I've bought both the Westland Multi-Purpose with John Innes and the Westland Vegetable compost. The veg compost is about £1 cheaper per 60 ltr bag than the MP+JI with both types on same special offer buy 2 get a 3rd free. I used the veg compost to pot on some Courgette plants today in large patio containers mixing in a bit of Growmore as Courgettes do feed voraciously and need a fast release fertiliser. The veg compost is good but for my money the MP+JI is better and worth the extra money. How they will compare in actual growth remains to be seen as I have potted up some in identical containers but using both types - I'll try and remember to post results.
Well, I said I would try and remember to post the results relative to the compost used so here goes!
The Westland veg compost was good and we've had respectable returns but the Westland MP with added John Innes was better - way better - if you don't mind having to pick about a dozen courgettes every day. They are slowing down a bit now but we are still harvesting about 4 per day.
There was quite a bit of discussion about the J Arthur Bowers compost this year which I couldn't initially find but finally did and bought 5 growbags for the greenhouse and yes, it did look horrible stuff I agree but I used it for my tomatoes and the results have been excellent. I posted a picture of one of my 'Country Taste' toms the other day (and there are plenty on the plants): the one in the pic ripened and I picked it on Saturday - it weighed 1lb + 1/4oz and was very sweet. We used some in salads and the rest in our main meal this evening in Nadia Sawalha's Spanish Chicken with Chorizo dish. Yum!
J Arthur Bowers growbags have been used for 'Red Alert' and 'Apero' tomatoes and yields have been excellent.
I tried Verve again this year, got a couple of the really big bags. A lot better quality than last year. No nails, plastic or big peices of wood. Nice black crumbly stuff and the GH plants have done well off it.
If truth be known how many sneak into their garden recycle bin stuff which they shouldn't I draw the line at chopping up a fence with nails in but clearly others don't..
I bought B & Q this year and have done for years for general purpose (I live near to a B & Q). But I won't buy it again as there is an awful lot of grit/small stones in it - very poor Did notice some creeping in to it last year but this year, there's so much I would be able to work out the %!
I think I've tried a bit of everything this year. Having a very big garden with clay soil filled with an awful lot of stones/rubble I tended to buy whatever was on offer just to get the bulk, figuring that anything had to be a soil improver. My slow and steady trick of transforming the garden involves adding 120l of compost for every bucket of stones unearthed. That way I break up the clay, improve the soil and build the beds up a little as I go. Overall the technique is working but some of the compost this year was so poor it was more effort than it was worth.
Favorite this year was Petersfield commercial compost but was too pricey to use all over and I never found it on offer anywhere. The Petersfield potting compost was nice this year too, but imo not as good as last year.
I found New Horizon organic compost to be excellent this year, bought bags and bags of it and the smell, texture and results were all spot on. I bought some J A Bowers before the New Horizon and it was terrible. It was full of plastic and smelt like raw silage. I ended up mulching it into the garlic and onion beds simply to hide the stench of it. I mentioned this when I was at the Garden centre buying the NH and the guy there told me they'd had tons of complaints about it this year and loads of people returning it.
I bought a load of Westland compost because it was on offer in Costco. It was good for filling some big half-barrels and bulking the flower beds but not suitable for baskets and pots because it dried out too easily.
I bought some multipurpose from Homebase and it had lots of sticks and bark and I ended up using it mainly for mulching. I bought some own brand John InnesSeed compost from Homebase and it was really nice texture and quality.
I bought some own brand John Innes Seed compost from B & Q and it was kak. Full of stones and clayish lumps. Disillusioned with B & Q overall this year, due to various issues, I didn't buy any other compost there BUT then I was given some verve multipurpose compost last week by someone who had overbought and I expected it to be hardly worth the effort of hauling it down the garden. It turned out to be so nice and fine grained that I seived it with the John Innes and used it for potting on.
That is the trouble with buying compost ,it is a bit of a lottery l find that one certain brand can be great really good quaility ,but when l bought a few more bags some months later same brand the quiality was'nt so good at all ,lwork at a garden centre and hear the same problem from customers thats why l say its a bit of a lottery a good batch or not .
Ive just bought MP Compost from The Range...Durstons ..it looks great - just like they used to..dark and fine....3 x 60L bags for £10...so I'm hoping it is as good as it looks...
I bought J Arthur Bowers last year ...MP and grow bags and it was awful ..great chunks of fibre /fabric, plastic, wood etc ..never again! and on feeling ( pinch and rub or find some that has spilled out of a bag) quite a few others this year they all feel as bad..lumpy, not friable.
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Cheers john, they certainly seem to be working for my grandad too.
Well, I said I would try and remember to post the results relative to the compost used so here goes!
The Westland veg compost was good and we've had respectable returns but the Westland MP with added John Innes was better - way better - if you don't mind having to pick about a dozen courgettes every day. They are slowing down a bit now but we are still harvesting about 4 per day.
There was quite a bit of discussion about the J Arthur Bowers compost this year which I couldn't initially find but finally did and bought 5 growbags for the greenhouse and yes, it did look horrible stuff I agree but I used it for my tomatoes and the results have been excellent. I posted a picture of one of my 'Country Taste' toms the other day (and there are plenty on the plants): the one in the pic ripened and I picked it on Saturday - it weighed 1lb + 1/4oz and was very sweet. We used some in salads and the rest in our main meal this evening in Nadia Sawalha's Spanish Chicken with Chorizo dish. Yum!
J Arthur Bowers growbags have been used for 'Red Alert' and 'Apero' tomatoes and yields have been excellent.
John H
I tried Verve again this year, got a couple of the really big bags. A lot better quality than last year. No nails, plastic or big peices of wood. Nice black crumbly stuff and the GH plants have done well off it.
Lidl compost is rubbish this year. I sieved 8l of rubbish lumps out of a 35 l bag.including a 3inch nail.
3" nail was for added iron!
If truth be known how many sneak into their garden recycle bin stuff which they shouldn't
I draw the line at chopping up a fence with nails in but clearly others don't..
I bought B & Q this year and have done for years for general purpose (I live near to a B & Q). But I won't buy it again as there is an awful lot of grit/small stones in it - very poor Did notice some creeping in to it last year but this year, there's so much I would be able to work out the %!
I think I've tried a bit of everything this year. Having a very big garden with clay soil filled with an awful lot of stones/rubble I tended to buy whatever was on offer just to get the bulk, figuring that anything had to be a soil improver. My slow and steady trick of transforming the garden involves adding 120l of compost for every bucket of stones unearthed. That way I break up the clay, improve the soil and build the beds up a little as I go. Overall the technique is working but some of the compost this year was so poor it was more effort than it was worth.
Favorite this year was Petersfield commercial compost but was too pricey to use all over and I never found it on offer anywhere. The Petersfield potting compost was nice this year too, but imo not as good as last year.
I found New Horizon organic compost to be excellent this year, bought bags and bags of it and the smell, texture and results were all spot on. I bought some J A Bowers before the New Horizon and it was terrible. It was full of plastic and smelt like raw silage. I ended up mulching it into the garlic and onion beds simply to hide the stench of it. I mentioned this when I was at the Garden centre buying the NH and the guy there told me they'd had tons of complaints about it this year and loads of people returning it.
I bought a load of Westland compost because it was on offer in Costco. It was good for filling some big half-barrels and bulking the flower beds but not suitable for baskets and pots because it dried out too easily.
I bought some multipurpose from Homebase and it had lots of sticks and bark and I ended up using it mainly for mulching. I bought some own brand John InnesSeed compost from Homebase and it was really nice texture and quality.
I bought some own brand John Innes Seed compost from B & Q and it was kak. Full of stones and clayish lumps. Disillusioned with B & Q overall this year, due to various issues, I didn't buy any other compost there BUT then I was given some verve multipurpose compost last week by someone who had overbought and I expected it to be hardly worth the effort of hauling it down the garden. It turned out to be so nice and fine grained that I seived it with the John Innes and used it for potting on.
That is the trouble with buying compost ,it is a bit of a lottery l find that one certain brand can be great really good quaility ,but when l bought a few more bags some months later same brand the quiality was'nt so good at all ,lwork at a garden centre and hear the same problem from customers thats why l say its a bit of a lottery a good batch or not .
Hi
Ive just bought MP Compost from The Range...Durstons ..it looks great - just like they used to..dark and fine....3 x 60L bags for £10...so I'm hoping it is as good as it looks...
I bought J Arthur Bowers last year ...MP and grow bags and it was awful ..great chunks of fibre /fabric, plastic, wood etc ..never again! and on feeling ( pinch and rub or find some that has spilled out of a bag) quite a few others this year they all feel as bad..lumpy, not friable.