A growth chamber study with Sassafras soil (Typic Hapludults) was conducted to find combinations or blends of composts and fertilizers which would be equal to the inorganic N fertilizer requirement of tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea). Soil was amended with four rates of compost to provide 0, 16.7, 33, or 50 percent of the total 300 kg N ha−1 applied. The remaining N, 100, 83.3, 67, or 50 percent was provided by NH4NO3. Composts used were a biosolids compost(BC) or a compost made from both biosolids and refuse(MC). Shredded hardwood bark (B) and N fertilizer combinations were tested to determine the effect of the organic matter fraction in compost on fescue. All combinations were compared to 50 percent (N50) to 100 percent (N100) fertilizer (300 kg N ha−1 NH4NO3) application rates and to each other. Yield and N uptake from the N83 and N100 were equal. Fescue yields of blends were lower than N83 or N100. The 33 percent biosolids/refuse compost N:67 percent NH4NO3 (MC67) combination had equal N uptake to N83 or N100. Because compost N is only partially mineralizable during the first year, the equality of compostfertilizer treatments to fertilizer alone suggests that other ingredients than N are benefitting the fescue. Yield and N uptake from blends containing shredded bark were equal to the N fertilizer alone treatments indicating that there was no benefit to fescue from the bark (organic matter) addition in this study. The data suggest that some composts may substitute for a portion of the N requirement of crops.