castings are used as worm castings are the best fertilizer on earth especially if you make them right. My worm bin consists of black leaf mold lots of pumice or pea gravel more air is better, spag peat moss, kelp basalt neem and Karanja cake malted barley fine chopped banana leaves in lower layer cowsmo compost spent mushroom blocks from a local farm gypsum oyster shell flower and then let the compost worms do there thing for 2 years. You need a few bins like this at different stages for continuous harvests. It’s a big process especially when just starting out but it is unbelievable to use on any plant and you don’t need much one handful 2-3 times a season
I stopped buying Black Kow last year when I bought about 20 bags to top off my raised beds. In these bags I found large rocks (many the size of my palm!)and ground up plastic debris. I wish I had saved the rocks to make a pile to send a picture to the company. I am still picking out stones from my raised beds that could have only come from the Black Kow bags. Very disappointing when you spend so much money. I have resorted to buying the $2 bags from Home Depot.
I definitely think Black cow is the best quality of the compost and manure products. But it has doubled in price from 2 or 3 yrs ago when I was buying it for $2.98 a bag in my area. Now it sells for $5.98-6.48. But my problem with all of these manure and compost products is that most all of them contain Glyphosate and other herbicides, pesticides, and fungicides. And what is the point of gardening organically if you put chemical laden compost and manures on your garden? In fact, you are not gardening organically if you do use these products. I know of three different people who make their living from gardening and are published gardening authors, who have lost entire crops to buying manures and spreading them all over their organic gardens. One of these gardeners here in the U.S. bought cow manure from a local dairy and spread it on his organic garden beds, Pecan and fruit trees, and a 100ft row of newly planted blackberry bushes that he had just paid $9.00 a piece for, and within days the leaves on all his garden vegetables, eggplants, tomatoes, etc, and his Pecan trees and blackberry bushes, all had curled and dying leaves. He and the two other gardeners all lost their entire years worth of crops, fruits, and nut trees, from cow manure with a toxic herbicide it in that had been sprayed on the pasture the cows had eaten, or had been sprayed on the hay the cows had eaten.
Thanks for this... I have tried the blackcow and still need to be mix ...too strong for certain things. But yeah agree with you the other stuff is coming from the same place. I would go.for the cheaper bag. ❤
Yea, I never plant in 100% compost and manure mix, regardless of the brand. I usually mix it 50% with garden soil when I transplant tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, etc from seed starting pots. Thanks for watching.
@@cherylsimmondsday9380 I usually use a scoop of black kow or other manure mixture per hole when planting tomatoes or peppers. Be sure to mix it well with the garden soil in the hole. I also use 10 10 10 fertilizer, just a teaspoonful per plant, in the hole also. Then completely fill the hole when planting so water won't puddle around the stem. Happy gardening and thanks for watching.
@@cherylsimmondsday9380 @cherylsimmondsday9380 is based on ratio.. on how much soil you currently have or the size of the pot. Should not be more than 25% ratio when combined with other substrate.
Good video I was thinking the other day because I rode by the Scotts Hyponex in Jackson Georgia they changed something in there product because when I was a kid in smelled when they first built the plant now it does not smell also It might have been another company back then.
I agree that they, (most companies making processed compost and manure), have changed something in their products, because about 8 years ago I filled in a swimming pool and seeded bermuda grass in the fill soil they put on top. The soil was of such poor quality that I spread 30 bags of Evergreen on top of the sprouted grass as it had such poor color when it came up. My neighbor called me and told me it smelled like a cattle farm over here, and how long would the smell last. I told him that only a day or two, but it definitely smelled of manure then, not now. Thanks for watching.
Black kow is the best one i’ve tried. I’ve used Evergreen. My plants didn’t do well. I order Black Kow. I was told Lowe’s can order it. I’ve ordered from Ace Hardware in the past.
I watched all of the video to see how you were comparing the products, and quite frankly, the only true comparison was cost. When you are comparing compost, it should be done based on your use/goal you are trying to accomplish. Compost can be added to increase organic matter, and in that case, all 3 would suffice, but the comparison would be the percent of organic matter in each bag. Compost can be added to build fertility, and then you would be evaluating NPK, macro, and micro nutrients available in each one. Another good test would be the fungi to bacteria ratio, which is very helpful if you are growing higher succession plants like shrubs/berries and fruit trees. Compost can also be added to build soil structure, tilth, or hold on to water. When I make Compost, 30 to 40 cubic yards per pile, I will add a couple tractor bucket loads of topsoil to increase the indigenous microorganisms (fungi, bacteria, nematodes, etc.) to the pile. This serves as an innoculant and gets the soil food web started. Soil is made up of sand, clay, silt, air spaces, water pockets, and gazillions of microorganisms. When it's in balance, we have loam, and it is a gardeners delight. By adding compost to your garden, the composting process will continue, and eventually, natural systems take over just as it does in the forests and prairies. That said, prior to making my own compost, I purchased and used Black Kow and it did everything I needed a good compost to do, improve my soil so that I could grow tasty fruits and veggies. Happy Gardening!
Yes, a total analysis by a lab could certainly be helpful, but my intention was to show what was in the bags, and let viewers determine if they see enough differences in the products to warrant the price difference. Thanks for watching.
I understand what you are trying to accomplish, but twigs and sand are not good indicators of the performance of the product, hence value. Since you have invested in all 3 bags of compost, may I suggest you perform a bioassay of each along with your garden soil. Please note, I watched because, I like many others are interested in seeing if we are throwing away money by purchasing Black Kow. If you get 4 solo cups and fill each with compost and the control with your garden soil and then plant 5 of the same cucumber seeds in each and see how many germinate, which starts grow better at 7 days, 14 days, and if possible transplant and monitor production of each plant that would speak volumes. We would then be able to do a cost benefit analysis of each product. If I am buying compost for mulch, then I will purchase the cheapest product but if I am buying compost to build my soil health and increase yield, then I am willing to pay more for results. Value doesn't come from What's in the bag but instead how well does it work. If you do perform the analysis because I am extremely interested.
@@camptifieldofdreams2863for seed starting in solo cups? Yes you are throwing your money away. For seeds to germinate they basically need water and something to help retain moisture, like dirt. Depending on your area they can then be taken outside or placed in a window for light. For the .5 .5 .5 NPK in black Kow might be decent for some seedlings but you are better off getting fertilizer and adding a very small amount to the solo cup and the rest to the soil as the plants mature with compost.
@@camptifieldofdreams2863buying it for mulch? Yes, throwing money away even the cheapest kind…Use leaves or grass or tree bits (free stuff). Buying compost for better yield and/or build your soil? You are absolutely throwing money away in two ways. Take the veggie scraps, grass and leaves out of your trash and mix them with some dirt in a hole you dig in your yard.
@@TheBackGardenYardyou don’t want to do the solo cup germination/growth experiment? Settle this matter once and for all… Does adding Black Kow to soil do everything a good compost does when added to soil? Oh wait…. They used Black Kow until they made their own compost and answered all the questions they asked…. Hmmm lol I wonder if they work for Black Kow.
Thank u for taking the time to share this. It's good that they add sand n rocks. It keeps them from compacting. It's possible that Black Kow has more manure n that makes a difference as well. It's the only one that gave it's NPK right? I buy both n add fruit n veggie peels, n Epsom Salt.
Yea, I agree that the sand may make a better out of the bag product, but I think they should sift it and not put the rocks in there. Also, I think the Evergreen and Countryside should shred it more like the Black Kow does. However, that could be part of the reason the Black Kow is so much more expensive. Thanks for watching.
I made an in ground compost bin. It works well, but I can't make as much compost as I need, so I still make the bagged. Here's the video. ua-cam.com/video/mLDKOM4T8lY/v-deo.html
I use mushroom compost made by black gold compost co. / black kow, out of oxford fl. Recent purchase was nothing close to what it used to be. So barkey I could use for mulch. Seriously pissed. It used to be great, and no bark whatsoever.
Great video. I subscribed to your channel 2 days ago and now reviewing many of your videos. I am glad that I discovered your channel as there is a lot of great information. Just finished watching, “Fall Treat in the Garden, Fuyu and Kaki Persimmons - How to Tell When Ripe”. I have 2 young FuYu Persimmon trees. I have tried several times to propagate them but unsuccessful. My question is have you tried to propagate the persimmon? I have searched UA-cam other gardening channels and it seems that even air layering doesn’t work on the FuYu. Thanks for videos.
My wife knows how to graft the shoots onto other trees, and has successfully done that with the persimmons. This is the time of year to try it, so maybe watch a video on grafting and try it with a plum or pear tree or other base they may suggest. Thanks for the comment.
I have used Black Cow & gotten ok- good results, but that was 10-15 years ago when you could tell & smell the manure! Thank you so very much! However, I don't understand it is being overly processed.Also the Black Cow was moist in side & sometimes vit wet. I never understood why.
I will never use Black Kow again. I bought hundreds of dollars' worth a couple of years ago for filling raised beds. We ended up with some kind of grass that creates a grid of nodules about 6" deep in the soil that had to be pulled out several times throughout the season. It was impossible to find and get it all. This year I went with 2 cubic yards of Soil3 compost. Mushroom compost has also been much better but is too pricey to use for large quantities.
I've had the same problem with weeds in the compost. I got a strange new weed in my yard several years ago after I had spread about 20 bags of compost on the yard in order to give it a boost one spring. Yea, the Black Kow is now so expensive, I am mostly buying cheaper brands and using mostly Black Kow to make my seed starting mix with garden soil, which I bake to make sure the weed seeds are killed.
@@Cutter-jx3xj Thank you for the identification! We tried for 3 years to remove it. Finally this year, I dug out all the soil and replaced it with a new raised bed. I'm sifting through the soil to remove the nodules and using the old soil as filler on the bottom of the beds (> 1ft deep to prevent it from coming back). I expect much better results from Soil3!
@@TheBackGardenYardu bake it in the oven?!? I am trying to seed a large portion of my lawn after a septic field repair and I’m looking for a material to cover the grass seed with. I can upon ur video bc I wanted to use black cow since the Scott’s lawn soil had tons of rocks, glass, and even plastic in it!! I am super worried about introducing more weed seeds but now I’m interested in learning how to bake the weed seeds out!!!
You need to go watch a video from homestead heart about her recent experience with black kow. Because she lost an entire crop because it was not completely composted. She has used it for years. Just check it out.
You sure went through alot to make this test. The least i can do is LIKE and leave a COMMENT!! And this year i started usi g BLACK KOW, So far its been great, alot better than the one ive been using other years.
I'm a fan of Black Cow topsoil. Halve the price of Black Cow manure. Use a 75% Black Cow top soil 25% peatmoss for a pepper plant in a 5 gallon grow bag. Fastest bestest growing pepper plant I ever seen. I joked with my wife that I could hear it growing. It was my pet plant. Had it for 2 years but made the mistake of not sheltering it from the last hard freeze. I Learn much from that pepper plant.
Yea, the success of the Black Kow and Manure brand, has them expanding into several other lines of garden soil products. I believe I saw the soil and another product also at Home Depot.
@@TheBackGardenYard I found Black Kow brand at Lows . I find all the different brands inconsistent from year to year. I've purchased good cheap stuff and poor expensive stuff. Sticks and pine bark in expensive compost is a pain or buying top soil that is all clay. It's all a surprise. You never know what you will get. If all possible, I prefer native top soil and amend it with compost and peatmoss.
@@TheBackGardenYardhmm yea they have hard clumps that look like dried balls of manure. Sure smells like it when I'm mixing it with potting soil. Lol. But the balls look more like horse crap than a cow pattie. A country girl couldn't play Frisbee with those dried balls like I could as a kid with a dried cow pattie. 😂😂😂 City kids don't know what they are missing. Can't find that kinda edu-tainment playing video games.
It takes a lot of nitrogen to break down all those sticks and chips. Do the plant test and black cow wins hands down. I use black cow to compost my leaves (20yards+\-). I layer it in with grass clippings and weeds and chicken manure. I run the leaves through a mulcher. Spray some KNF LAB when layering the browns and greens and it takes about a third less time to have great leaf mold “type” compost.
Nice video. It looks to me like the Black Kow has been composted down or shredded more than the others. Down here in Australia, our main big box store has a cow blend product that looks a lot like the Black Kow and it costs around US$2. Cheaper than bagged soil and has enough manure in it to make plants perk up a few weeks after adding it as a topdress. Why wouldn't you buy it? 😊
Yea, that's about the price it should be selling for. And your impression of the Black Kow is exactly like my impression. Thanks for watching all the way "down under"!
Since I don't know if you are going to use it in an in the ground garden bed, or a raised bed, it's hard to answer. However, I do believe that would be a good combo, and I'm not partial to any of the brands I showed in the video. But I would only use a 1 part cow manure to 3 parts soil mixture for starters. Too much of the cow manure compost will cause insect infestations, fungi growth, and even bacterial rot in the roots. And mix it well. Good luck with your garden.
@@ClevelandTaylor-bh4hz Ok, make sure the kitty pool has drains in the bottom so water does not collect in times of hard rains, and I would use a 5 parts soil to 1 part cow manure mix in it. Sounds like you have a good plan.
The real question is which one has more fertility built into it. Grow a few potted plants in each one and see what the difference is. Thanks for all you do.
Since I have used Black Kow and Evergreen for years, I know they both work well. It would be difficult to design a study to compare the results of using all three to see which ones work better, but I am thinking about it. Thanks for watching.
I was always afraid of buying the Evergreen. Thanks for sharing this, I will give them a try and get 2 bags for the price of the 1 Black Cow. I will look out for the Countryside to see if my Lowes has it in stock. I would love to give them a try as well.
I am using the Countryside for tomatoes and sweet potatoes so far this year and they are green and healthy. Since I also use 10 10 10, I can't give all the credit to the compost manure though. Thanks for the comment.
Consistency of Black Kow changed and has went up dramatically in price. I no longer use it. I now use the Evergreen brand to mix with my garden and flower beds. I live near farmers so I’ll just ask for some cow dung in the Pasteur or barn while my chicken manure composts.
Because I had already sifted it to see how much added bark and wood chips was in it. This allowed the light stuff to wash out, and left the heavy mud, sand, and rocks, so I could see if the products contained that. And of course they did.
Good homemade compost mixed with your soil is probably better than the bagged manure, in my opinion. I have a compost bin, and I use what I make, and I get very good results where I mix it with my soil. My problem is, I just don't make enough compost for the whole garden, thus I buy the bagged manure/compost products.
There are a few different places that black cow raises their cows at or I should say gets their manure from and one of them is in Florida, which is incredibly Sandy. I have livestock myself and I am just wondering if that sand wasn’t coming through the grazing process. That’s just a thought. You can get black cow cheaper at Lowe’s because they will price match Home Depot. Home Depot is about a dollar a bag cheaper plus if you buy more than 30 bags you get 10% off so I always do that when Ibuy. When I have used Evergreen at times I’ve had problems with it in my garden, stunting my plants, and my friend said that they will gather pine bark and straw at tree growers and they do spray in between the trees to keep the weeds down. I don’t know if that’s been a problem for you or not. I had some bags that have been really well and other bags that have stunted plants. The days of going down the road and asking somebody who has a cow if you can pick up the manure is over.! I hate that we are forced to buy it like this. I really appreciate your taking the time to make this video. Thank you.
Well, I've been using bagged manure for over 20 years, and never had a problem with any brand, but I mix it with soil and add 10 10 10 usually. I'm mainly using it to build up my soil vs just fertilizer, so I really can't tell any difference between brands. That's why I'm using more Countryside this year, and my plants are very healthy. Thanks for the nice comment.
I have seen some informative videos saying that people’s gardens have been failing due to the cows that produced the manure grazing on grass treated with Grazon weed suppressant. I don’t think that information makes it on your the bags of manure, very hard to determine,
Yea, I'm still using all 3 brands in the video and no problems. It's important to mix it well with garden or even out of the bag soil, so as not to make a medium that is too icky and will let mold, fungi, and bacteria grow into the root system, and also become insect habitat. So I'm just basing on personal experience, that the grazon problem probably may not be the cause of some of the problems with the bagged manure/mulch mixtures. Now if someone is buying pure manure straight off the farm, I can see how that could cause problems.. Thanks for watching.
Do you know where this is available in Metro Atlanta? I'm thinking of doing another video with some different ideas for tests and I could add another product to the mix. Thanks for the suggestion.
Thanks so much for doing this. I know it took a lot of time and patience. I didn't like countryside when tried it last year. Too many wood pieces. Think I will stick with Black Kow as long as it smells clean. Blessings on your channel.
Thank you Marlene. I know a lot of folks use the Black Kow and are dedicated to it. Since I use so many bags each year, I'm using the less expensive brands. I really couldn't see any difference in Countryside and Evergreen, and the Black Kow certainly was processed more. Thanks for the comment.
I would buy the cheap stuff In addition, using water soluble fertilizer on it, it’s proven that it the won’t kill the micro biome in the soil and on top of that, it’s immediately used by the plant.
You mean something like Miracle Gro? I've used it before, and it it a good fertilizer, but I only use it occasionally and haven't needed it this year. Thanks for watching.
Praise God for miracle gro lol be switching to commercial stuff later, that miracle gro is expensive. in addition using the blue Kool-Aid I’ll mulch heavy given me consistent moisture levels and loose soil.
I am very disappointed with black kow mine looks nothing like yours it’s majority of wood. I first purchased it last year after viewing another gardener on UA-cam his looked like yours mine the complete opposite. I won’t give it another chance. Truly appreciate your experiment.
I understand. I had a bag of Evergreen that was mostly wood chips and bark also this year. I think the quality control of the companies selling these mixtures could be better. My plants have thrived in both Black Kow and Evergreen though, so I am excited to see if the Countryside will give as good of results. Thanks for the comment.
If you have sandy soil and water runs right though it, or clay soil and water runs right off of it, you need organic material to hold water and nutrients until the plant roots can reach out and get it. Think of mulch as a billion tiny sponges that will absorb and hold water and nutrients. They may or may not have nutrients in them other than a few minerals. I have seen mulch made from tree matter that was sterile. Nothing would grow in it unless I added lots of fertilizers. You just need to decide how much nutrition you want built into the mulch and what you are willing to pay for it.
I totally agree. That's why with my hard clay soil, you will see me mixing compost into every planting area, and I mulch many plants like tomatoes, lettuce, squash, and eggplants to help retain moisture. Thanks for the comment.
I have actually ridden by the Evergreen plant, and it looks like a small mountain of material. I don't think anything is accidentally getting in there, and since all the different Mfrs are putting sand in the bags, it's probably to help it pour, some viewers are suggesting. Thanks for the comment.
Here in Michigan the Black Kow being sold is absolutely horrible. Full of huge sticks, rocks big enough to use in a sling shot, & it's basically mulch, not cow manure. I've seen video after video on youtube. Folks in the south seem to be fortunate to get the good stuff, while those of us up north get debris filled mulch that isn't worth $1 a bag let alone over $6 LOL I'm guessing they have a lot of places they source it from, & up north the source is garbage. At least the company gave me a full refund when I wrote them to complain about it.
It is not hard to sift sand to remove rocks, and I am disappointed that the companies seem to be adding sand that still contains rocks to their products. Also, I didn't realize the quality would vary as much as viewers are telling me. Thanks for the comment and for watching...
Agreed, Black Kow in Michigan is terrible. I have to double sift it. I let the clay/manure out in the sun a bit and tamp it all to break it up. Then mix it with other soils. Now, last year, I drove down to Valdosta Georgia to visit my Mom and brought 10 bags back here. It was better stuff...
@@salemdesigns65 That is interesting. Obviously there must be more than one processing location, and the North is getting the inferior product. Thanks for watching.
Very helpful review Farmer Bob. Thank you for this.
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching.
I love using black kow . I have no problems with it. It does a great job for anything I grow.
I agree, it's a good product. But is it worth the extra money is the point I was asking. Thanks for watching.
Get what you pay for@@TheBackGardenYard
I was an inspector for DOT and your method was Not correct ...most every farmer has plenty of burlap comes in a roll ..you should have wash out thru a burlap and got the real percentage of material..
@@henclematheson6496 Thank you for the suggestion. I may make another video next year and implement some of the suggestions that viewers have made. I would be concerned that the sand would wash through the burlap though, so that's why I ran water through the bucket, knowing that the heavies would sink to the bottom, kinda like panning for gold... Thanks for watching.
Smell that black cow before using. It has been found that so e has a lot of amonia in it and its killed a whole spring plant. Remember your gov doesnt want you planting food.
Great visual test. It solidifies for me not to buy any compost ever and just make my own for free from the yard and local forest.
I have clay, I have sand, I have leaf mold, I have goat cold manure and chicken manure to make compost.
We burnt $8 dollars in gas to pick up 900 pounds of 2 year old composted manure off a farm giving it away for free not using pesticides, fungicides and occasional medication for new animals on naturally grazed 600 acre.
Thank You for the honest review and showing whats in it. 2 are forest arbor bi-product's and one of compost and manure.
I'd use the black cow mixed with equal parts of the forest blend for a container garden. Then only top dress it with home made compost every month lightly around the growing plants to feed the soil microbes. Once the plants had some height 6 inches I would mulch it with whatever was available ( Grass clippings, mulched up leaves or straw to retain moisture) I know bare ground is deadly to plants due to the heating cycle, dry wet, dry, wet stress. Mulch keeps the roots cooler retain moisture for weeks and weeks reducing watering while slowly breaking down over the year enriching the soil and feeding the soil microbes...
I enjoy videos like this showing what your buying! Good job! 👍
Thanks for the great post. I remember when I was a kid, my father went to a chicken farm and shoveled up a pile of chicken manure that hadn't been composted. It was a gagging smell. Dad covered it with garden soil and mixed it up. Only a little of this, mixed into a tomato hole, would grow huge delicious tomatoes without any other fertilizer needed... Thanks for watching.
@@TheBackGardenYardchicken, pig will both burn the heck out of plants if not buried away from the roots or up against the stems. I always compost fresh manures- 6 months+. Even goat and bunny I keep away 6” out from stems unless I compost it first. My favorite home compost is premium bale of tested by the farmer (see the report, make sure it’s labeled the current year, it’s bright green including its stems and has millions of little tiny green leaves. Those little leaves are the gold. Have a concrete pad and under cover to turn the mix. If water runs through your compost, the good stuff just goes down in the dirt under the pile. Not much good there unless you will be gardening there next year. Always move your plants like tomatoes, pototes, peppers each year to keep them healthy and not diseases, pest especially nematodes. Also has no grass of any kind like Orchard, fescue, Timothy, brome, etc in it because it will give you grass seeds. Alfalfa is a legume, it’s not an issue if it has little bit of seeds, that’s good to just pull and put down in the garden, around the plants. Alfalfa fixes nitrogen in the soil, helps the plants. But I like to mix as much leaves as I can find, no wood, mixes in the 50-50 alfalfa and bunny or goat manure and compost for 6 months.
Any thing that is natural meaning manure wise whether it’s chicken, turkey, cow, etc when sold commercially goes through more testing to be what it says on the bag. When it’s all or mostly wood, sawdust etc. the only adjust it seems to do on those bags is none. So without lime to get it to. A lower pH ie more acid for growing say tomatoes, peppers, potatoes at 5.5-6.5. If growing snap, butter beans etc you want it to be 6.5-7 or 6.0 to 7.0 because they want a little more alkaline soil for them to grow their best. Lawns want around 6.5-7.2. Asparagus want 6.5 to 7.5, some reports say up to 8. You should always put like plants together and fertilize or adjust the soil to be what they need.
Always have your soil tested at the county extensive service. You could be wasting a lot of money putting the wrong products, too much or too little. And either can ruin your soil. I have tomatoes great big that I don’t put in until May 15 and sometimes not until June1. Have planted as late as June 15-20. And get the same size plants but a lot healthier, bigger and a lot more tomatoes than those that plant in mid April. I always put magnesium ie Epson Salts( unscented, no additives for bathes etc, just plain old white epson salts - mix 1 tablespoon to one gallon of water and let it completely dissolve and then spray the plants every other month- it helps with taking water up in the stems. Don’t mix anything else in. I also use a water soluble fertilizer each day for my vanda orchid plants , they hang on a piece of wire, no bark, moss, nothing, just hang on the wire called a S-hook basket hook. But they have to water several times a day in the summer and then hard dry. Ie the long 2’ ft roots are white when dry, dark green when wet. But in the morning I use this mix which is like 10% calcium, 3% magnesium, NPK is 12-1-1. My other orchids get a different mix once a week that has NPK, tiny magnesium and lots of trace minerals, but no calcium. So I use the other mix for the Vandas to get the 10% calcium and 3% magnesium plus trace minerals to my cattleyas, Phalaenopsis, etc. . What I was getting to was I use that high calcium mix 12-1-1 about every week or other week for the tomatoes, the peppers, and potatoes. It’s a balancing act. But if I was using just in the vegetables or flowers - I would use it once every other week and every week when they are couple months out from flowering so I get good strong blooms.
Folks comment I grow pepper and tomatoes trees - about 5-6 tall, and 4+ feet wide, huge stems and lots of good size tomatoes depending on the variety. And no blossom end rot, no blight, no fungal spotting. I use a AzaMax for pests- it’s approved for organic plant growing. I spray on in late afternoon, Right at dark, it’s dry by morning, no worry about son causing issues the next day and I don’t hurt my pollinators or hummers, nor the plants with hot sun burning down on plants.
And the other orchids (not the vanda) get the magnesium ie epson salts mix about every month or other month. You have to keep up with them because there are different and orchids are a bit tough to figure out. The old timers years use to say it takes a lifetime to learn to grow good orchids. I have been doing them since early 70s. Still learning every day.
There is no wood chips in Black Cow composted cow manure…. Read the bag! Always read the bag. I don’t see any sand ,but it is adjusted to be .5-.5-.5 so there could be the minerals what gives you the NPK. You can’t say always it’s .5-.5-.5 with manure so they may have to adjust it with lime, and the NPK.
You want some sand, it helps with drainage, but as I said, dirt will get picked up when the the machinery pick it up off the ground. It’s just some do a better job. Don’t forget cows also can get dirt or sand in their guts. Horses can get twisted guts full of sand. Sand colic. They eat the sand or dirt when grazing on short pastures, then as more sand gets into the gut over years, it drops to the bottom. It’s heavier and heavier, if the horse colics, gets to rolling around, they can get a twist, a torsion. Then the gut will start dying and before long you have a dead horse, like in 24-48 hours +/-. I have been involved in several colic surgeries in my vets office. They would call to see if we could help for horses coming in after they get home from work. I was the saline sprayer ie keeping the guts wet, you don’t want them to dry up so after the incision was made and the guts just fall out, I sprayed and kept spraying through out before they started drying. The other issue with equines is unlike us, ours is secure natural to location in the abdominal cavity. The horses are like that which is why when they colic and start to roll they get the twist and then it’s bad news. if you have to beat them, you have to do so or they will die. It’s extremely expensive into many thousands to do an equine colic surgery.
It’s cow manure and it breaks down faster it’s all mostly nitrogen.
You will get your value out of it. But buying cheap is what you get - cheap crap and in those cheap ones, not much of that either. You are comparing wood to manure when comparing Black Kow to those other two brands.
Thank you! I think I'll save my money too!😊😊😊
As you see in the video, I buy about 20 bags a year, and have been buying mostly Evergreen brand.
My use for it is in the rows I plant I like to mix with my harder clay based soil to build up the area the plants are living in. I think I'm getting more out of the compost, than the manure, even though all of them grow very nice healthy plants, but 2 1/2 bags of Countryside vs 1 bag of Black Kow? Thats a lot of difference. It certainly looked like Black Kow had mixed potting soil in their bag also, (I have no firm evidence of this), which is probably not a problem, just really not
a benefit unless you are using it to start seeds...
Thank you for the video! I will definitely save more money now. Human nature tells us that the “bigger brands” are better. That’s how they get us . I think I will continue to do my own compost as well as buy the countryside and evergreen when I’m in between my own ( greens and browns) composting readiness. Thank God I started my composting last October! Also thank you for the last video on how to grow from seeds with the layering so they can stay there until they are ready to be transferred. I’ve got new sprouts and I’m excited !
I've been using Evergreen since it was only $1 a bag, and have always had good results. Very excited to see if Countryside gives the same results..
I mix Black Kow and mushroom compost for my rose beds.Then I cover up with Scott’s mulch to suppress weeds. Its always worked for me.
I'm sure the Black Kow works well, but I have always had good results with Evergreen also, and saved a good bit of money over the years. If you are comfortable with Black Kow, then why not?
@@TheBackGardenYardI will have to look harder. I've never seen anything other than black Kow. I do use it in my seed start and planters. But I mix with water and make a tea with fertilizer and chicken poop for weekly watering of fertilizer.
😢 Homestead Heart (here on YT) used Black Kow on her seedlings and lost them ALL! Turns out the mix was not fully composted and it burned up her plants. I'm talking about more than 50 pepper plants and some other crops. She's devastated as those plants represent a years worth of produce for her family and it's too late to sow again from seed. She spoke of the smell of ammonia, something she didn't notice initially.
Wow, you are about the third viewer to mention her, I'll go watch the video. I would think she could plant seeds directly into the ground still and make a crop, but I'm not sure where she is located. Thanks for the comment.
She didn’t use it properly
@@Beps128 I can't comment on that, but her planting method with all that ground cover is a bit unusual. But that's not new for her, so I don't want to speculate.
I've been pretty disappointed with the hit or miss quality of Black Kow over the past couple of years. I've gotten many bags that are pretty raw - seems like they just walk behind the cow with the yellow bag and throw the results on the truck to Lowes 😂. Might be a store/distributor specific problem as I've used it for many years and really only started encountering issues when I started getting bags at the Lowes in South Boston, Va. Either way, I'm going to be looking for another product. Doesn't do me much good if I need to pile it up and compost it for 3 months before it's usable in my garden. Unfortunate - that was my go to amendment as it's readily available and had been good quality.
She dug some up in the video and it smells of ammonia.
Thanks for the review. Sadly Black cow used to be my go do. No longer, used to be a big difference and was worth the price difference. New sub
I used the countryside today when I planted my Better Boy tomatoes, just because I think it will do as well as the more expensive brands. Thanks for watching...
I always buy the cheap stuff and then I get a few feed bags of rabbit droppings from a friend and add it to my garden. Good info thanks
Yea, they are selling earthworm droppings now for $16 for a small bag... Add compost your soil and you will have natural earthworm droppings, as the earthworms will live in your soil. Thanks for watching.
Black Kow fell to the Shrinkflation! I had a bag unopened from last year and bought 3 new ones just stocked this year and the bag weight is half! I kid you not, the bags are flatter and the amount of stones throughout are crazy. I've started making my own.
How do you make your own?
Very helpful thank you
Someone I watch was using It and has for years. They used some new bags of it and all their crop died right away so they investigated it and the new bags they bought were not composted correctly and smelled like ammonia. The bags that they had left over from last year was fine.
I keep hearing that over and over. Maybe there was a bad batch?
I wonder why she used it when it smelled like ammonia??
Im gonna tell ya. I think if you dumped that out in a wheel barrow like I do when I'm mixing it for my planters. You would find clumps of manure in that black cow. I will Say in the last 3 years it has went up nearly 3 dollars a bag.
It it what I use but it sure is getting expensive for some cow ####!
Great demonstration.
It seems to vary, lot to lot and location to location, is the feedback I'm getting. I believe they are processing it more these days, maybe to eliminate the smell? Thanks for watching.
mine has chunks of manure and BIG wood parts
I just bought five bags of Black Cow and had some HUGE rocks in the bags. Definitely going to look at alternatives. :)
Yea, I think they are putting sand in the bags to make them fill heavier - and someone else suggested that they may use the sand to make a smoother mixture. But the rocks are inexcusable... Thanks for the comment.
I notice lots of my homestead garden channels like Happy Frog but I haven't found that and its tooooo expensive on the internet.
@@misstlc7136 it is expensive at he local nurseries as well!
They put in sand to improve drainage.
Thank you for taking the time to share this information. I’m new to gardening and really appreciate it!
Very nice comment, and glad to help. Thanks for watching.
I use black kow. It has saved my 30 year old japanese holly shrubs that were beginning to turn yellow. Now they are green and healthy. I apply black kow mixed with top soil to them twice a year. Also use in raised beds and plants are super healthy.
The yellow bag was a must-have for me until the shortages due to the illness and shutdowns. Once it was widely available again, I discovered that my bags were mostly wood chips. I never bought another bag.
Yes, I have clay based soil, so what's in the bag does help amend the soil, but I could probably get a pile of wood chips delivered and get about the same results for a lot less money. But my plants have liked the evergreen and black kow when I have used them, however they are not worth the new higher prices, imo.
Lots of debris and small sticks. Same as yours. Will not buy black cow again.
@@TheBackGardenYardI will say I bought Miracle grow potting soil this year and got chunks of wood so big I could build something. Just terrible. Everything is soooo expensive thank goodness I'm not trying to buy seedlings like years ago. I'm happy to have Hoss tool seeds that give me beautiful plants. But who wants the trash they sell you in the grocery store. I'm thankful for my little garden. ❤❤
Enjoyed your video...
@@TheBackGardenYardseems like a good idea based on these bags, but don’t ever mix wood chips into your soil!
Using them for mulch is ok depending on what you growing but don’t let them touch the stem of your plants.
@@TrggrWarningWhy wouldn’t you want wood chips to touch your roots?
Black Kow shouldn't stink. I've heard that they sent out tons of bags that weren't filled with mature compost/manure mix, which resulted in killing many people's crops. I now use mushroom compost or chicken manure now just to be safe. I have used black kow, but now this season.
The black kow I used this year looks really good. Very black, stains my hands. Their topsoil costs more and is equally good. If mine had wood in it I would take it right back. zThis year I spent around $400 on their manure compost and topsoil. Mostly topsoil.
It's interesting about how many different comments about the quality of the Black Kow compost varies. I was just trying to show how similar the 3 products actually are, even though the Black Kow does seem to be processed more. I have used the Black Kow before and got good results, but got equally good results with the Evergreen. This year I'm using the American Countryside on my tomatoes, just to see if they do as well. Since I also use 10 10 10 fertilizer in my planting holes, it's not really a test I can use, it will just be an opinion. Thanks for watching.
Ty for helping us see the difference that helps a lot
Keep up the great work u do and more power
That's very nice - thank you
I just used the American country side and I was really really happy with the 20 bags I bought. Very fine and low order. Great quality.
Yes, I just used the Countryside to transplant my beloved Better Boy tomatoes, and they have responded well. Since I do add 10 10 10 to my planting holes, I can't give all the credit to the compost product, but it seems to amend the soil just as well at the other brands. Thanks for the comment.
Thank you!
Most informative vid ive seen in a while
Thanks 💪🏼💪🏼👍🏼👍🏼
Thanks for watching.
I use Black Kow and Evergreen. I also use compost from local producers. One is composted from fish products and gin trash. The other composted from food waste and chicken manure from the many chicken houses in my area. I like a mix of materials for wide diversity of micronutrients. I direct sow, so wouldnt plant directly into the evergreen product because there is a lot of chunky organic matter in it. But I always add it to my soil because those organics breakdown and create a beautiful loam. I like sand because my native soil is very compact.
Yea, I've read stories about people filling raised beds with 100% bagged compost and manure and all their plants dying. I don't think most vegetable plants would thrive in that environment at all. But 2 parts soil to 1 part compost and manure would probably make a very good raised bed filler.
@@TheBackGardenYard Yes, my daddy always had the manure mixed with sand and soil, then covered with a lot of soil so as not to burn up the plants.
I became a fan of Black Kow last year because it did my garden well. But good god is it expensive. This year I have been looking for alternatives, so I appreciate your video. Thank you very much. :)
Yes, same here. Price forced me to switch, and I'm getting very good results this year with the Evergreen and Countryside brands. Thanks for watching.
Good to know , thanks for posting this 🥀
This was an excellent review of these popular bags found in the big box stores
Thank you - I'm working on another review of these compost and manure products, and this review involves a growing plants test. I think folks will be interested in the results I'm starting to see.
I love black kow neve had a problem with it it will grow huge tomatoes and pepers
A lot of folks love the Black Kow. I grow great crops of tomatoes and peppers with the Evergreen also. Each to his own. Thanks for watching.
Black Kow works great in my raised beds and has been added every year for over 10 years, tomato and peppers have done outstanding over that time.
I'm getting good results from all 3 kinds so far this year.
I buy bags of straight up composted cow manure from a local farm. It's pretty fresh so I till it into the soil in the fall. Works out great for me. I also like to add a bit of the Black Kow to potting soil for all my potted plants !
Sounds like you are doing it right. Tilling into the soil in the fall would certainly be the way to enrich the soil for spring planting. And, I also use composted manure to make my own potting mix and seed starting mix.
My local Lowes will sometimes have the black cow in two slightly different colored bags. On is a darker yellow then the one you have and the other is the same as you have. Exact same labeling. The brighter bag is usually some mulch and sand as you have and at times what looks like pure mulch. The darker one has what seems to be 99.9% pure dirt (composted manure) with no sand or wood and with very few pieces of clump manure.
I always get the one in the darker bag. I may need to do a Black cow vs black cow video some day. I did post a pic of the deference's on the Lowes web site. I did question Black cow about my findings but didn't get any definitive answer.
There certainly seem to be quality issues with the Black Kow, based on the feedback I've seen on this video. Thanks for the comment.
I'm staying away from the Black Kow this year. To many complaints from what I've seen.
Thanks for doing this. I have been using Evergreen for years, but will look out for the Countryside. I have two compost bins but always need to buy more compost.
Okie dokie 😊
Thanks for sharing extremely helpful for my future garden
I'm glad you found it helpful. Thanks for watching.
I've used all three myself. Both the Country side and the Evergreen are from the same company. Even has the exact same address on the bags.
You can grow vegetables from any of the three, but when it comes to nutrients in the soil for the plants, I've always had better luck from the Black Kow and knowing that they test their product for harmful contaminants before the product is shipped to the big box stores means a LOT to me.
I agree Black Kow is a quality looking product, and I've used many bags in the past. However I'm not sure it's worth the difference in price I'm seeing in the stores here in Georgia. But I am just glad to see people out gardening, whatever they use. Thanks for watching.
According to Black Kow, they test their product for herbicides before shipping.
It will form a hard crust if merely surface dressing plants. Best to mix it in if you can.
Black Cow has burned my plants many times, but I still incorporate it in the late fall and by spring planting it seems fine and beneficial. Have noticed a change though, with many more stones so I am sure to sift it first.
So if you are adding it in the fall, would the less expensive brands accomplish the same purpose?
I've tried other brands, but I have found the Black Cow brand to be the best for fall incorporation. I don't use any manure product in the early spring anymore. Zone 5b.@@TheBackGardenYard
These videos are so helpful! You mentioned straining in this video and your sweet potato slip video. Aren’t certain worms good for the soil? Should we always strain soil? I’m a newbie and I’m picking up soil and compost today and I have used soil as well. 😊
Absolutely earthworms are good for the soil, as their trails aerate the soil and their droppings are natural fertilizer. However, if you are making seed starting and potting mix from your own garden soil, I have found that straining the particles to remove large rocks, sticks, and clumps will allow the seeds to come up better, and also you need to bake the soil to kill weed seeds. The large companies selling the potting mixes do the same thing, otherwise you will be very unhappy to see all the weeds popping up with your seed starts.. Thanks for watching.
Okay I have to correct a term. SIFT dry product -STRAIN wet. Sifting is the correct term for what you were doing in test 2 and for making seed starting mix😊.
@@kgs2127 Thanks for that... I realized I have just used them interchangeably. Thanks for the correction and for watching.
Thanks for your time! I will also go with the county time!!!
I have used Black Kow for years but last year I purchased the Evergreen top soil and the compost, because of the price. However, I ended up taking all the bags back to Lowe's, because both looked the same nothing but pine/hard wood fine. More like mulch then compost or top soil. Just fine chopped wood chips. So I will spend the money for Black Kow. Also the Evergreen does not hold on to water if you are laying the compost on top of your garden beds. However the Black Kow does and works great for starting seeds in the ground and will keep the seed moist for a few days until they start to come up.
I did comment in the video that the Black Kow does seem to be more "processed". It is ground into smaller pieces, however, I didn't see a lot of difference in them otherwise. Thanks for watching.
This is a VERY helpful test... you just answered a question that has nagged me for quite a long time. Thanks so much!
You are welcome, and thanks for the nice comment.
Nice work my friend! I do think that the Evergreen had less sand than the Country-whatever, and the residue also looked blacker. The Black Kow definitely had the least sand by a significant margin. The Black Kow is the only one on which you pointed out the guaranteed analysis, and I don't know how the others compare nutritionally to that. I do much gardening, but I have never used any of them. Thanks for your work!
Yea, it's a toss-up which had more sand, imo. I'm not sure why Evergreen quit posting the analysis, unless they changed the formula.. Thanks for watching.
The test would have been planting the same plants in all 3 mediums and see what the results of the growth would be. I get very concerned with ground pine products in the bag of compost. Notice how grass and plants don’t grow pine trees because of the pine pitch. The ground around is very acidic,not good for growing vegetables plants. Ok for acid loving non vegetable plants. Beware
I don't plant in 100% compost and manure. I always mix it with garden soil, and get great results. But I agree that planting in a mixture of garden soil and the different compost and manure mixtures may be a good test, and maybe I'll do that. Thanks for watching.
Yes that is what I would expect the test to be each bag on crops and the result. Once he said what his test would be I moved on.
I use the evergreen a lot, also. My veggie garden is loaded with the stuff mixed with the native soil. I have been using it this spring to start a new lawn but I don't have enough info to share the results except that I do have a very nice stand of the rebels fescue grass.
Yes, I used the Evergreen about 2 years ago and roto tilled 20 bags into the yard, then seeded Zoysia grass in my front yard. I now have a beautiful yard, when before I couldn't get fescue or bermuda to grow. Thanks for watching.
Sir where is the Black kow manufactured at ? I must have missed it in the video. Thank you 😊❤
Their main operation is Oxford, FL but they may have other operations in USA. The only reason I mentioned Muscle Shoals, AL for the other two, is that they seemed so similar, I am suspicious they are using the same materials... Thanks for watching.
Mix it...black cow, countryside, mushroom compost, peat moss OR coconut core AND vermiculite. GREAT mix and more economical.
I'm switching to 100% chicken manure compost this year, as I am now believing those that say the cow manure products may contain herbicide residue from cows grazing treated pastures. I got some terrible results from my green bean and pole beans sprouting the past couple of years, and I believe the herbicide was the culprit.
I use cowsmo compost it’s from my home state and I like it a lot and it’s good pricing but then again I run it through my worm bins for 2 years before the castings are used as worm castings are the best fertilizer on earth especially if you make them right. My worm bin consists of black leaf mold lots of pumice or pea gravel more air is better, spag peat moss, kelp basalt neem and Karanja cake malted barley fine chopped banana leaves in lower layer cowsmo compost spent mushroom blocks from a local farm gypsum oyster shell flower and then let the compost worms do there thing for 2 years. You need a few bins like this at different stages for continuous harvests. It’s a big process especially when just starting out but it is unbelievable to use on any plant and you don’t need much one handful 2-3 times a season
You should post a video on your process. It sounds so nutritive for the worms! Worm gold!!
I can imagine how nice that compost would be for the garden.
Maybe.
It was a handful mixed into each hole for the transplant. I have small hands. Less than 4 oz.
I just got my notification and rushed right over !!!!
So any ideas why they are putting sand into the bags? All 3 bags had a good bit of added sand.
@@TheBackGardenYard hmm 🤔 maybe to make sure it doesn’t clump up and has good drainage
@@CoLeah That makes sense. I also think it may be to give some weight to the bags, so we think we are getting more...
@@TheBackGardenYard : I'm not sure , but , thanks for asking !!!!!
Perhaps the cow deposits their #2 on the ground, and then a skip loader picks it up and perhaps picks up some sand with the #2?
I stopped buying Black Kow last year when I bought about 20 bags to top off my raised beds. In these bags I found large rocks (many the size of my palm!)and ground up plastic debris. I wish I had saved the rocks to make a pile to send a picture to the company. I am still picking out stones from my raised beds that could have only come from the Black Kow bags. Very disappointing when you spend so much money. I have resorted to buying the $2 bags from Home Depot.
Wow, I just keep hearing that about the Kow... Thanks for watching.
I definitely think Black cow is the best quality of the compost and manure products. But it has doubled in price from 2 or 3 yrs ago when I was buying it for $2.98 a bag in my area. Now it sells for $5.98-6.48. But my problem with all of these manure and compost products is that most all of them contain Glyphosate and other herbicides, pesticides, and fungicides. And what is the point of gardening organically if you put chemical laden compost and manures on your garden? In fact, you are not gardening organically if you do use these products. I know of three different people who make their living from gardening and are published gardening authors, who have lost entire crops to buying manures and spreading them all over their organic gardens. One of these gardeners here in the U.S. bought cow manure from a local dairy and spread it on his organic garden beds, Pecan and fruit trees, and a 100ft row of newly planted blackberry bushes that he had just paid $9.00 a piece for, and within days the leaves on all his garden vegetables, eggplants, tomatoes, etc, and his Pecan trees and blackberry bushes, all had curled and dying leaves. He and the two other gardeners all lost their entire years worth of crops, fruits, and nut trees, from cow manure with a toxic herbicide it in that had been sprayed on the pasture the cows had eaten, or had been sprayed on the hay the cows had eaten.
Well, thankfully, most of the reports I have seen on the bagged manure and compost products have been positive, but thanks for sharing that story.
Thanks for this... I have tried the blackcow and still need to be mix ...too strong for certain things. But yeah agree with you the other stuff is coming from the same place. I would go.for the cheaper bag. ❤
Yea, I never plant in 100% compost and manure mix, regardless of the brand. I usually mix it 50% with garden soil when I transplant tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, etc from seed starting pots. Thanks for watching.
@@TheBackGardenYard thank u
❤I used a scoop of black cow on each plant,is that too strong? Will it kill the plants? New to gardening
@@cherylsimmondsday9380 I usually use a scoop of black kow or other manure mixture per hole when planting tomatoes or peppers. Be sure to mix it well with the garden soil in the hole. I also use 10 10 10 fertilizer, just a teaspoonful per plant, in the hole also. Then completely fill the hole when planting so water won't puddle around the stem. Happy gardening and thanks for watching.
@@cherylsimmondsday9380 @cherylsimmondsday9380 is based on ratio.. on how much soil you currently have or the size of the pot. Should not be more than 25% ratio when combined with other substrate.
Love your passion brother
Good video I was thinking the other day because I rode by the Scotts Hyponex in Jackson Georgia they changed something in there product because when I was a kid in smelled when they first built the plant now it does not smell also It might have been another company back then.
I agree that they, (most companies making processed compost and manure), have changed something in their products, because about 8 years ago I filled in a swimming pool and seeded bermuda grass in the fill soil they put on top. The soil was of such poor quality that I spread 30 bags of Evergreen on top of the sprouted grass as it had such poor color when it came up. My neighbor called me and told me it smelled like a cattle farm over here, and how long would the smell last. I told him that only a day or two, but it definitely smelled of manure then, not now. Thanks for watching.
Black kow is the best one i’ve tried. I’ve used Evergreen. My plants didn’t do well. I order Black Kow. I was told Lowe’s can order it. I’ve ordered from Ace Hardware in the past.
Here in Georgia, Lowes and Home Depot carry the Black Kow as a regular item, especially in the spring.
I have raised beds.I have 3 compost tublers.I get 5 gallon bucket off each side in spring and fall..Its prob not enough but its what I have.
I really enjoy making my own compost. I mix it with the bagged stuff, then mix that with the soil and it feeds many plants. Thanks for watching.
I watched all of the video to see how you were comparing the products, and quite frankly, the only true comparison was cost. When you are comparing compost, it should be done based on your use/goal you are trying to accomplish. Compost can be added to increase organic matter, and in that case, all 3 would suffice, but the comparison would be the percent of organic matter in each bag. Compost can be added to build fertility, and then you would be evaluating NPK, macro, and micro nutrients available in each one. Another good test would be the fungi to bacteria ratio, which is very helpful if you are growing higher succession plants like shrubs/berries and fruit trees. Compost can also be added to build soil structure, tilth, or hold on to water. When I make Compost, 30 to 40 cubic yards per pile, I will add a couple tractor bucket loads of topsoil to increase the indigenous microorganisms (fungi, bacteria, nematodes, etc.) to the pile. This serves as an innoculant and gets the soil food web started. Soil is made up of sand, clay, silt, air spaces, water pockets, and gazillions of microorganisms. When it's in balance, we have loam, and it is a gardeners delight. By adding compost to your garden, the composting process will continue, and eventually, natural systems take over just as it does in the forests and prairies. That said, prior to making my own compost, I purchased and used Black Kow and it did everything I needed a good compost to do, improve my soil so that I could grow tasty fruits and veggies. Happy Gardening!
Yes, a total analysis by a lab could certainly be helpful, but my intention was to show what was in the bags, and let viewers determine if they see enough differences in the products to warrant the price difference. Thanks for watching.
I understand what you are trying to accomplish, but twigs and sand are not good indicators of the performance of the product, hence value. Since you have invested in all 3 bags of compost, may I suggest you perform a bioassay of each along with your garden soil. Please note, I watched because, I like many others are interested in seeing if we are throwing away money by purchasing Black Kow. If you get 4 solo cups and fill each with compost and the control with your garden soil and then plant 5 of the same cucumber seeds in each and see how many germinate, which starts grow better at 7 days, 14 days, and if possible transplant and monitor production of each plant that would speak volumes. We would then be able to do a cost benefit analysis of each product. If I am buying compost for mulch, then I will purchase the cheapest product but if I am buying compost to build my soil health and increase yield, then I am willing to pay more for results. Value doesn't come from What's in the bag but instead how well does it work. If you do perform the analysis because I am extremely interested.
@@camptifieldofdreams2863for seed starting in solo cups?
Yes you are throwing your money away.
For seeds to germinate they basically need water and something to help retain moisture, like dirt.
Depending on your area they can then be taken outside or placed in a window for light.
For the .5 .5 .5 NPK in black Kow might be decent for some seedlings but you are better off getting fertilizer and adding a very small amount to the solo cup and the rest to the soil as the plants mature with compost.
@@camptifieldofdreams2863buying it for mulch?
Yes, throwing money away even the cheapest kind…Use leaves or grass or tree bits (free stuff).
Buying compost for better yield and/or build your soil?
You are absolutely throwing money away in two ways.
Take the veggie scraps, grass and leaves out of your trash and mix them with some dirt in a hole you dig in your yard.
@@TheBackGardenYardyou don’t want to do the solo cup germination/growth experiment?
Settle this matter once and for all…
Does adding Black Kow to soil do everything a good compost does when added to soil?
Oh wait….
They used Black Kow until they made their own compost and answered all the questions they asked….
Hmmm lol
I wonder if they work for Black Kow.
I use mushroom compost works well
Thank u for taking the time to share this. It's good that they add sand n rocks. It keeps them from compacting. It's possible that Black Kow has more manure n that makes a difference as well. It's the only one that gave it's NPK right? I buy both n add fruit n veggie peels, n Epsom Salt.
Yea, I agree that the sand may make a better out of the bag product, but I think they should sift it and not put the rocks in there. Also, I think the Evergreen and Countryside should shred it more like the Black Kow does. However, that could be part of the reason the Black Kow is so much more expensive. Thanks for watching.
I would like video on maki g compost.I purchased a small compost bin with a tumbler
I made an in ground compost bin. It works well, but I can't make as much compost as I need, so I still make the bagged. Here's the video. ua-cam.com/video/mLDKOM4T8lY/v-deo.html
Great video. Thank you for sharing this with us. Country time it is
It sure is
I use mushroom compost made by black gold compost co. / black kow, out of oxford fl. Recent purchase was nothing close to what it used to be. So barkey I could use for mulch. Seriously pissed. It used to be great, and no bark whatsoever.
I keep getting similar comments. Thanks for watching.
I didn't see the fertilization numbers on the other 2 bags just the Black Cow, was it on them?
The numbers are not on the Countryside and Evergreen any more. I know they used to be on the Evergreen, so don't know why they quit.
I got a mites from that black kow. First time ever. Absolutely devastating.
Yikes
I got mites and a fungus
Great video. I subscribed to your channel 2 days ago and now reviewing many of your videos. I am glad that I discovered your channel as there is a lot of great information. Just finished watching, “Fall Treat in the Garden, Fuyu and Kaki Persimmons - How to Tell When Ripe”. I have 2 young FuYu Persimmon trees. I have tried several times to propagate them but unsuccessful. My question is have you tried to propagate the persimmon? I have searched UA-cam other gardening channels and it seems that even air layering doesn’t work on the FuYu. Thanks for videos.
My wife knows how to graft the shoots onto other trees, and has successfully done that with the persimmons. This is the time of year to try it, so maybe watch a video on grafting and try it with a plum or pear tree or other base they may suggest. Thanks for the comment.
I will also start viewing those videos! Thanks so very much for the Honest review!
I have used Black Cow & gotten ok- good results, but that was 10-15 years ago when you could tell & smell the manure! Thank you so very much!
However, I don't understand it is being overly processed.Also the Black Cow was moist in side & sometimes vit wet.
I never understood why.
I will never use Black Kow again. I bought hundreds of dollars' worth a couple of years ago for filling raised beds. We ended up with some kind of grass that creates a grid of nodules about 6" deep in the soil that had to be pulled out several times throughout the season. It was impossible to find and get it all. This year I went with 2 cubic yards of Soil3 compost. Mushroom compost has also been much better but is too pricey to use for large quantities.
I've had the same problem with weeds in the compost. I got a strange new weed in my yard several years ago after I had spread about 20 bags of compost on the yard in order to give it a boost one spring. Yea, the Black Kow is now so expensive, I am mostly buying cheaper brands and using mostly Black Kow to make my seed starting mix with garden soil, which I bake to make sure the weed seeds are killed.
@@TheBackGardenYardjust picked up black Cow as amendment for containers. I do hit the mix with boiling water to kill knots and such.
It's, called nut grass. I gave it here in North central Texas. It's a demon to get rid of
@@Cutter-jx3xj Thank you for the identification! We tried for 3 years to remove it. Finally this year, I dug out all the soil and replaced it with a new raised bed. I'm sifting through the soil to remove the nodules and using the old soil as filler on the bottom of the beds (> 1ft deep to prevent it from coming back). I expect much better results from Soil3!
@@TheBackGardenYardu bake it in the oven?!? I am trying to seed a large portion of my lawn after a septic field repair and I’m looking for a material to cover the grass seed with. I can upon ur video bc I wanted to use black cow since the Scott’s lawn soil had tons of rocks, glass, and even plastic in it!! I am super worried about introducing more weed seeds but now I’m interested in learning how to bake the weed seeds out!!!
You need to go watch a video from homestead heart about her recent experience with black kow. Because she lost an entire crop because it was not completely composted. She has used it for years. Just check it out.
You sure went through alot to make this test. The least i can do is LIKE and leave a COMMENT!! And this year i started usi g BLACK KOW, So far its been great, alot better than the one ive been using other years.
Yes, it's a good product, especially if you don't need a lot of it, $$$
I'm a fan of Black Cow topsoil. Halve the price of Black Cow manure. Use a 75% Black Cow top soil 25% peatmoss for a pepper plant in a 5 gallon grow bag. Fastest bestest growing pepper plant I ever seen. I joked with my wife that I could hear it growing. It was my pet plant. Had it for 2 years but made the mistake of not sheltering it from the last hard freeze. I Learn much from that pepper plant.
I've never seen their potting soil just the yellow bag manure.
Yea, the success of the Black Kow and Manure brand, has them expanding into several other lines of garden soil products. I believe I saw the soil and another product also at Home Depot.
@@TheBackGardenYard I found Black Kow brand at Lows . I find all the different brands inconsistent from year to year. I've purchased good cheap stuff and poor expensive stuff. Sticks and pine bark in expensive compost is a pain or buying top soil that is all clay. It's all a surprise. You never know what you will get. If all possible, I prefer native top soil and amend it with compost and peatmoss.
I use black cow and it seems to work for me. The best is worm castings but they are expensive and black cow is a lot cheaper.
Yes, Black Kow does work, but would the others work equally well at 50% or more less cost? Thanks for watching.
I just spread black kow on my established trees next day it was hard as a rock. Any idea why?
Probably dried the sand into clumps with the other items that come in the bag.
@@TheBackGardenYardhmm yea they have hard clumps that look like dried balls of manure. Sure smells like it when I'm mixing it with potting soil. Lol. But the balls look more like horse crap than a cow pattie.
A country girl couldn't play Frisbee with those dried balls like I could as a kid with a dried cow pattie. 😂😂😂 City kids don't know what they are missing. Can't find that kinda edu-tainment playing video games.
@@misstlc7136 🤣😂😂😅
It takes a lot of nitrogen to break down all those sticks and chips. Do the plant test and black cow wins hands down. I use black cow to compost my leaves (20yards+\-). I layer it in with grass clippings and weeds and chicken manure. I run the leaves through a mulcher. Spray some KNF LAB when layering the browns and greens and it takes about a third less time to have great leaf mold “type” compost.
That's an interesting use for it. Thanks for watching.
Nice video. It looks to me like the Black Kow has been composted down or shredded more than the others.
Down here in Australia, our main big box store has a cow blend product that looks a lot like the Black Kow and it costs around US$2.
Cheaper than bagged soil and has enough manure in it to make plants perk up a few weeks after adding it as a topdress.
Why wouldn't you buy it? 😊
Yea, that's about the price it should be selling for. And your impression of the Black Kow is exactly like my impression. Thanks for watching all the way "down under"!
I’ve been thinking about getting kellogg all natural garden soil and mixing it with cow manure compost is that a good idea? I’m a beginner gardener
Since I don't know if you are going to use it in an in the ground garden bed, or a raised bed, it's hard to answer. However, I do believe that would be a good combo, and I'm not partial to any of the brands I showed in the video. But I would only use a 1 part cow manure to 3 parts soil mixture for starters. Too much of the cow manure compost will cause insect infestations, fungi growth, and even bacterial rot in the roots. And mix it well. Good luck with your garden.
@@TheBackGardenYard I’m using 1 raised garden bed and a plastic kiddie pool as another raised garden bed
@@ClevelandTaylor-bh4hz Ok, make sure the kitty pool has drains in the bottom so water does not collect in times of hard rains, and I would use a 5 parts soil to 1 part cow manure mix in it. Sounds like you have a good plan.
@@TheBackGardenYard sorry for all the questions but how do you calculate 5 part soil and 1 part cow manure. I’m new to gardening
The real question is which one has more fertility built into it.
Grow a few potted plants in each one and see what the difference is.
Thanks for all you do.
Since I have used Black Kow and Evergreen for years, I know they both work well. It would be difficult to design a study to compare the results of using all three to see which ones work better, but I am thinking about it. Thanks for watching.
I was always afraid of buying the Evergreen. Thanks for sharing this, I will give them a try and get 2 bags for the price of the 1 Black Cow. I will look out for the Countryside to see if my Lowes has it in stock. I would love to give them a try as well.
I am using the Countryside for tomatoes and sweet potatoes so far this year and they are green and healthy. Since I also use 10 10 10, I can't give all the credit to the compost manure though. Thanks for the comment.
Have you tried "Black Cow Potting Mix"? It's new.
Yea, I saw it in the store, but have decided not to buy it.
Consistency of Black Kow changed and has went up dramatically in price. I no longer use it. I now use the Evergreen brand to mix with my garden and flower beds. I live near farmers so I’ll just ask for some cow dung in the Pasteur or barn while my chicken manure composts.
Yes, I am getting the comment about consistency over and over. Thanks for watching.
Curious as to why you didn't just add the water, swirl it and then strain it?
Because I had already sifted it to see how much added bark and wood chips was in it. This allowed the light stuff to wash out, and left the heavy mud, sand, and rocks, so I could see if the products contained that. And of course they did.
Great share!
I like Black Kow., never found umps in it. Other brands not in my area.
Yea, I am using the 2 bags I bought when I did the tests, and the plants are doing fine.
Looks like I'm off to lowes for some of that Black Cow. I'll give it a try.
Remember to mix it with other soil when you use it. Thanks for watching.
I love black cow, however I have found blue stone and large wood chunks in the bag
Yea, the quality isn't what it used to be for sure.
I'm just trying compost, (my own) and soil.
Good homemade compost mixed with your soil is probably better than the bagged manure, in my opinion. I have a compost bin, and I use what I make, and I get very good results where I mix it with my soil. My problem is, I just don't make enough compost for the whole garden, thus I buy the bagged manure/compost products.
There are a few different places that black cow raises their cows at or I should say gets their manure from and one of them is in Florida, which is incredibly Sandy. I have livestock myself and I am just wondering if that sand wasn’t coming through the grazing process. That’s just a thought.
You can get black cow cheaper at Lowe’s because they will price match Home Depot. Home Depot is about a dollar a bag cheaper plus if you buy more than 30 bags you get 10% off so I always do that when Ibuy. When I have used Evergreen at times I’ve had problems with it in my garden, stunting my plants, and my friend said that they will gather pine bark and straw at tree growers and they do spray in between the trees to keep the weeds down. I don’t know if that’s been a problem for you or not. I had some bags that have been really well and other bags that have stunted plants. The days of going down the road and asking somebody who has a cow if you can pick up the manure is over.! I hate that we are forced to buy it like this. I really appreciate your taking the time to make this video. Thank you.
Well, I've been using bagged manure for over 20 years, and never had a problem with any brand, but I mix it with soil and add 10 10 10 usually. I'm mainly using it to build up my soil vs just fertilizer, so I really can't tell any difference between brands. That's why I'm using more Countryside this year, and my plants are very healthy. Thanks for the nice comment.
@@TheBackGardenYard great advice thank you
Never had a problem BKow
I have seen some informative videos saying that people’s gardens have been failing due to the cows that produced the manure grazing on grass treated with Grazon weed suppressant. I don’t think that information makes it on your the bags of manure, very hard to determine,
Yea, I'm still using all 3 brands in the video and no problems. It's important to mix it well with garden or even out of the bag soil, so as not to make a medium that is too icky and will let mold, fungi, and bacteria grow into the root system, and also become insect habitat. So I'm just basing on personal experience, that the grazon problem probably may not be the cause of some of the problems with the bagged manure/mulch mixtures. Now if someone is buying pure manure straight off the farm, I can see how that could cause problems.. Thanks for watching.
Can you do Timberline Soil Compost and Manure
Do you know where this is available in Metro Atlanta? I'm thinking of doing another video with some different ideas for tests and I could add another product to the mix. Thanks for the suggestion.
Thanks so much for doing this. I know it took a lot of time and patience. I didn't like countryside when tried it last year. Too many wood pieces. Think I will stick with Black Kow as long as it smells clean. Blessings on your channel.
Thank you Marlene. I know a lot of folks use the Black Kow and are dedicated to it. Since I use so many bags each year, I'm using the less expensive brands. I really couldn't see any difference in Countryside and Evergreen, and the Black Kow certainly was processed more. Thanks for the comment.
I would buy the cheap stuff In addition, using water soluble fertilizer on it, it’s proven that it the won’t kill the micro biome in the soil and on top of that, it’s immediately used by the plant.
You mean something like Miracle Gro? I've used it before, and it it a good fertilizer, but I only use it occasionally and haven't needed it this year. Thanks for watching.
Praise God for miracle gro lol be switching to commercial stuff later, that miracle gro is expensive. in addition using the blue Kool-Aid I’ll mulch heavy given me consistent moisture levels and loose soil.
I am very disappointed with black kow mine looks nothing like yours it’s majority of wood. I first purchased it last year after viewing another gardener on UA-cam his looked like yours mine the complete opposite. I won’t give it another chance. Truly appreciate your experiment.
I understand. I had a bag of Evergreen that was mostly wood chips and bark also this year. I think the quality control of the companies selling these mixtures could be better. My plants have thrived in both Black Kow and Evergreen though, so I am excited to see if the Countryside will give as good of results. Thanks for the comment.
I love your strainer. Was it repurchased from some other product, or did you make it yourself?
Thanks, yea it's the cover for a fire pit, but it has the perfect mesh size for my straining needs. Thanks for the comment and for watching.
If you have sandy soil and water runs right though it, or clay soil and water runs right off of it, you need organic material to hold water and nutrients until the plant roots can reach out and get it.
Think of mulch as a billion tiny sponges that will absorb and hold water and nutrients.
They may or may not have nutrients in them other than a few minerals.
I have seen mulch made from tree matter that was sterile. Nothing would grow in it unless I added lots of fertilizers.
You just need to decide how much nutrition you want built into the mulch and what you are willing to pay for it.
I totally agree. That's why with my hard clay soil, you will see me mixing compost into every planting area, and I mulch many plants like tomatoes, lettuce, squash, and eggplants to help retain moisture. Thanks for the comment.
I used to use Black Kow a few years ago. After shrinking the bags, adding wood chips, adding stones, and charging more, I will never buy it again.
Yea, they have certainly changed the product over time. Thanks for watching.
I’d be most interested in seeing results: 3 different beds w/same veg & same conditions.
I believe all would do well, but it would be an interesting test.
Thanks for this! 😊😊😊
And thank you for watching!
Would not allow me to hit the like... but I subscribed.
Thanks for subscribing and happy growing.
Good job, thank you.
And thanks for watching.
Muscle Shoals Alabamas soil is real sandy and they are probably getting some of the soil when they are loading the manure hay mixture.
I have actually ridden by the Evergreen plant, and it looks like a small mountain of material. I don't think anything is accidentally getting in there, and since all the different Mfrs are putting sand in the bags, it's probably to help it pour, some viewers are suggesting. Thanks for the comment.
where i can buy theese?
I found all 3 available at Lowes. I haven't checked recently to see if they are in stock, but their website would probably tell you.
Here in Michigan the Black Kow being sold is absolutely horrible. Full of huge sticks, rocks big enough to use in a sling shot, & it's basically mulch, not cow manure. I've seen video after video on youtube. Folks in the south seem to be fortunate to get the good stuff, while those of us up north get debris filled mulch that isn't worth $1 a bag let alone over $6 LOL I'm guessing they have a lot of places they source it from, & up north the source is garbage. At least the company gave me a full refund when I wrote them to complain about it.
It is not hard to sift sand to remove rocks, and I am disappointed that the companies seem to be adding sand that still contains rocks to their products. Also, I didn't realize the quality would vary as much as viewers are telling me. Thanks for the comment and for watching...
Agreed, Black Kow in Michigan is terrible. I have to double sift it. I let the clay/manure out in the sun a bit and tamp it all to break it up. Then mix it with other soils.
Now, last year, I drove down to Valdosta Georgia to visit my Mom and brought 10 bags back here. It was better stuff...
@@salemdesigns65 That is interesting. Obviously there must be more than one processing location, and the North is getting the inferior product. Thanks for watching.