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DIY potting compost

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Tee Gee:
Had a very satisfying morning making my own John innes no 3.I made up 160litres of it from proprietary used potting compost I saved.

To this I added lime to obtain a pH of around 6.5 to 7.0  and Perlite to improve the texture. ( and it feels boooootiful) then I added the required amount of John Innes base fertiliser as per the Ji recipe.

I did a rough reckoning up as to the cost of this exercise ( no labour charges) and it came out at around 5 p / litre.

 When I finished I made a few searches on line and the cheapest I saw was 45p/ litre although most were asking around 50-60 p litre. Meaning an 80 litre bag was costing £40-£50 a bag.

I reckon my 80 litre bag cost me around £5 and I will use it again next season  and the season after that.

Put another way I made 160  litres yesterday morning and 160 litres this morning for around ££15-20 This would have cost me well over £150 on line.

I remember the days when we grew to subsidise the household budget I don’t think that would apply to day. Makes you wonder if growing your own is worth while.

Takes me back to when I took up gardening when I asked an old fella “ what is the best green manure”? His answer…….pound notes.

Makes you think doesn’t it.

Tee Gee:
Thought I would throw in a few pictures of my morning's work

lezelle:
Hi All,
         I have been advised to use a mixture of leaf mould, soil and compost. It work for the person who told me so i'm considering using it. Any more advice like adding lime etc would be benifcial. thanks

Tee Gee:
These two links might help you;

https://www.thegardenersalmanac.co.uk/Content/C/Compost/Compost.htm

https://www.thegardenersalmanac.co.uk/Content/L/Lime%20and%20its%20uses/Lime%20and%20its%20Uses.htm

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