None of the manufacturers are likely to be interested in something like uk420, we are about growing cannabis, an illegal black economy, an embarrassment to them.

Gardening Which have just released their yearly report on common brand composts.

In the peat free range and organic ranges [11 in all] none were considered good enough for seeds.

Only 2 were rated good for small plants and they were New horizon organic and peat free grow bag and New horizon organic and peat free compost.

8 were rated good for sustaining large pots of summer bedding, [ie good for big plants long term] including the two New horizon products, they were rated as the best in the group..

B&Q Organic Peat Free Growing Bag
B&Q Organic Peat Free Multipurpose Compost
Focus Peat Free Growing Bag
Focus Peat Free Multipurpose Compost
Homebase Peat Free Growing Bag [their compost failed]
Westland Peat Free Multi-Purpose Compost with John Innes

None of them were rated as very good, it shows peat free and organic composts still have a very long way to go before coming close to the best standard composts....

Conclusion only the two New horizon composts can be partly recommended. And definitely not for seedlings and small cuttings.

The sort of problems common here at uk420 with sickly plants were also common with these composts.

I’m only going to mention the best in the peat group, out of 17 tested.

These were the best and recommended for all purposes.:-

best:- J Arthur Bower's Multi-Purpose Compost with added John Innes
Got good good and very good for sustaining large pots of summer bedding

Close second best:- Levington Multi Purpose Compost.
Got a good, very good, good.

Third:- B&Q Multipurpose Compost.
Got good in all classes from seed to container.

All come within the 5 to 7p a litre price range.

thanks OT - those last three recommendations would appear to have been substantiated by recent posts of satisfied users

Hmmmm........ Only had problems once with using compost and it was the one at #1 on the list, had some really bad def's using it 3 plants went yellow in about 2 weeks so I defo won't use that again but I have seen the Levingtons before so might give that a go....

Nice one OT1 ....

RAZ

Very interesting, thank you OT1.
I think I'll be changing my source from the Gro-shop to the Garden Centre. Should save cash if nowt else......

Nice!

thanks OT. I've been following the compost debates avidly - I'm using JAB Organic Peat Free at the moment, plants are @3weeks from germ. - NL are fine, Citral are showing (what looks like....) a little Mg def already....

All the info coming to light just recently is definately a great help
peace,
Blab

What about non-organic composts, are these mentioned?

Can't argue with Levington. Top stuff & cannabis loves it



J Arthur Bower's Multi-Purpose Compost with added John Innes

Levington Multi Purpose Compost.

B&Q Multipurpose Compost.

After reading this I just had to work out how much I am currently paying for my compost.

50ltr = £12.50
£12.50 divided by 50ltrs is 25p per ltr Add to this the fact that we are unable to source the product near here and you can add £10 minimum postal charge. Making the grand total 50p per litre....

I really have never looked at the prices before

WTF was I thinking!!?

EO

howsabout a "how cheaply I grew for" thread?.............

Nice one OT

very helpfull info to stop a newbie buying crap compost and also help to find something suitable to use.

B&Q Organic Peat Free Multipurpose Compost, just picked up 3 bags for a tenner, 175 ltr bags

Just seeing if I can pull these pics from another part of the site.

The Which compost trial chart.

Cheers ot1 useful thread & chart.

nice one OT, very usefull

i will try thr levingtons and good old john innes. using homebase compo at mo. thanks for this info. happy growing and token.

would say out of all the soils n composts I've used.. I have not had a problem with john innes at all.. infact Ive pretty much noticed how much better that plants grow in that stuff...
Im currently using the Westlands with added john Innes + perlite and my clones are loving that shit!!!

Remember John Innes compost is a formula developed by the John Innes foundation, a horticultural institute. What the JI is like that you buy depend on how closely the manufacturer who make the version you buy sticks to the formula/ingredient list.

So one make might be really good, with an open texture and another sets like concrete. There are at least 20 separate firms making it.

As to Levingtons, there seems to be 2 types of it, and both in the same bag style!
One comes as a 100L Bale, is brown in colour and not too damp. Needs crumbling (easy) and is very good. The other is in 25L bags. It is black/brown in colour and is quite moist. Just started using it so can't comment.

I bought some JAB + Added JI the other day. It was so wet it flooded the car boot! I will not be using it as I suspect it is crap like that?

I find JI is nearly always too wet from the shops round here. Wet as in Soaking!

That sounds a bit rank for it to be so wet Arnie. Is it stored outside at the garden centre near you? Our local one does this and due to the holes in the bags they tend to get very wet at times too. If it's been stored soaking wet like that surely it will be more likely to have become anaerobic and stagnant.

Doesn't sound good anyway!!

EO

Arnie any good garden centre will have the pallets of compost under a covered area, if they don't they should not be selling the compost as it will get saturated every time it rains. Just don’t buy from anyone who stores compost like this.

A friend uses Arthur Bowers with added JI it has a beautiful crumbly texture and grows stunning plants. Arnie I would return it and demand my money back.

OT1 - M8, no Garden Centre round here does that!! They're all "open"! Really, I can't think of one that stores it under cover. Oh yeah, one! But only after its been in the open yard on exposed pallets waiting to hit the shelf!!!
Too late for return, I've opened it and its in use for the garden now

Arnie that is so crap, the bags have perforations or holes they will soak up rain like a sponge and go sour/anaerobic in no time. Even our allotment shop have a container for storing compost, it means you get it just as it left the manufacturers in ideal condition and that is what you want for cannabis.

Right then, man on a mission it is.....

I've been using atami kilo mix, maybe a bit hot for rooted clones?

I've just bought some J arthur's multi purpose with Innes, thought I'd give that a try instead. Do you think that will be a bit hot for rooted clones and maybe I should use a seedling cutting compost first?

Cheers guys.

M

Either mix it 50/50 with perlite, or buy a proper seedling/cutting medium.

Cheers Bish, will do.

M

OK, can i just clear something up here. What exactly is the difference between a peat-based compost, like Levingtons Multi-Purpose and JAB + john i, and non peat-based, like JAB New Horizon Multi-Purpose? Aside from one containing peat and the other not containing peat, what are the pro's and con's to using a peat or non-peat based compost??
And also, if i was to grow in either of these composts that would be considered 'non-organic'?? What exactly is so non-organic about them?

Sorry, i've been following a lot of these threads in the Compost and Pots forum and i've been confused by it all.

oldtimer1

Top advice as I just had been done big time by a super saturated bag of Coco - neem Coir.

It came out the shop in a covered garbag, I opend it when I got home to find it was not Coco Cior I normally buy. I was pissed right off and called back to complain. Obiously after opening it it was not returnable.




I could not believe that 4 days and it was still surated. Usually the Coco Cior is dry when I purchase it and dry in 2 - 3 days.

I have to do a post in the 'problem Solver' to get some advice on any possible remidy now. I am convinced that he purchased compost mix is totaled (anaerobic).

Just on a Grow when I am going away. Isn't that always the case. It could not have happened at a worse time.

I would have to say beware the buyer & inspect your purchase.

Thanks for the chart too.


NK.

Levingtons Multi-Purpose is all peat including peat from ssi’s its base fertiliser is all chemical salt.

JAB + john i is a mix of a peat compost and John Innes soil based formula, the base fertilisers are a mix of both chemicals and organic.

JAB New Horizon Multi-Purpose is composted bark chip with all organic base fertiliser but some are animal remains.

John Innes compost is loam based [7 parts] with some peat [3 parts] and sand [2 parts], the base fertiliser is a mix of organic animal remains and chemicals.

Seems simple enough to me.

ive been using the focus diy tomato and herb soil.. its £1.25 for 30 litres and works like a treat

hi there


i bought a huge bail of focus mutilpurpose compost,

its 85% peat 10% bark and 5% wood fiber,

although its the environemtly unfreindly peat stuff it cost only 5 quid for 120 litres,

they have a deal on,2 bails for a tenner,thats 240 litres!!!!!!!!!!


thats 4p a litre

is this a false economy???

cheers

sy

Not sure bro - the soil i got from there has done the job and ive grown in it from seed to bud. it works simple as.

Im now tryin asda multipurpose compost its £2 for 35litres..funny..ive grown in all mix before and this feels soft just like the expensive stuff!! time will tell i guess

Well it seems to be doing the job for me

Just discovered this stuff

[attachmentid=97335]


£4.99 - 75 litres = 7p a litre

Anyone used it yet?

NSS

Doing levingtons and B&Q Soluble Plant Food here and they're looking 10x happier than they were in All-mix and Ot1's schedule

The combination has had spectacularly explosive effects on the growth of a large range of other plants here. I have an Acacia retinodies which has grown into a monster in less than one year, the tomatoes were the sweetest I've ever tasted, one streptocarpus flowered itself to death and my petunias invaded my lawn by over a foot.... Just gotta finish seeing what it does to our little darlings