Forum home› Fruit & veg
This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.

What do you do with your compost after tomatoes have grown?

mjppmjpp Posts: 7
in Fruit & veg
I still have several troughs of compost/soil that I used this year to successfully grow my tomatoes. What do you recommend I do with the compost? Should I leave it where it is and reuse to grow next year’s tomatoes or start afresh with new compost next year? I have the same question re my troughs where I’ve grown beetroot and carrots. Thanks. 

Posts

  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    Most people use the spent compost as a mulch on beds and borders, or they add it to their compost bins.
    It's better to start afresh with tomatoes, although carrots prefer less rich soil, so you could possibly reuse some of it for those, at least in the bottom of pots/troughs etc.  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • B3B3 Posts: 27,505
    I throw it on the nearest bed that looks like it might appreciate it 😊
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • Allotment BoyAllotment Boy Posts: 6,774
    Yes tomatoes are known as very hungry plants they also suffer with virus infections which can stay in the soil.  The old gardeners used to talk about soil in greenhouse beds becoming "tomato sick "  so start with fresh or use soil that has weathered & not grown Tom's for at least 3 years. 
    AB Still learning

  • mjppmjpp Posts: 7
    Thanks everyone. Sounds like using it for some carrots next year and starting tomatoes afresh is a good option. That way, if anything is amiss with the soil, it’s limited to the carrots!
  • strelitzia32strelitzia32 Posts: 758
    I use it to fill in the dips in my lawn, caused by the resident mole family!
  • KiliKili Posts: 1,104
    I don't reuse it for tomatoes , but do reuse it for annual flowers in pots. Next summer I'll tip it out of the pots mix it with some fresh compost and FB&B and reuse it. Saves a few pennies  :)

    'The power of accurate observation .... is commonly called cynicism by those that have not got it.

    George Bernard Shaw'

  • sthlndngrowersthlndngrower Posts: 160
    great idea to use it for carrots as they don't like rich soil.... i tried growing carrots in pots a few times with varying success, including a tiny round variety which may have been Paris Market or something similar... I think i might give them another go!
  • fidgetbonesfidgetbones Posts: 17,618
    I use it for potting bulbs up, and the dahlias after I lift them.
Sign In or Register to comment.