When and how do I use my compost?

[franch]

Got some lovely compost in my bin, it's been 'cooking' for ages - when's the best time to put it on the garden? Any other tips?

I always turn mine out in the late fall when I prepare beds for the next spring but I don't know that there is a best time. It's the most nutritious thing you can put down, I think, so I would use it on your veg and perennials.

ooh - what does preparing your beds for next spring involve?

Depending on your soil it could mean a lot of things, I suppose-like adding manure, peat moss and/or lime/sulfur. For me it just means clearing away dead plants for composting and tilling new compost into the soil.

Thanks Tub

I'm new to gardening really, but I think you have to be a bit careful of applying it neat near delicate / young growth, as it can scorch it, so adding in Autumn seems a good way of avoiding that.

Scorch it? Really? I am so ignorant!

fresh manure will scorch plants but well rotted compost won't. If you are sure it won't be weedy then you can use it in spring as a mulch (ie spread it around plants and let it dig itself in, will help suppress weeds and keep soil moist and add nutrients as it gets gradually incorporated by weeding/worms etc). However mine has never got hot enough for me to be sure the weed seeds were burned off so i use it when digging bare soil over, or when planting new plants.

makes me feel very virtuous and salt-of-the-earthy