"Dirt Farmer" Sells Organic "Super-Soil"

"Dirt Farmer" Sells Organic "Super-Soil" 32-5-8 "I'm selling my farm a yard of dirt at a time," says Dick Grefe, Ottertail, Minn. Underneath what he and his farming ancestors thought was worthless low meadow ground, he discovered rich, organic peat soil. University of Minnesota testing indicates it has 77.3 percent organic matter at 6.9 pH with iron, magnesium, nitrate, potassium, phosphorus and other minerals equivalent to 5-20-20 fertilizer. The texture and food value make "Dick's Super-Soil" ideal for homeowners and businesses that work with gardens, lawns, landscaping, golf courses and sporting fields. In Minnesota, Grefe can mine up to a 40-acre parcel without any special permits. After removing the top layer of sod and roots, he digs out the peat soil with a Deere excavator, and loads it into a floater truck modified with a 25-yard grain box with a plastic liner for easy dumping. He piles and dries the peat soil for 12 to 18 months before running it through a conveyor and screening equipment with a Deere 4240 tractor with an 8-ft. bucket. After being screened, the peat soil is a consistent, fine texture, ready to be spread and planted with seeds, plants or trees. Grefe recommends adding at least 1 in. to provide nutrients and help hold moisture. "It also serves as a weed-preventing mulch," he adds. "In time, rain and worm activity will carry the compost down into the plants' root zone." He sells soil for $25/cubic yard, picked up from his site. Or he delivers for a transportation fee. He spreads about 1/2 in. on his own lawn every year to feed it and keep it lush and healthy. Gardeners have reported huge vegetables and prolific plants. So far, Dick's Super-Soil has helped everything it's been used on, from houseplants, evergreens and lawns, to flower and vegetable gardens. Most customers start new beds by mixing the soil in with their soil or topsoil, then add a little every year - just as fertilizer would be added, without the worries that come with chemical fertilizers. That makes it perfect for using on lakeshore lawns where chemical runoff is a concern. In 2007, Grefe purchased a bagger to sell the peat soil in 20-lb. bags to sell retail and wholesale. He filled the bags during the slow time in the winter. The timing is perfect for his business, Grefe says, as people are more aware of the benefits of healthy organic soil. Based on aerial soil survey maps, Grefe believes he has about 500,000 cubic yards of the peat soil on about 20 acres. "I don't plan on retiring," Grefe says. "I'm having too much fun." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Dick Grefe, Dick's Super-Soil, LLC, 32713 490th Ave., Ottertail, Minn. 56571 (ph 218 850-9586; www.super-soil.com).

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