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Which is best?

KlinkKlink Posts: 261
in Tools and techniques
I've been watching Carol Klein's gardening series and notice that all of the seeds she sows she covers in a layer of grit. On the other hand,Monty covers his with a layer of compost.
As this is going to be my first year of sowing seeds,which is the best method,grit or compost or does it depend on what you're sowing?   :/

Posts

  • PerkiPerki Posts: 2,527
    Well it depends on what seeds you are growing . In my personally opinion I think monty and carol are obsessed with using grit seem to use it on everything but if it works fine by me. Grit ideal if you are sowing in pots outside it helps with drainage and stopping the seeds getting washed around. 
    I use sieved compost or vermiculate and generally sow undercover but it really depends on what you are sowing.
  • KlinkKlink Posts: 261
    Thanks @Perki . I've ordered ten bags of grit in the hopes of deterring vine weevils (advice received in another of my posts) so wondered if i should use some for sowing.
    Carol seems to use it on everything! :)
  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    Carol sows seed by the truck load.  She used to have her own nursery and propagated most of the stock herself so using grit would be good way to reduce moss, molds, damping off, volunteer seeds flying in and germinating.   

    Monty grows his seedlings for his own gardens and has a very large composting system so for him it makes sense to use compost for seeds which need a bit of depth or no light.   He uses grit more for drainage and appearances in alpine pots and troughs.

    Can't get horticultural grit here and have never seen vermiculite so I just use compost for the seeds that need covering.
    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • KlinkKlink Posts: 261
    Hmm.. Still no wiser @Obelixx . Maybe it's a case of,which is better, compost or grit? Fiiiiiight! (As Harry Hill would say)  :D
  • PerkiPerki Posts: 2,527
    I'd say majority of people use compost it quite expensive horticultural grit. What are you growing Klink ? a lot of seeds don't even like being covered. I'd use horticultral grit or perlite if i were growing cactus / succulents or others like it .  
  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    Personal choice?  Experiment to see which works best for you?    There are no hard and fast rule given the differences between gardeners and gardens and their skill levels, experience, time available, space and facilities such as greenhouses, cold frames and budgets.

    If you're a part-time gardener who is not on hand 24/7 to check on your seedlings then grit but it's an expense so also a question of budget. 
    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • KlinkKlink Posts: 261
    It's better to ask what i'm not growing @Perki :D  I have lots of packets of seeds that i'm looking at trying to grow,quite a few from gardening magazines. The instructions are clear enough as in,don't cover the seed,it's just when it says cover seeds and place somewhere warm etc. It's the 'cover' bit i was wondering about;whether to use compost like Monty or grit like Carol. I guess as @Obelixx says,experiment.  :)
  • BraidmanBraidman Posts: 274
    In the wild or in the garden, plants have usually no problem self seeding, they just drop their seeds in their own good time on the soil surface and they germinate, in my opinion better than if I sow them.

    So that's a third way!
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