Compost woes

dosh37

Spring is hopefully around the corner and it's time to think about buying compost.

It is now pretty much impossible to buy decent peat based compost unless you are a commercial grower. Instead domestic gardeners have to make do with peat free.

There are no quality standards when it comes to compost. You can't trust a particular manufacturer as the quality varies so much. You usually can't find an open bag that allows you to assess the quality at the point of sale, so it's a lottery until you get home and open the bag.

Online reviews offer little help. Some may recommend a particular supplier but others tell you to avoid.

Last year I bought Wickes Multi-Purpose and Westland with John Innes (from Costco) . Both were rubbish. I ended up removing the large lumps and woody bits with a sieve. Despite adding sharp sand to improve drainage and fertilizer, the results were poor - especially when it came to seed germination.

Towards the end of the season I had pots in the greenhouse infested with fungus gnats. I had pelargonium cuttings that I tried to overwinter on window sills indoors. The room was full of fungus gnats. This year fungus gnat flies are already emerging from bags of saved compost so it looks like I will have to discard them completely instead of mixing with fresh.

So what should I buy this year?

fatbelly

Yep. Modern compost is sh*t. Actually sh*t might be better. Not that it helps much for this season but can you start a compost heap?

I do use proper John Innes for the reasons you give. I have also had reasonable compost from the Moorland brand, which doesn't claim to be peat free so may well have peat in it.

KajiKita

Have you looked at the RHS endorsed peat free options? They have seemed pretty good for the past couple of years to me as I use peat free by choice.

KK

dosh37

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81925343#Comment_81925343

I have a compost heap I made from old wooden pallets.

Last year. I spent considerable time and effort using my wheelbarrow to collect local horse manure. Unfortunately it's not yet sufficiently composted to be used this year.

Usually grass cuttings help break it down. However, due to last year's dry summer, the grass was not cut as frequently as usual. Things have been made worse by the wet winter: The manure remains in a wet, sticky and smelly pile.

Rhyddid2026

The only one I've found that is consistently not awful is melcourt sylvagrow. It's the only one I use for my seedlings and indoor growing now after a few disasters trying cheaper and other brands.

twopenny

I've mixed some moisture retentive from Tesco with home made compost, 50/50ish.

That's just about bearable for seed and one year in pots plants.

Dustyevsky

KajiKita

Have you looked at the RHS endorsed peat free options? They have seemed pretty good for the past couple of years to me as I use peat free by choice.

Everyone would use peat free from choice if it was well-priced and good! The commonest brand with RHS endorsement is Melcourt, which is about double the price of the more widely available alternatives.

My local garden centre sources its own brand from Ireland and sells at the 'normal' price of £5.99 for 40 litres or £20 for four bags. It isn't peat free, because the owner remains unconvinced by the alternatives he's offered for retail sale. He also believes the government will row back on their plans to end the commercial use of peat-containing composts, at least in the short term. I won't comment on that, beyond noting the obvious discrepancy between what pros are offered, and what the average gardener is expected to tolerate.

Lack of appropriate standards has already been highlighted. Those of us with eyes to see, know governments aren't particularly concerned. So long as they can virtue-signal to other politicians about their country's 'green credentials,' from their POV, the matter's sorted.

Yorkie1

We've stocked Sylvagrow for some years now in the allotment shop. It seems to be of consistently high quality.

All peat-free multi-purpose compostst seem to be more high draining than their traditional counterparts.

dosh37

When I searched online, B&Q sell 40L Sylvagrow for £16.30. Online orders only.

https://www.diy.com/departments/melcourt-sylvagrow-organic-peat-free-compost-soil-40l/5060157811889_BQ.prd

That's too expensive for me.

B&M are currently advertising:-

Westland Gro-Sure: £15 for 3x50L bags…

https://www.bmstores.co.uk/products/westland-gro-sure-all-purpose-compost-50l-397200

Levington with John Innis: £15 for 3x50L bags…

https://www.bmstores.co.uk/products/levington-peat-free-multi-purpose-compost-with-john-innes-50l-408068

Does anyone have past experience with these?

-taff

I have been buying Levingotns with john innes in the red bag for a good few years and it's been good, until the last two years. It's rubbish, don't bother. It dries out on top but stays wet underneath in pots, there's a lot of root growth but no top growth, it's really carp.

I had two bags leftover from last year that just went into a bed with other stuff to bulk it out, but I won't be buying it ever again.

Check out your local allotment shop, the joining fee is usually recouped after buying to or three bags of compost at a reduced price. Ours sells sylvagrow now too.

silverwhistle

You could try Moorland Gold which does contain peat but not extracted from peat bogs but taken from the water filters of treatment plants in the hills, and I believe then mixed with other materials based on the type of compost - seed, potting on, etc.