Late Winter Biosolids Top Dressing Application In Perennial Garden - February 2024

Late last Fall, I found some time to head over to the mulch pit to pick up a couple of loads (in 5 gallon buckets) of municipal biosolids and brought them home.  I dumped the biosolids out and scattered them across a number of the perennial beds in the front/back/side yards.  A top dressing of sorts.   And a dormant application of organic material with the goal of improving the soil conditions.  I also thought that by applying them in early Winter/late Fall...there would be ample time for them to 'age in place' during the dormant period. 

With the return to the garden in the past few weeks to begin to prune back/remove old stems and lightly begin to clean up, I've noticed some areas where the naked soil is 'showing'.  What can fix that?  Mulch!  Oh...I guess that's true.  But, I also thought...biosolids could do the trick. 

And...off I went to pick up a load.  Here, below, are a few spots where I spread the material out.  I think I have 8 five-gallon buckets.  They're NOT filled all the way to the top (I fear them flopping over and spilling the biosolids out in my car...), but, I'd guess somewhere between 3 and 4 gallons.  

I started with half a bucket on each of the Spring Grove Ginkgo trees on either side of our stoop.  See below:

I dumped a couple of buckets by the Alice Oakleaf Hydrangeas in back.  Note the leaves.  I buried some of them and that's just fine. 

Next is under the Greenspire Lindens.  I put down one bucket-full.  Could do 5 more here. 

And, the last spot (in this round) was in what I call the "understory garden".  In particular...the epimedium and hellebores.  Below is a photo showing the biosolids as I dumped them.  In/around the foliage of the Epimedium.  And around the emerging buds of the Hellebores.  

Then, I was careful to rake the biosolids in/around the plants.  Here's a closer look at the finished product of both the Hellebores (first photo) and Epimedium (second photo).

Every time I dumped a bucket, I spotted ANOTHER area where I could use one.  And, that's just in the backyard beds.  There's the compost pile.  The lawn.  The parkway.  The sideyards.  The front yards.  

At some point, I'll run out of steam and will stop going to the mulch pit.  But, for now...with very little going on in the garden that needs tending, I am going to remind myself this weekend to go get a load of biosolids.