recommended multi-purpose compost

peter_the_piper

LincolnshireYokel wrote: »

Let me tell you all about compost.

The government is pushing hard to stop the use of peat i ncompost, but as it stands, peat free doesnt compete with peat based.

Theres various types of peat free, and they have tried all sorts of substitutes including shredded carpet, composted shredded pape, and coir

The main one used is composted green waste. The main supplier of composted green waste is Vital Earth, which is run by the husband of the marketing manager for Sinclair Horticulture, the largest compost maker in the country and maker of J Arthur Bowers. Theres hundreds of different recipes for composts. Professional growers have there own secret recipes, or they use professional grade compost (more later).

When places like B&Q or ASDA sell compost, they get one of about 5 companies to make it. They say how much they want to pay for the compost, and the maker then comes up with a recipe to suit. Usually its tendered out at the end of the summer.

Who makes which compost changes every year, so B&Q compost might be made by Sinclairs one year, Bullrush the next and Scotts the year after. Thats why every year you have to find out which is the best.

Verve is B&Q's trading name, and this year its made by Sinclairs, in fact its virtually the same recipe as JAB multipupose.

What you have to realise tho, is that even the best consumer retail compost cant hold a candle to a decent professional compost. Thats because you get what you pay for. I use Sinclairs Professional Medium grade. Its rich, dark and velvety and stuff grows like mad in it. But then its about £5 a an 80L bag.

I would recommend forgetting about cheap retail rubbish, get down to a Horticultural Suppliers and buy some professional grade compost , it's an order of magnitude better, and they will sell you for cash, you dont have to be a farmer or grower to buy it.

Another way to buy it is to get a group of you together and buy a 16 cu/m load loose bulk, cash, you'll pay about £500 but 16 cubic metres is 270 60L bags equivalent, and works out about £2 a bag, and itll be far better than anything you can buy in a garden centre.

(BTW, compost is always sold in volume and not weight, because it measured in volume then dried so that volume weighs a specific amount. Raw peat is sold at a price that depends on how wet it is. Bear in mind compost that is too wet weighs more, so you get less on a lorry and in some cases its cracks the pallets ).).

Totally agree with LY, the only rider I would add is that it is often stored outside at suppliers and if the weather is inclement the compost can become a bit wetter than normal. Pallets of Sinclair last year were very damp and, whilst ok for the small user , did bung up our machinery chronically.

Davesnave

LincolnshireYokel wrote: »

I would recommend forgetting about cheap retail rubbish, get down to a Horticultural Suppliers and buy some professional grade compost , it's an order of magnitude better, and they will sell you for cash, you dont have to be a farmer or grower to buy it.

Or you could make your own, starting with 'retail rubbish,' as I've done for about 20 years. Horticultural retailers aren't that common in many places, so this is an easier alternative for some, when transport is taken into account.

Varying amounts of grit, composted bark and topsoil go into my composts depending on what I'm growing, and although it isn't cheap, Osmocote takes care of long term feeding. For edibles there's granulated chicken poo, or the real Mc Coy. Yesterday, every tomato I put into final bags (bags are more stable than pots) had 3 year old pig poo in the bottom.

I had some of last season's B&Q compost and opened some of the new one branded Verve yesterday. The two were indistinguishable, except the price had risen by about 70p and the silly ***** had forgotten to print a bar code on the front, where staff might find it. :rotfl:

There is a peat free Verve alternative, which is very dark, obviously contains much bark and possibly composted waste, so might be confusing the issue here. B&Q standard compost hasn't changed a lot in texture over the years, though occasionally there are blips, and the soggy old bags that weigh heavy should always be left where they belong.....;)

LincolnshireYokel

Oh yes. There's nothing to stop you improving it!!

I recycle compost for the planters and baskets, i riddle old compost through a 1cm mesh, and then riddle some stuff off my compost heap (I make one very year, its mainly horse poo, chicken poo, shredded paper, household waste, grass, and mulched hedge , no straw). Then i mix them 50/50 and adjust the pH with lime. Its fabulous for flowers and ornamentals.

The third year, al the planters and baskets are emptied and the contents then turned into the allotment ground to increase the organic matter content, as im on a stony limestone escarpment. Or if im short of brown stuff on the compost heap, it goes on there to bulk it up.

avantra

Bunnygirl wrote: »

My verve is light and fluffy only a few bits of small wood.

I have been told that clover compost is very good if you can find someone that stocks it.

I second Clover, good stuff for seeds and seedlings, very light so need to be mixed with some grit or soil to keep it moist.

The local nursery here do 3x60 litre for a tenner.

A._Badger

Davesnave wrote: »

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I had some of last season's B&Q compost and opened some of the new one branded Verve yesterday. The two were indistinguishable, except the price had risen by about 70p and the silly ***** had forgotten to print a bar code on the front, where staff might find it. :rotfl:

I suspect it's a bit more complicated than that, though. I, too, had some B&Q left over and it was quite different from the batch of Verve I bought. But I think the keyword is 'batch'. The stuff does seem to vary quite widely. Which, of course, is what makes recommendations a bit tricky.

Davesnave

A._Badger wrote: »

I suspect it's a bit more complicated than that, though. I, too, had some B&Q left over and it was quite different from the batch of Verve I bought. But I think the keyword is 'batch'. The stuff does seem to vary quite widely. Which, of course, is what makes recommendations a bit tricky.

If the consumer cannot rely on the supplier to produce a consistent product, then I'd say it is OK to 'inspect' it before purchase, which might account for the number of damaged bags I see!

pedro123456

Asda sell MPC, 60ltr, 3 for £10, on the bag it says professional.

So far I have bought 6, it is a lovely texture, very little twigs and it isn't "dirty" in that my hands wern't black after using it.

It is however compact, and needs breaking up before use, this suits some ppl but not all.

Does it meets the needs of my plants?.................I hope so but time will tell.

peter_the_piper

Even the best brands are variable. I use a lot of Humax, last summer the mix was very light(pallet was 6Ft high, next batch in the autumn was about 5ft high and claggy. Pick up a bag, if its rigid then its wet and solid, if it flops easily then its good. This from a moisture point of view.

jenie_2

pedro123456 wrote: »

Asda sell MPC, 60ltr, 3 for £10, on the bag it says professional.

So far I have bought 6, it is a lovely texture, very little twigs and it isn't "dirty" in that my hands wern't black after using it.

It is however compact, and needs breaking up before use, this suits some ppl but not all.

Does it meets the needs of my plants?.................I hope so but time will tell.

I've bought a few different types this year and found Asda's to be the best of them. I use one of those 3 pronged hand rakes to break it up with, and it does a good job.

salthepal

Thanks for all your replies.

I bought 6 bags of Asda Professional compost (three 70 litre bags for £10) yesterday. I went for this one simply because of availability but I'll keep an eye out for Humax which sounds interesting.

I used the new compost last night and found it much better to handle than the J Arthur Bowers lumpy stuff I had used before.
As a previous posted noted, it needs a bit of breaking up but this is easily achieved because it has a very pleasing texture.

Incidentally, I went up to the information desk at Asda who called for an assistant with a flat bed trolley which is a lot easier than trying to stuff 6 bags inside a standard trolley! They were very helpful indeed and loaded it into my car. Full marks to Asda.

Sally