Morning all,

No-ones posted the results of the 09 Which Compost Trials so I thought how about an in house survey?

Poll is aimed at those with at least a couple of grows under their belt, with a view to identifying the most popular of the widely available brands as a reference for new growers.

Vote away.

BP.......

To kick off - I've used both JAB MP and Westlands MP + JI in last six months. Would use both again. If I could find JAB MP+JI locally I would use that.....
Wouldn't spend the money on a Canna specific compost.....

BnQ peat free composted tree bark fed with canna coco A+B, every bit as good as coir and 1/4 the price

Usually stick to B&Q MP, but gonna try the full organic compost next grow.

Tried westlands advance +, and didn't like it. Seemed a bit too heavy on nutes for the cuttings and seedlings.0.

Which did not trial composts this year.

Fair enough, all the more reason for an in-house survey.

I've just potted up with Wilko multi purpose professional compost for the first time. Anybody know if this any good?

Westlands compost's... I will always choose Westlands West+ Advanced... In my opinion it's your best bet out of the 4. The hanging basket type being second choice. I stay well clear of the MP, 2 years ago I bought a bag of it and found nails and all sorts of crap in it...

Will definately be trying Levington's MP next, I bought 210 Litres of that stuff for my veg plot and it was nice and fluffy, 100% brown - lovely looking stuff. No bits (kinda looked like it was sieved) and NO un-decomposed matter either, which you do get in West+...

Levington = £20 for 210 Litres

West+ = £21 228 Litres

if anyone wants a cheap laugh, buy one of those £1 tesco multi purpose.... its the roughest stuff you will ever see.. its gotta be 40 % straw...

Since there is no compost 09 trial thread yet ill do this in this thread for now.

I was wondering around B&Q the other day and noticed thier compost aswell as the westlands MP being sold.I decided maybe it was worth trialing them against what i normally use at the moment,which is the J,ArthurBowers MP syncro boost type.

I decide i would go for the B&Q first then ill give the westlands a go and see where it leads

hi Pro im using JAB with added JI and syncro boost ,i like it good stuff

a ? have you added perlite to your JAB !
looking at the pic thers loads there, mine doesnt look like that

The little tiny bags of JAB + JI I can find locally have perlite in......looking at the pic of Pro-Libs bag you can see it says contains perlite on the front.

I'm using JAB with added JI (without syncro) Though i did buy a bag the other day that didn't contain any perlite whatsoever, yet the bags previously had perlite in. Strange. Still good stuff without the perlite though - just needs a good riddle before use

If anyone has any other composts to add to the poll that ain't listed, PM me & i'll add them.

Did which even do a compost survey yet this year?

I don't think they did. I can't find it anyway.he results when you search compost are exactly the same as last year's, so I presume they haven't done one.

i have heard that playgron bat mix is the best of the best ony thoughts on this guys

Sorry I dont yet have enough grow experience to comment much here, but I can say im on my second grow with canna terra pro + and I cant fault it for nutrient balance, but I do find I have to spend ages manually breaking it up, mixing it cos its full of compressed matter, breaks up easy enough, but it makes pot up time a chore. My plants are happy in it though.

sigh. It's topics like these that make me wish I had a more local grow site to chat on. It's topics like these that can really help a local grower.

I just found a local compost from a local garden shop that absolutly rocks! It's cheaper than the old standard in me local hydro/grow shop and miles better in terms of freshness and texture. I just find finished up mixing up a batch of my ALPHA mix using it and it smells so sweet and earthy! Between that and my new MH lamp for my veg room, my plants have never looked so stocky, green and healthy!

I'll post ingrediants tomorrow (texting at the moment) but I think the big deal (besides being cheaper) is the freshness of the compost.

I thought I'd seen some references elsewhere (mainstream gardening sites discussing peat free composts) to the trials this year, but having subscribed to Which website (£1 for a month) realised the results where the same as last year....slightly off-topic but I'm surprised that Which haven't objected to pages from the mag being reproduced in full here free for any visitor to see.



Mmm..... was buying compo for the garden (and probably next grow) yesterday and eventually went for the Westlands MP+JI over the Container and Basket. Container and Basket formulatiuon is new aswell. Bag says 50% peat/compost & the rest is West+ so it's now closer to West+ Advanced than than regular MP.



Sorry Randaliser dude, you could always move to the UK....we like you (and your avatar)

I started off with bio bizz all mix about 2 years ago but change to plagron all mix, i add the bat shit me self and get great results

Hey bart

For me its the closest i have come to the now legendry 06 westlands mp, which hands down was the best commercial mix i have ever used to grow in so far.....

As for your bag not looking like mine,with perlite. I have found after a few yrs of doing this, that it really seems to make a difference which area and shop you go to to what you get,even if its supposed to be the same make.

I havent added perlite no but when i water, the perlite floats, so it looks like more than is actualy there. The perlite in the B&Q is because i root my cuts into a 50/50 mix of jab and perlite.

I have had someone come across a bag of the JAB with no perlite in, a few weeks ago, same area just different shop.

does yours say added perlite on the front or not?

I voted Westland MP with JI... just finished my last grow using it for the first and a thumbs up from me! For all that means...

On another note I've just opened a bag of JAB seed and cutting compost, which my Mrs bought me as a present....
Opened it up to have a look, and found a nail in the first handful! looks nice apart from that though...
Click to view attachmentClick to view attachment

Whats the best action to take with this? Is it ok to use? should I take it back to the shop? or email JAB?
What did you do Smokey?

Eta.. Strange theres no perlite in the seed compost? Its got a bit of sand in it though...

Using West Multi Purpose West+

Can't get the Advanced stuff at my local B&Q or Homebase.

I've also got some B&Q seedlings stuff, when I next repot into 5L do you think it's worth doing a bit of a mixture, maybe 50/50 MP + Seedlings?

no seedling compost doesnt have as much nutrients in it as MP compost,so youd probably have to start feeding sooner

No New Horizon compost users?

I have just bought their growbag peat-free organic product to use for my first few grows. I have a load in a dustbin mixed with some wormcasts, rockdust and calcified seaweed to beef it up. Will be ready to use in a couple of weeks.

have used B and Q own compost for seedlings and add 1/4 perlite to pot, seems to work fine, have also tried bq organic which is like shredde trees nad came complete with pests! NEVER AGAIN.have also used westmorland and that also worked fine.

Hi,ould anyone recommend B&Q multi for a first time grow?
I will be gowing from seed and have seen people germinate in the
same pot they intend to grow in, just cover with clingfilm and away you go.
Is this a productive method? What about perlite and vermiculite ratio, what would be a good starter ?
I have read various ideas on when to introduce nutes when growing in this kind of medium as well.
...my god so much to learn..

cheers
Gs

I think a few members use B+Q MP without complaints, and I did my first grow in it with no problems. Other brands are more popular on the boards though.

Shouldn't need to add any perlite/vermiculite to a decent store bought MP, unless you are diluting it for a seedlings first pot.

And re pots, the general advice is not to grow a plant from seed in the same pot throughout it's life. Start in a small pot (maybe with a specific seedling compost, or with a little perlite in the MP), and pot up as the plant vegs. You want to be in final pots a couple of weeks before flowering. Exception to this advice may be some Auto-flowerer's for which it is easier/better to start in bigger pots.

Nutes - if you are potting up regularly in veg, plants are unlikely to need feeding until you start flowering.

Good Luck.

thanks bluepixie, much appreciated

Using Westlands MP with JI with plants from seed for the first time - previously I've only used it for clones, where it's been fine.

I potted up some 10 day old or so seedlings that had started in B+Q Seedlings and Cuttings into the Westlands and found it burn't the f**k out of the first set of leaves and really stunted growth for a couple of days. Although after a bit of recovery time growth was really vigorous again so hopefully hasn't done any lasting harm .

Anyone else have problems with Westlands MP+JI being too hot for youngish seed plants? How old do peeps reckon plants need to be to handle the heat?

Pots were inocculated with rootgrow at pot-up if that makes a difference.

BP

Voted other - Using Guano Kalong soil, so far seems very good.

Hiya BP.. I've been using Westland MP +JI this year.. two different sorts it seems. I got some in the spring which was really heavy, really dark compost and another bag more recently which was more like West+... loads of part decomposed wood in it.. To be honest I saw better growth with the old bag...

I've been starting seeds in JAB seed compost (in 1 inch plug trays) then straight into the MP at about 5/6 days old... maybe 9 depending on roots (thats into 3 inch pots)
Haven't burnt anything this way... Things look a lot healthier than when I used seed compost in the second pots.... I'm using plant magic granules and rockdust too.

I tried a couple of cuttings straight into MP (after they rooted in a 1 litre pot) and got a slight bit of tip burn... so stick with seed stuff for the cells now.

Hope this helps mate.. not sure if I've answered the question or not Maybe you got a strong bag?

peace all... stonehenge

Cheers Stonehenge - It could well be the strain is just a bit more sensitive at a young age. They recovered very well though and were ready to pot up again yesterday - 15 days later.....

Hi BluePixie,
The Westlands MP+JI i am using for this round is very strong, i noticed very dark thick green leaves on all plants with a little 'ramhorning' happening to both strains (Killer Skunk and Anesthesia). I am currently on week 3 of 12/12 after 2 weeks veg in their final pots and i will probably start adding feed in a few days, so thats over 5 weeks in the final pot with no feed. They are looking quite happy now but i did also notice that even after one of the earlier potting on stages that some of the leaves became deformed and ramhorned and also some of the less developed plants became slow and stunted. I think next time im going to mix some lighter MP into it to 'cool' it down a bit.

Has anyone tried that Biocanna compost?

My first thoughts were that it was pretty crap really, it had very little nutrient content i found (i wondered why my plants weren't growing) which i know some people like but i like things nice and simple. I did finish a couple of plants in it and they both yielded way more than i'd expect from their size pot, although i'n never grown em out before so i don't know if they are particularily high yielders or not. I just wondered if anyone else had any experiences with this stuff and what you made of it?

I mean first time with this stuff and they both made about double what i thought they would, just seemed a bit strange to me.

Strolling along....trip.....
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Thread bumped....coat......door.........

Now where did i put that bag of
Click to view attachment
my plants really seem to like it,
oh bugger , sorry BluePixie

I used that for my outdoor plot this year TS, special offer at Wilkinsons (150 l for £10 iirc).Wish I could comment on performance but deer had the lot within the first couple of weeks

Edited for spelling

cheese with homebase and westlands with added ji at 3 wks check my diary for updates as how good they are against allstix. Click to view attachment

Hi chaps,
I voted for peat free other, Chase Organics Tomato Compost was my best ever. Westlands West Plus Advanced has given my plants really really dark leaves, purple stems and leaf curling. (Not to mention the deadly overdose brought on by my first use of bio silica and catalyst)
. Way too hot for my particular plants.

having the same problem as you,i got sum west mp+ji ,and now 3 weeks into flower and all have very dark green leafs ,and sum leaf burn ,leaf curl,i added sum perlite and 10 to 20 % co co to try to fluff it up abit and make it not as strong ,first time using this westland compo ,used to use boi bizz all mix ,but to mutch£

i like using bio bizz light ix as it does not burn plants as its light on ferts wich i like as i can control the feeding my self
with light mix i like to feed it with fish mix
or i use bat guano and slightly in crease the amount during the grow whilst reading the plants

Worth another bump I think.......

im waiting on the full weight of my grow but i think homebase compost kicks allmix and the westlands ass.

Its made by westlands for them.

really? next to it,its really light compared to the westlands + and seemed much better imho.

Ive really come to dislike using Westlands MP with added JI &West+. I buy it from Homebase, the buy 2 get one free offer.
I know different batches of the same compost can produce different results and i used to have no problems at all using this stuff.
The last couple of runs though have been producing plants with purple leaf stems and very dark shade leaves with a texture like 'crepe paper'. I find that by the time im into week one of flowering and the nutes in the MP are almost spent my plants return to very nice looking growth and i begin feeding with BioBizz when it becomes needed at about week 2 or 3 of flower and i harvest plants i am happy with.
Recently i have been unable to find any bags of seedling compost so i mixed the Westlands MP with 50% pearlite to set some seeds off. I very soon saw the exact same purple stems and dark green leaves and slow growth before the seedlings are even past their first leaves. I have just taken the seedlings out of this mix and put them into a mix of 3 parts coir to 2 parts Westlands to see if this helps them. On removing the seedling from the MP/pearlite mix i can see theres hardly any root growth and i hope the seedlings do not become stunted as they are some very good genetics and i would be pissed to lose them.
Another thing i notice about using Westlands recently is the growing tips on some plants on occasion become pale and exhibit a stripy kind of look. I have found that this soon clears up after a couple of wet/dry spells and i also water in a touch of maxicrop as this symptom first begins.
No idea what is the problem but i know i will not be using the Westlands MP any more. Maybe its buy 2 get one free for a good reason?

just a quick pic to illustrate this stripy effect the plants on occasion exhibit in the Westlands i have got recently, as i said it clears up in a week or so without adding anything but a little maxicrop and sticking to a wet/dry watering cycle that takes 3 days or so but its very worrying when it first develops.

Nice Thread.

Currently using New Horizon Mulit-Purpose Compost, Organic and peat free and so far i haven't noticed any difference from the Biobizz All Mix i have used for the past 3 years. And it looks far less dodgy to the nosy neighbours when you bring in 6 bags of the stuff "for the garden"
My only comment is that i think that it is a little lighter on added ferts than the Allmix.