Taipei City Government

The Taipei City Government’s Parks and Street Lights Office (PSLO) is again offering free compost made from Taipei tree trimmings! 480 bags of the popular soil conditioner will be available from Monday, April 22. First come first served, so only early birds get the worms!

PSLO packages wood chips, twigs, and leaves from trimmed trees into bags of soil conditioner suitable for urban balconies and rooftop gardens. Free of charge, they have been a hit with the public for several years now. This time around, part of the soil conditioner bags are reserved for online applicants that tend a rooftop garden in order to promote the joy of gardening, the Taipei Farm City concept, and the benefits of toxin-free and organic compost.

PSLO Horticultural Engineering Team leader Hu Hung-wei said that the eco-friendly soil conditioner has been obtained through natural decomposition and is toxin-free and odorless. The mixture of coarse and fine particles can improve the structure, water retention capacity, and aeration of soils, and help plants absorb fertilizer more easily. Taipei residents can now apply for a bag of soil conditioner through the renewed Taipei Farm Bank website at https://farmcity.taipei.

How to get your free bag of soil conditioner:

From 10:00 the morning of 2019 April 22 (Monday), the Taipei Farm City website accepts applications for the free soil conditioner, while supplies last. Please go to https://farmcity.taipei/city/m3_compost/compost_s3_L.php.

Only Taipei residents and Green Rooftop caretakers under the Taipei Farm City program can apply. Please mark your form with "Taipei resident" or "XXXX Green Rooftop" in the appropriate box. Please fill in your real name. One application per person per season; please do not apply multiple times in one season.

The website will send a confirmation of receipt and, if applicable, an invitation by email to collect the soil conditioner between 14:00 and 16:00 from April 29 through May 3. Please bring your original identity card. If you do not collect your soil conditioner between these times, you’ll be deemed to have forfeited it.

The soil conditioner is only packaged in a square bag of 10 L without handles. So, bring your own grocery bag to carry it home.