Reusing plastic pots....

Farway

Murphybear said:

I also do something which may be frowned upon in many circles.  I reuse my pot compost.  I take out any stones and suspicious looking plants then dig it over and put in fertiliser in pellets.  I’ve not had a problem yet, my flowers, strawberries and tomatoes are coming along a treat.  

I'm another one who does this, however I have noticed over the years some plants are just not a vigorous as in previous years, in my particular case it's tomatoes in my conservatory. Grow OK but compared to how they once were, and those outside it is obvious they are no longer in ideal conditions

I keep meaning to get new compost but the quality is so iffy these days, unless paying top branded dollar, I keep putting the inevitable off

Once my Premium Bonds cough up, I may splash out on Levington or similar

Murphybear

Dustyevsky said:

Murphybear said:

I also do something which may be frowned upon in many circles.  I reuse my pot compost.  I take out any stones and suspicious looking plants then dig it over and put in fertiliser in pellets.  I’ve not had a problem yet, my flowers, strawberries and tomatoes are coming along a treat.  

Why would this be frowned-upon? Nature does it all the time!  Adding a chemical fertiliser is a departure from nature's way of restoring fertility, but re-using the medium, preferably for a different plant, is good for the planet.

It was a bit of a guess  . Most people I know keep buying new stuff then the old stuff ends up at the tip, sorry, Council reclamation site.  I’m happy recycling compost and my plants seem to be happy.  

I’ve seen “professional compost” sold on some of the shopping channels.  It’s eye wateringly expensive and I’m sure professional gardeners don’t pay their prices.  

ArbitraryRandom

I guess the worry is if there's anything nasty in the soil like pest eggs or mold/fungus then over time its more likely your plants will come down with something? 

I was reading about the nasty things strawberries can get and theres some where they say the only treatment is to plant completely new plants in a completely different part of the garden! But I think its only if you end up with that specific nasty problem. 

My grandad always used to dump his pots at the end of the season onto the compost heap, so I'm guessing layered with all the other stuff that goes in there and going back through the composting cycle would kill most things? 

Dustyevsky

Murphybear said:

Dustyevsky said:

Murphybear said:

I also do something which may be frowned upon in many circles.  I reuse my pot compost.  I take out any stones and suspicious looking plants then dig it over and put in fertiliser in pellets.  I’ve not had a problem yet, my flowers, strawberries and tomatoes are coming along a treat.  

Why would this be frowned-upon? Nature does it all the time!  Adding a chemical fertiliser is a departure from nature's way of restoring fertility, but re-using the medium, preferably for a different plant, is good for the planet.

  I’ve seen “professional compost” sold on some of the shopping channels.  It’s eye wateringly expensive and I’m sure professional gardeners don’t pay their prices.  

I'm not aware of shopping channels or magic formulas, but I've switched to Melcourt which comes in at around £8.50 for 50l. I use that for seed/seedlings and maybe a few delicate subjects. Luckily, I have a big manure heap, 12 years old, plus another huge heap of bark chips no one wanted that have now rotted-down. So, lots of 'bulk' to which I add granules or BF&B. For plants like tomatoes, cues or peppers, I'd not reuse the compost similar plants were in the year before.