Learn how to make compost at free workshop

Turn garbage into garden gold; it’s the magic of composting.

Learn how to make your own compost – and help your garden – during a free workshop presented by the Placer County master gardeners at the Loomis Library.

Set for 10:30 a.m. Saturday, July 13, this one-hour hands-on class will tackle the basics of “Compost and Mulch.” No advance registration is necessary.

“Who knew your kitchen scraps and yard debris could improve your soil?” say the master gardeners. “It’s called composting, which not only improves your soil, but helps you save water. Learn about how to set up a system that works for you. Also learn about the different types of mulch and how they protect your garden.”

Master gardeners will explain how compost and mulch work. (What’s the difference? Compost can be mulch, but not all mulch is compost.) They’ll also offer compost recipes for success, mixing kitchen scraps with dried leaves, grass clippings or other garden byproducts.

What to do with all that compost? It’s high-grade fertilizer that will produce bigger blooms and better harvests.

Before or after class, admire the master gardeners’ new demonstration garden outside the library. Master gardeners will be staffing the garden and answering questions from 10 a.m. to noon. Saturday, their monthly Open Garden Day.

“Master gardeners focus on visitor’s education and create enthusiasm for water-wise, environmentally focused, and inspirational ‘Gardening for Today,’” they say. “Our garden is a living classroom for the Placer County community that emphasizes sustainable gardening, integrated pest management and backyard food production.”

See for yourself. Loomis Library is located at 6050 Library Road, Loomis.