Re-using old compost

bundly

I'm so dumb that I have always re-used old compost for new plants in outdoor containers. I had no idea there was anything wrong with that!

I currently have a lot of outdoor pots full of compost remaining after dead plants have been removed. When a friend saw that I'd kept the compost, he said you must never re-use it, as it is devoid of all nutrients. Duh!

My questions:

(1) is he right?

(2) can I make any use of this old compost or must it all be thrown away?

(3) is it possible to treat old compost with some kind of feed, fertiliser, whatever, to reinstate the nutrients?

Many thanks in advance and apologies for my ignorance, which I am sure some of you find painful to read :-)

Bundly

Mistey

I would re use it just add fertiliser granules to it.

wallbash

No
Yes

You could, or just use it as a mulch .

Mojisola

I wouldn't reuse compost that had grown tomatoes in for another tomato crop but there's no reason not to use it for other crops in pots or flowering plants.

As said above, you'll need to replace the fertilizer which will have been used up.

molerat

Mine goes in the compost bin and gets used for outdoor containers next year.

firefox1956

The only other problem you might get is the transfer of pests & diseases.......
But I have been reusing compost for years, just keep adding some fertilizer is all i do.
HTH

bundly

Thanks for the replies, folks. I'm sorry I don't know what a mulch is :-(

OK so I can renew it with fertiliser, that is great! Could you name me a brand just as an example or are they all the same?

(PS I just wanna say ... the council refuse collectors will leave behind anything that looks like garden waste, so it would be difficult for me to get rid of 14 patio container's worth of compost without them noticing. A few twigs were poking out of my black sack of kitchen waste last week and they left it outside my house and refused to take it at all :-(

Also, without a car it's not easy to get huge bags of new compost home .... so if I can re-use, that's great!)

Farway

firefox1956 wrote: »

The only other problem you might get is the transfer of pests & diseases.......
But I have been reusing compost for years, just keep adding some fertilizer is all i do.
HTH

Same here, just add fresh fertiliser, perhaps slow release one to take you through the season

A mulch is just anything spread on top of soil, it could leaf mould, contents of compost bin, old compost from pots, farmyard manure etc. You do not need to dig it in, the worms will do the job for you

bundly

So I need to just get a box of fertiliser ... granules I suppose you mean, if its slow release?

Mojisola

bundly wrote: »

OK so I can renew it with fertiliser, that is great! Could you name me a brand just as an example or are they all the same?

Look for an own-brand version like this -
http://www.diy.com/departments/verve-slow-release-granular-universal-plant-feed/188546_BQ.prd