The Compost Demonstration Garden is an educational environmental garden that demonstrates the recycling of yard wastes through the practices of composting and mulching.  The garden was designed in 1997 by Master Composters.  Master Composters, Morris Shaw (with the City of Odessa Solid Waste), and the Horticulture agent began soil preparation and planting in 1998 at which time it was taken over by the Permian Basin Master Gardeners and transformed into the garden you see today. 

The garden was established initially on a shoe string, but once Master Gardeners got involved, the garden chairman, Bess Barlau, drummed up donations from local garden clubs, garden centers, individuals, City of Odessa, Keep Odessa Beautiful, Mountain States Nursery and many other entities.

The garden has several styles of compost bins that are suitable for backyard composting of yard, kitchen and other organic wastes.  A couple of the bins are home made while others are commercially available.  The bins are layered with grass clippings, leaves, sawdust, shredded paper, animal manures, kitchen wastes and other types of organic waste.

The Compost Demonstration Garden is also surrounded by landscaped beds of well adapted heat and drought tolerant plants.  There are 60 different varieties of plants.  The soil in these beds have been amended with organic matter and mulched with yard wastes in the form of shredded tree limbs and pine needles.  The landscaping is not only a beautiful addition to the garden, but a necessary one that demonstrated the benefits of organic matter in the landscape.

Part of the purpose of the Compost Garden is an Ornamental Grass Demonstration Garden.  The garden has several different ornamental grasses and may be one of the largest collections in West Texas.

The Compost Demonstration Garden is used to train several compost classes each year.  Many people have been trained in yard waste recycling in this garden.  It is a wonderful tool to demonstrate the building, turning, and maintaining of a home compost bin.  Participants in the classes receive a free compost bin.  Because of the gardens close proximity to the Recycling Center and the free mulch, it is visited by many unreported visitors. 

LOCATION OF COMPOST GARDEN

The Compost Garden is located at 816 West 42nd Street, Odessa, Texas  (next to the Time Machine Recycling Center.

IRRIGATION METHOD AT COMPOST GARDEN

Drip irrigation is installed at the Compost Garden