On Thu, 21 Apr 2011 19:58:07 +0100, "alan.holmes"
wrote:


"Jake" Nospam@invalid wrote in message
.. .
On Wed, 20 Apr 2011 22:41:14 +0100, "alan.holmes"
wrote:


"Dave Hill" wrote in message
...
It's almost that time of year when someone asks about the strange
little eggs they have found in the compost when they are repotting a
plant.
They are not eggs
They are a slow release fertilizer that takes anything up to 12 months
to break down, they do no harm, just feed the plant so don't worry
when you find them.
David

But where does that fertiliser come from, and how does it get into my
compost heap?

Alan

Have you never added slow release pellets to hanging baskets or
planters?

No!

IME those push-in thimble-like plugs of so called slow
release fertiliser are still thimble-like plugs of slow release
fertiliser after a year in the basket and another year on the compost
heap. They knew what they were doing when they called them "slow
release".

Water retaining gel "granules" are another common source of "slug egg"
panics!

And how many people do you know who add them to their compost heaps?




Jake


I tip the entire contents of old hanging baskets into the compost bin
(there's not that much compost that isn't entangled in roots by the
end of the season) so in the days when I used those "thimbles" they
went in as well. It could be two years before I used the contents of
the particular bin and I'd still find what were then 3-year old
"thimbles" virtually intact.
Jake