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Produce => Edible Plants => Topic started by: George the Pigman on May 08, 2018, 16:05:19
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Anyone used Miracle Gro enriched multipurpose compost? A got some yesterday a two bags for a tenner but on opening its very lumpy and fibrous with odd bits of wood. Looks like it hasn't fully composted. I normally get Jack's Magic but the garden centre didn't sell it.
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ive stopped using it it was the same last season i now use asda's 3x70 ltr for £10 really good stuff i just put alittle ffb with it and it works great
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i had it for the ericasious compost and it looked fine but recently moved to Jacks myself and its brilliant.
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Jack's Magic is a good compost ... but it has one of the highest peat contents of any commercial blends. Very good peat-free alternatives are similarly priced. I've used Sylvagrow for all my seed sowing and compost needs for 2 years and I've not noticed a reduction in productivity and I used Jacks Magic almost exclusively before. It takes a bit more seeking out, but it's worth it for me ... I can't justify using peat for my plants any more.
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Hi Ya, I use Jacks Magic. Having tried several different ones I find that the best and most consistant. I have tried the peat free but found they dried out to quick and took a lot of re hydrating, not for me I'm afraid also some of the stuff in the ones I tried was a bit dubious. I have used ASDA's when I need to bulk something up as Jacks is to good for general use. I also find that some of the so called on offer composts aren't all that good when you get them home. You gets what you pay for I suppose.
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Sourcing a really good peat free compost is difficult.
For several years now I have allowed myself one bag of Humax original each season. It is excellent stuff but, of course, peat based. For the rest I cannot make any recommendations. Generally speaking the multipurpose compost from most suppliers is dreadful stuff.
Once pushed through a sieve my home produced compost has a better physical structure. I'm tempted to use it although I worry it would have too many plant pathogens and would harm delicate seedlings. Can anyone report their experience of using "home brew" for this purpose?
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Sourcing a really good peat free compost is difficult.
For several years now I have allowed myself one bag of Humax original each season. It is excellent stuff but, of course, peat based. For the rest I cannot make any recommendations. Generally speaking the multipurpose compost from most suppliers is dreadful stuff.
Once pushed through a sieve my home produced compost has a better physical structure. I'm tempted to use it although I worry it would have too many plant pathogens and would harm delicate seedlings. Can anyone report their experience of using "home brew" for this purpose?
I only use home made compost for potting on, for the reasons you say.
Still find Petersfield Peat free high coir compost to be the best.
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That Petersfield peat free stuff does look good ... where do you get it from?
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I bought a pallet direct from them
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I bought a pallet direct from them
That's a lot of compost!
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I bought a pallet direct from them
That's a lot of compost!
My mate and I always buy our compost by the pallet load for economic reasons. We check with other plot holders what they need in the way of compost and we buy sufficient pallet loads to cover our orders.
We have a similar arrangement for fertilisers and seeds etc.
When the stuff arrives we email / ring our customers to come and collect it to keep our personal running around in terms of delivery to a minimum.
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Very sensible! Sounds like the way to go if I can get enough people interested. I probably get through about 600 litres of the stuff a year. It would only work in groups though ... as I've found compost doesn't perform well the next year unless you've got somewhere out of the rain to keep it from getting waterlogged. Those bags are never without holes!