Compo in Caithness wrote:
On 17 Mar, 08:25, Compo in Caithness wrote:
On 15 Mar, 16:49, "Muddymike" wrote:
\snip\

1. what fertilizer and what ratio of soil to compost
should I use?
2. should I add anything else? Sand?

Mike

Here's a mix that works for me:
3 parts sharp sand
6 parts garden soil ( I don't sterilize the soil - saves bother with
her indoors)
8 parts home-made compost

for seeds I don't add fertiliser but for potting-on I add some Fish
blood and bone (organic). Mix and sieve the ingredients very finely
for a good, moisture retaining compost.

Fromm a gardening book dated 1921:

half part fibrous loam (old turves are splendid)
quarter part leaf mould
eigth part well decayed manure.
sieve and remove any wireworms or other pests.

Hope this helps,
Compo in Caithness

Sorry, forgot the eighth part coarse sand in the 1921 mix.

That had me worried for a moment: I knew there had been recent
discoveries in maths, but...

It may be worth emphasising that gardeneers* mean something very
different by "sharp sand" from what you get from builders' merchants.
For the garden, "sharp sand" is grit with bits up to an eighth of an
inch across, and, unlike the builder's kind, won't really clump
together.

Having said that, I must admit that most plants a beginning gardener
will grow don't really care much, and have never read a book in their
lives: if it looks right and smells clean and doesn't stick to your
hands unpleasantly, it's probably about right....Most plants, in most
places, most of the time: please don't sue me if something snuffs it!

*a misprint, but I like it.
--
Mike.