How Much Soil Does Terramation Produce? (colloquially referred to as human composting)
Direct Answer
Terramation — the process formally known as natural organic reduction (NOR) — produces approximately one-half cubic yard of nutrient-rich soil per person. That is roughly the volume of a large wheelbarrow load, or enough to fill several raised garden beds. For comparison, flame cremation produces 3–9 pounds of pulverized bone fragments: pale, chemically inert, and largely unusable by plants. The contrast is stark. Terramation does not leave behind a residue — it completes a transformation, returning a person’s body to the living soil cycle in a form that can nourish a garden, a forest, or a cherished piece of land for years to come.
How much soil does terramation produce?
Terramation produces approximately one-half cubic yard of nutrient-rich Regenerative Living Soil per person — roughly the volume of a large wheelbarrow load, or enough to fill a substantial raised garden bed. By comparison, flame cremation produces 3–9 pounds of sterile bone mineral ash. The terramation soil is biologically active with nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and carbon, and can be used in gardens, planted around trees, scattered in a meaningful place, or donated to conservation land.
- Terramation yields roughly one-half cubic yard of biologically active soil per person — enough to deeply enrich a memorial garden or plant multiple trees.
- Flame cremation produces 3–9 lbs of inert calcium phosphate ash; terramation produces many times more volume of living, plant-ready organic material.
- The soil's pH of approximately 6.5–7 means families can apply it directly around most established plants, trees, and shrubs without soil amendment.
- Families can keep a portion for personal use and donate the remainder to conservation land — one-half cubic yard is genuinely enough to share meaningfully.
- Colorado and some other states prohibit using NOR soil to grow food crops; all other ornamental and conservation uses are appropriate in legal NOR states.
What “One Cubic Yard” Actually Looks Like
One-half cubic yard is a specific, graspable volume: 3 feet wide, 3 feet deep, 3 feet tall — approximately one-half cubic yard of soil per person. Licensed NOR providers consistently document this yield as “about one-half cubic yard of nutrient-rich soil.”
To put that in physical context:
- A standard large wheelbarrow holds roughly half a cubic yard to two-thirds of a cubic yard. One full terramation yield would fill it more than once.
- A raised garden bed measuring 4 feet by 8 feet by 1 foot holds about 1.2 cubic yards — so a single terramation yield is enough to fill one substantial raised bed with room to spare, or to meaningfully enrich several smaller beds.
- The trunk of a mid-size pickup truck holds approximately one-half cubic yard. Imagine the truck bed filled with dark, rich soil.
- One-half cubic yard is roughly 200 gallons in volume.
This is not a small keepsake. It is a meaningful, substantial amount of material — enough to do something with, to plant something in, to give portions to family members who each want a piece.
A Note on Volume
The soil yield is approximately one-half cubic yard — reflecting the complete biological transformation of the body into living, nutrient-rich earth. Families typically do not take the entire yield at once in a single container; providers can package the soil in bags or vessels suited to transport and use. The volume makes clear that what is returned is not a token remnant — it is a full, substantial ecological contribution.
How This Compares to Cremation Ashes
The comparison with flame cremation is one of the starkest in all of end-of-life care.
Cremated remains — commonly called “ashes” — are not ash in the traditional sense. They are pulverized fragments of bone, pale gray or white in color, with a fine, gritty texture. A standard flame cremation produces approximately 3–9 pounds of cremated remains, typically stored in an urn of about one liter in volume. They are chemically inert, contain no organic matter, and cannot nourish plants in any meaningful way.
Terramation, by contrast, produces approximately one-half cubic yard of biologically active soil. This soil is dark, earthy, rich in nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and carbon. It contains living microbial communities that continue to support soil ecosystems after application.
Laid side by side, the comparison is not just about volume:
| Terramation Soil | Cremation Remains | |
|---|---|---|
| Volume | ~1/2 cubic yard | ~1 liter |
| Color | Dark brown / rich black | Pale gray / white |
| Biological activity | Alive with microbes | Inert |
| Usable for plants | Yes — nutrient-dense | No — provides no nutrition |
| Carbon stored or released | Sequesters carbon | Released as CO2 during cremation |
This is not a subtle difference. Families choosing terramation receive something they can genuinely use — a living material that continues their loved one’s participation in the natural world.
What Families Can Do With Terramation Soil
Families have genuine latitude in how they use the soil produced by terramation. The soil can nourish yards, flower gardens, trees, house plants, and natural environments. Families can choose the amount they’d like returned for gardening, spreading, or memorial spaces, with any remaining soil often available to donate to conservation land partnerships.
TerraCare Partners providers return the soil to families as Regenerative Living Soil™ — a trademarked designation for the nutrient-rich output of the NOR process. Here are the primary options families typically consider:
Plant a Memorial Garden or Tree
Many families bring the soil home and use it to plant a tree or establish a memorial garden in a loved one’s name. A tree planted in this soil can live for a century — a living monument that grows and changes with the seasons. For a comprehensive guide to creating a memorial garden using terramation soil, see our memorial garden guide.
The soil’s pH of approximately 6.5–7 is ideal for most common garden plants, trees, and shrubs, meaning families can use it directly without significant amendment.
Spread in a Meaningful Natural Place
Families can scatter or spread terramation soil in forests, meadows, mountains, or other personally significant landscapes. In Washington State, the legal framework for scattering follows the same general rules as cremated remains — requiring landowner permission for private land, while dispersal in navigable waterways is permitted.
Because this is biologically active soil rather than processed bone fragments, it integrates naturally with surrounding ecosystems, enriching rather than simply resting on the surface.
Share Among Family Members
One-half cubic yard is genuinely enough to share. Some families divide the soil among multiple relatives — each person receiving a portion to plant, scatter, or keep. This can be a meaningful extension of shared grief: each family member carrying a small part of what their person has become.
Donate to Conservation Land
Families who prefer to give the soil’s impact the broadest possible reach can donate some or all of it to conservation programs, reforestation efforts, or community green spaces. Many NOR providers have established conservation partnerships that make soil donation straightforward.
For more information about soil donation programs, see our article on terramation soil donation and community gardens.
Keep a Portion, Donate the Rest
Many families split the soil: taking home a portion for a memorial planting or garden use, and donating the remainder to a conservation partner. This is one of the most common practical approaches, and most TerraCare Partners providers are equipped to facilitate both.
Are There Restrictions on Using Terramation Soil?
This is an important practical question, and the honest answer is: yes, some restrictions exist and they vary by state.
The most consistent restriction across states that have legalized NOR is the prohibition on using terramation soil to grow food for human consumption. Colorado’s SB 21-006 (2021), which legalized natural reduction in that state, explicitly prohibits “using the soil to grow food for human consumption.” Washington State’s SB 5001 (2019), which first legalized NOR in the United States, contains analogous provisions. This restriction is designed to address public health considerations around the food supply chain, even though the NOR process thoroughly transforms human remains.
Other common guidelines:
- Private land scattering: Landowner permission is required in most jurisdictions. Families scattering on their own property generally have broad latitude; scattering on public land may require permits or be prohibited depending on jurisdiction.
- Waterways: In Washington State, dispersal in navigable waterways is permitted under the same framework as cremated remains. Other states may have different rules.
- Selling the soil: Colorado’s SB 21-006 explicitly prohibits “selling or offering to sell the soil.” This is a general restriction consistent with the ethical and legal framework around human remains.
- Commingling without consent: Colorado law also prohibits “commingling the soil of more than one person without written consent” — meaning providers must keep each person’s soil separate unless families have agreed otherwise.
Families should always verify the specific rules in their state with their TerraCare Partners provider before making decisions about how to use or distribute the soil. Because NOR legislation is still evolving across the 14 states where it is currently legal, guidance can change. Providers stay current on these regulations and can answer state-specific questions.
To understand the full picture of terramation’s environmental impact, including how soil return compares to other disposition methods, see our environmental impact pillar.
The Bigger Picture: Why Soil Return Matters
The volume and weight figures are meaningful — but what they represent is more important than the numbers alone.
The approximately 63.4% of Americans who chose cremation in 2025 (according to the NFDA’s 2025 Cremation & Burial Report) received back a few pounds of inert mineral residue. Families who choose terramation receive back approximately one-half cubic yard of living, biologically active material — material that can grow a tree, enrich a meadow, or restore a patch of degraded land.
NOR is sometimes described as a “return to nature” — and the soil yield is where that phrase becomes most literal. The transformation is not a metaphor. A person’s body, over several weeks to a few months in a carefully managed vessel, is converted by microbial activity into the same fundamental building blocks that have sustained life on earth since the first organisms appeared. Nitrogen. Carbon. Phosphorus. Potassium. Water. The elements of a human body become the elements of the soil that grows the next generation of plants, trees, and living things.
That is what one-half cubic yard looks like. That is what it means.
To learn more about how terramation works — including what happens during the process that produces this soil — see our terramation overview. And to explore what happens to the soil specifically after it leaves the facility, see our article on what happens to soil after terramation.
Ready to Explore Terramation?
If you are considering terramation for yourself or a loved one, TerraCare Partners can connect you with licensed providers in your state. We can help you understand the process, what families receive, and how terramation fits your values.
Ready to explore terramation options? Contact TerraCare Partners
Find a funeral home offering terramation in your state
Sources
- National Funeral Directors Association — 2025 Cremation & Burial Report statistics. https://nfda.org/news/statistics
- Washington State Legislature — SB 5001 (2019), “Concerning human remains.” https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=5001&Year=2019
- Colorado General Assembly — SB 21-006 (2021), natural reduction legislation. https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb21-006
- The Natural Funeral — TerraCare Partner Program overview. https://www.thenaturalfuneral.com/terracarepartnerprogram/