The current thread about disposing of garden soil set me thinking
abour some things I am being forced to change since having to give up
driving due to deteriorating eyesitght.
I have been in the habit of taking used potting compost to my
allotment and dumping it there. I can't do that now. My garden is
so small I cannot add any more to the level!
If I seive out the old roots, (eg of sweet peas grown in a large tub)
and add some slow release fertiliser or JI base mix, can I use it
again... for bulbs maybe?
What limitations would this present? After all, some plants stay in
the same compost in pots for some years, with a little topping up and
liquid feeding.
Any thoughts?

Pam in Bristol

"Pam Moore" wrote in message
...
The current thread about disposing of garden soil set me thinking
abour some things I am being forced to change since having to give
up
driving due to deteriorating eyesitght.
I have been in the habit of taking used potting compost to my
allotment and dumping it there. I can't do that now. My garden is
so small I cannot add any more to the level!
If I seive out the old roots, (eg of sweet peas grown in a large
tub)
and add some slow release fertiliser or JI base mix, can I use it
again... for bulbs maybe?
What limitations would this present? After all, some plants stay in
the same compost in pots for some years, with a little topping up
and
liquid feeding.
Any thoughts?

Each spring I stir up the compost as best I can, remove the top
quarter or so for dumping in the garden, add a high potash fertiliser
and top up with new compost. I am happy with this regime.

Franz

Pam Moore wrote:
:: The current thread about disposing of garden soil set me thinking
:: abour some things I am being forced to change since having to give
:: up driving due to deteriorating eyesitght.
:: I have been in the habit of taking used potting compost to my
:: allotment and dumping it there. I can't do that now. My garden
:: is so small I cannot add any more to the level!
:: If I seive out the old roots, (eg of sweet peas grown in a large
:: tub) and add some slow release fertiliser or JI base mix, can I
:: use it again... for bulbs maybe?
:: What limitations would this present? After all, some plants stay
:: in the same compost in pots for some years, with a little topping
:: up and liquid feeding.
:: Any thoughts?
::
:: Pam in Bristol

I can't see any problem with this, unless it gets some kind of disease...I
know tomatoes are susceptible to diseases which can carry over in the soil
year after year?[1]
I'm no expert but maybe a dose of jeyes fluid in midwinter would kill off
any disease, coupled with a good dose of fertiliser as you suggest would
have it as good as new.

[1]My dad always used the previous years tomato grobags for hanging baskets
and planters for the patio the following spring, with a little added soil
and some white stuff (I can't think what it was, but it was non organic and
was like vermiculite)...the flowers etc always did well provided they were
given fertiliser, which he did even if it was new potting compost anyway!

On Tue, 31 Aug 2004 16:44:49 GMT, Pam Moore wrote:

The current thread about disposing of garden soil set me thinking
abour some things I am being forced to change since having to give up
driving due to deteriorating eyesitght.

I'm very sorry to read about your eye trouble. As my doctor says,
getting old isn't for sissies. Hang in there.

I have been in the habit of taking used potting compost to my
allotment and dumping it there. I can't do that now. My garden is
so small I cannot add any more to the level!
If I seive out the old roots, (eg of sweet peas grown in a large tub)
and add some slow release fertiliser or JI base mix, can I use it
again... for bulbs maybe?
What limitations would this present? After all, some plants stay in
the same compost in pots for some years, with a little topping up and
liquid feeding.
Any thoughts?

Ask around for someone in your neighborhood who likes to grow
plants for sale in a small way, say for bazaars or sales at plant
shows. They might be very happy to take your spent potting soil
away.

In my own case, spent soil only gets used for plants I'm growing
for such sales. I have a lot of potted bulbs and found out years
ago that you can't reuse the spent soil for repotting them.
Invariably you overlook a few small bulblets and your stock gets
mixed up.

If you're not fussy about a few stray seedlings or whatever
popping up, replenishing the soil and reusing it might work
pretty well.


--
Rodger Whitlock
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
[change "atlantic" to "pacific" and
"invalid" to "net" to reply by email]

Pam.
I should think that the main objection to re using old compost is the build
up of pests etc in the compost.
If you don't have to vast a quantity then you could sterilize it in your
microwave, you would be surprised how much you could do doing say 3 lots of
say 2 litres a day ( a Pyrex casserole dish with lid works great) over 2
weeks.
Mix this with fresh compost and use as normal, but I would use for different
plants to the year before if possible.
I often re use the compost from seed trays into potting mix, and it is
surprising how many slow germinating seeds will show up after a year or even
2.
Sorry to hear about the sight, what is the condition if I may ask?

--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

On Wed, 1 Sep 2004 10:05:28 +0100, "David Hill"
wrote:

Pam.
I should think that the main objection to re using old compost is the build
up of pests etc in the compost.
If you don't have to vast a quantity then you could sterilize it in your
microwave, you would be surprised how much you could do doing say 3 lots of
say 2 litres a day ( a Pyrex casserole dish with lid works great) over 2
weeks.
Mix this with fresh compost and use as normal, but I would use for different
plants to the year before if possible.
I often re use the compost from seed trays into potting mix, and it is
surprising how many slow germinating seeds will show up after a year or even
2.
Sorry to hear about the sight, what is the condition if I may ask?

I have microwaved quite a bit of compost in the past, when I was
fighting vine weevil. (Whispers... I have not seen any this year) but
this could be a problem as it is not so easy for me to see the grubs
in compost now!
Would you think that drenching with Armillatox would kill 2 birds, and
any nasties as well?
BTW my eye problem is Macular Degeneration. Much research going on,
but as yet no cure. It's a b****r.


Pam in Bristol

I have been in the habit of taking used potting compost to my
allotment and dumping it there. I can't do that now. My garden is
so small I cannot add any more to the level!
If I seive out the old roots, (eg of sweet peas grown in a large tub)
and add some slow release fertiliser or JI base mix, can I use it
again... for bulbs maybe?

Nutrients would be one concern, but you seem to have a handle on that.
My other concern would be a build up of pests and diseases.

To counter this I have tried:

microwaving - makes kitchen smell, and still got some 'extra'
seedlings appearing. Maybe I did not give it long enough.

soaking in boiling water - water cools quickly and you cannot be sure
that it is hot enough for long enough. Added to that you have the
problem of drying out your compost.

Next time I do this will try the wallpaper steamer. I think I will
need to invent a container to do my steaming in. One with the steam
inlet at the bottom. That way the steam should find its way through
the whole batch from the bottom up. My steamer does about 30 mins of
steaming per reservoir of water which should be plenty long enough to
kill any nasties.

Phil

On 1 Sep 2004 04:03:03 -0700, Philip wrote:

Next time I do this will try the wallpaper steamer. I think I will
need to invent a container to do my steaming in. One with the steam
inlet at the bottom. That way the steam should find its way through
the whole batch from the bottom up. My steamer does about 30 mins of
steaming per reservoir of water which should be plenty long enough to
kill any nasties.

Anyone tried a pressure cooker? It's only like a autoclave on a small
scale.
Some water in the bottom and the soil in the vegetable-steaming tray
thingy? (maybe a bit of cheesecloth to stop it falling through if it's
really fine). A few minutes at high pressure ought to do it.


--
Tim C.

"David Hill" wrote in message
...
Pam.
I should think that the main objection to re using old compost is
the build
up of pests etc in the compost.
If you don't have to vast a quantity then you could sterilize it in
your
microwave, you would be surprised how much you could do doing say 3
lots of
say 2 litres a day ( a Pyrex casserole dish with lid works great)
over 2
weeks.

David, for how long do you typically leave the compost in the
microwave?
Do you dampen it before it goes in, or is the natural moisture in it
enough?

Franz

In article ,
Franz Heymann wrote:

"David Hill" wrote in message
...
Pam.
I should think that the main objection to re using old compost is
the build
up of pests etc in the compost.
If you don't have to vast a quantity then you could sterilize it in
your
microwave, you would be surprised how much you could do doing say 3
lots of
say 2 litres a day ( a Pyrex casserole dish with lid works great)
over 2
weeks.

David, for how long do you typically leave the compost in the
microwave?

I leave it until it is hot and steamy!

Do you dampen it before it goes in, or is the natural moisture in it
enough?

It depends on whether it starts off damp - it needs to be seed planting
damp to steam well.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

"Nick Maclaren" wrote in message
...
In article ,
Franz Heymann wrote:

"David Hill" wrote in
message
...
Pam.
I should think that the main objection to re using old compost is
the build
up of pests etc in the compost.
If you don't have to vast a quantity then you could sterilize it
in
your
microwave, you would be surprised how much you could do doing say
3
lots of
say 2 litres a day ( a Pyrex casserole dish with lid works great)
over 2
weeks.

David, for how long do you typically leave the compost in the
microwave?

I leave it until it is hot and steamy!

Do you dampen it before it goes in, or is the natural moisture in
it
enough?

It depends on whether it starts off damp - it needs to be seed
planting
damp to steam well.

Thanks, Nick. I'll try it out in February or March.

Franz,
I would try microwaving now, then you can see if you get any weed growth ,
this will give you an idea of timing for when you are busy with everything.
You want the soil/compost to be hot enough to cook all the bugs and seeds in
it. Over cooking is better than under, after all it wont get to tough to
eat,
I have been "Cooking" the soil from mole hills to add to compost, well they
might as well be put to use.
If your soil is to wet when cooking then it will just be a lump of pudding
when you finish, it wants to be just naturally moist.

--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

"David Hill" wrote in message
...
Franz,
I would try microwaving now, then you can see if you get any weed
growth ,
this will give you an idea of timing for when you are busy with
everything.

I am not ready to dismantle my pots yet. I gave zonal pelargoniums,
antirrhinums, mimulus and surfinias still flowering bountifully in
them.
Our season in the Yorkshire dales is short enough as it is. {:-))


You want the soil/compost to be hot enough to cook all the bugs and
seeds in
it. Over cooking is better than under, after all it wont get to
tough to
eat,
I have been "Cooking" the soil from mole hills to add to compost,
well they
might as well be put to use.
If your soil is to wet when cooking then it will just be a lump of
pudding
when you finish, it wants to be just naturally moist.

Thanks for the detailed advice.

Franz