I know it's a little too early to sow but I have started to get a few
packs of seeds together. When it actually comes to sowing these, what
seed composts do people favour ?
There seem to be so many brands and varieties that I'm a bit
bewildered on what to go for. Should it be John Innes type, peat based
or peat free, does it have to be seed compost or will general purpose
stuff do, does it make a difference whether it's a known brand or shed
stuff

Perhaps we can compile a league table of what has given the best
results for people in the past

Thanks

Jim

I know it's a little too early to sow

I started sowing a couple of days ago.... couldn't wait ;-)

bewildered on what to go for. Should it be John Innes type, peat based
or peat free, does it have to be seed compost or will general purpose
stuff do, does it make a difference whether it's a known brand or shed
stuff

Tried Peat-free and it was like working with burnt chips of wood. It
wouldn't hold any moisture, was 'lumpy' and generally nasty stuff, IMO.

- h

On Wed, 29 Jan 2003 17:24:24 -0000, "H"
wrote:

I know it's a little too early to sow

I started sowing a couple of days ago.... couldn't wait ;-)

bewildered on what to go for. Should it be John Innes type, peat based
or peat free, does it have to be seed compost or will general purpose
stuff do, does it make a difference whether it's a known brand or shed
stuff

Tried Peat-free and it was like working with burnt chips of wood. It
wouldn't hold any moisture, was 'lumpy' and generally nasty stuff, IMO.

- h


i have noticed that when i use some vermiculite over the seeds they
seem to do better in those spots than other spots.
meaning that the vermiculite is not even all over the dish of seeds.

On 29 Jan 2003 07:14:16 -0800, (Jim) wrote:

I know it's a little too early to sow but I have started to get a few
packs of seeds together. When it actually comes to sowing these, what
seed composts do people favour ?
There seem to be so many brands and varieties that I'm a bit
bewildered on what to go for. Should it be John Innes type, peat based
or peat free, does it have to be seed compost or will general purpose
stuff do, does it make a difference whether it's a known brand or shed
stuff

Perhaps we can compile a league table of what has given the best
results for people in the past

The choice partly depends on the type of plant you are growing. I
sow a lot of bulb seeds and usually use a soil-based compost
formula similar to JIP. Bulbs can take a long time to germinate,
and soiless composts tend to deteriorate and lose their structure
after a while. (Colchicums can take up to six years to
germinate!)

Perennials might also benefit from a soil-based compost. The clay
fraction in soil helps retain nutrients better than
peat/sand/perlite.

--
Rodger Whitlock
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

"Jim" wrote in message
om...
I know it's a little too early to sow but I have started to get a few
packs of seeds together. When it actually comes to sowing these, what
seed composts do people favour ?

For most things, any of the household name multi-purpose composts are fine.
Rodger's advice for things that are going to be in the trays for a long time
is good. In general however I like to get things pricked out into fresh
compost as soon as they are big enough to be handled so peat based composts
are fine. IMHO peat free composts have a way to go before I will recommend
them for general use. The household names also do seed/cuttings compost but
I only use those for the awkward squad like begonias and for things like
cyclamen that won't like the high nutrient level in multi purpose.

Rod

I use a mixture of peat free multi purpose (which I pass through a sieve to
breakdown the lumps) and my own compost plus some more soil from the veg
patch (again well sieved).
The multipurpose always seems to be too dry when used on its own so adding
my own soil and compost helps to retain some moisture.
The odd rogue seedling can be a problem but I can live with a tomato plant
in my hanging basket so long as it fruits (it did).

AndyP


"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above
hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world" JRR Toliken, The Hobbit

"andyp" wrote in message ...
I use a mixture of peat free multi purpose (which I pass through a sieve to
breakdown the lumps) and my own compost plus some more soil from the veg
patch (again well sieved).
The multipurpose always seems to be too dry when used on its own so adding
my own soil and compost helps to retain some moisture.
The odd rogue seedling can be a problem but I can live with a tomato plant
in my hanging basket so long as it fruits (it did).

AndyP


"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above
hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world" JRR Toliken, The Hobbit

I find multipurpose fine, but try & find some fine vermiculite if you
can - I'm sure this helps with germination a great deal. Sow your
seeds on the compost, then cover with vermiculite, depth according to
size of seed. For very fine seeds, sow on top of the layer of
vermiculite. Also, water with Cheshunt compound, or Liquid Copper
fungicide. Generally use B&Q or Westland peat based multipurpose.
PaulW.