Feels like I won the lottery!

Doesn't this get everyone's body a'tingling?  This old, moldy, wet, broken bale of hay makes my 'top ten' reasons for doing the 'happy dance!"  Some neighbors a couple blocks over had this out on their curb for trash pick up.  I rushed home from my walk, grabbed the plastic shower curtain to line the trunk of my car and drove down to pick up this free pile of carbon materials.  My compost and flower beds are going to love it.

I was delighted to find mold and little baby mushrooms sprouting throughout the straw.  A double win for me!  A small portion of this goldmine will be set aside to add in layers to my active compost pile.  The remaining three-fourths of the pile will make its home in my back yard garden beds, atop my layers of newspapers as another barrier to suppress the weeds.

I am thinking this may have been two bales of straw instead of one.  Oh goodie!