HOw do I know when my compost is totally ready to use?
I have used some partially finished compost as mulch, but if I wanted to use at transplanting time how do I know if it is ready. I am going to plant out my tomatoes in a few days and want to use my compost but I don't know if it is ready. It is pretty black but there are a few leaf remains, for I did not shred when building the pile.
I was thinking of building a strainer with chicken wire and wood 2x2's that I have laying around to strain and filter the compost.
What do you think?
What would happen if it wasn't totally ready?
Also, should I till it in, rake it in, fill the planting hole or just use as a mulch?

You may get some contradicting answers, but I use 'chunky' compost all the time in my planting holes. I can never wait until my compost is completely finished, (usually because I need to get that bin emptied or start yet ANOTHER compost bin & I already have 4 going all the time.) Your description sounds like it is nearly ready anyway. One hint I do have for you for the future, if you plan to regularly use your compost CHUNKY, like I do, is to be especially picky about WHAT you compost. Because my compost isn't really DONE when I use it, I keep a bag attached to my wheelbarrow to drop in all weeds, & anything that looks the tiniest bit diseased or is a classic harborer of disease (iris & lily stalks for example), & these NEVER get into my compost. When I use chunky compost, I dig it in deeper than the finished stuff & layer dirt all through it to help it finish decomposing, & I make sure soil is against the actual roots. I think the important thing is to get that organic matter into the bed. & you're right, chunky compost makes a wonderful mulch, especially if you keep it covered with a thin layer of shredded leaves or pine needles or bark.!

It's not ready if it still heats up when you turn it.

It's not ready if it smells bad.

It's not ready if you can still identify the original material. (A few leaves don't count). And you can pick out hard-to-compost stuff like corn cobs and put them back for another round of composting.

You can use it chunky or completely soil-like. I like to sift mine to get the good stuff and put the chunks back in the bin for another round. I've found one-half inch hardware cloth works best. Make the frame big enough to go over your wheelbarrow, then just shovel the chunky compost on the screen and push it back and forth. The good stuff falls in the barrow, the big stuff you can toss back on the pile.

You can till it, rake it, mulch with it, or add it to planting holes. It's hard to find a wrong way to use compost.

Gee, I don't even wait for it to become compost, I use it fresh from the kitchen, and bury it in my rows, about a foot away from where the vegies get planted. My "compost" pile is a trench in the path (or even in the beds to be) and in that I toss all my kitchen scraps (not meat tho' as I don't want the stuff dug up by predators). I toss in weeds, leaves, add a bit of manure and blood meal to add some nitrogen, sprinkle a bit of dirt on it as the layers build, and then when that section of trench is full, pile about 5 inches of dirt on top, mounding it up above grade (as it decomposes, it settles a bit). In the fall when I uproot all the "spent" plants, I make a real pile as all that bulky stuff is too big for a little trench...but now with my new chipper, things will probably change, vrooom, vrooom, grind, chip, vrooooom.

glad you asked,I've been wonderin too!I use an old childs gate(the kind you use to block off the stairs).To sift my compost,I ran out of energy so laid a lot of chunky stuff in my raised beds,these will be used for veg,mostly tomatoes.I will put soil on top of this but I'm not sure if this is ok.Will i end up composting the new plants?It snowed here today,just a little but it's not fair .Some of you lucky guys get to garden all year.I love Canada(let's not go there) but I wish we had a longer season.Good luck to you and yours

Id like to use my compost this weekend when I transplanty my tomatoes and peppers, if it is finally warm enough, I think it will be. I was going to dig three trenches and fill them with a mixture of the compost, epsom salts, and the original soil, then plant the tomatoes in there! Sound alright? Well, i hope so.. I just dont want to cause diseases!
I am good about not putting weeds or diseased materials into my compost and I try not to use the chunks that arent ready yet!

I acually compost two ways. I have raised beds so I throw all garden waste some sawdust and wood chips (small) in my walk ways. I even through in a little manure when I put it on my garden. I have alot of hay so that goes on too. In the spring I just use this to put on top of my beds when I am planting and I use the compost from my big pile to mulch with or build new beds. Works great.