How is Verve Citrus Compost?

[kunino]

Does anyone know how well Verve (the B&Q) Citrus Compost performs?
Verve composts (the ones with peat in, at least) seem to get fairly good reviews in Which Gardening, but I'd like to hear specifically about their citrus compost.
(I realise, of course, that I could just make mix my own up, but since I've only got the one tree and since I don't usually use any of the ingredients, so would have to buy them especially, I'd rather just by a specialised citrus compost).

[Hazel at the Hill]

Hi Kunino and welcome to the Vine. I have no experience of this compost, but we have a number of fruit experts here who will soon be along to advise, I'm sure.

[starloc]

Any citrus compost I have seen does not drain quickly enough, they have all needed something like 0.5 inch bark chips made for orchids added to the mix

Dont repot yet, best to wait till May/June or so until its warm, trees grow in spurts of roots then shoots, wait till the first growth of shoots, then as the shoots slow in growth, it will row roots, this is the time to be repotted so thee roots rapidly grow into the new compost.

[DannyRam]

Opinions on this would be appreciated

I bought this Verve peat free compost (doesn't mention Citrus on the pack) from B&Q last week.
I have put it through a sieve briefly!! It looks a bit fibrous (is that the right word) to me.

[starloc]

After years of trying to use b&q compost ( not for citrus ! ) I have given up completely and use a brand name from the garden center, usually 3 bags of 50L for £10 for the normal one and the johnInnes formula 3*50L for £12

A citrus plant wants something like treated coconut husk fiber chips ( not the rotted down coconut compost or powdered coconut husk ), bark chips or similar, to test a mix, pour 2 times the level of water into a pot full of the mix, firmed as you would with a plant in it, if you pour in the water and it doesnt just run out of the bottom....no resistance.... no hold up in the pot at all! then it doesnt drain well enough!

Citrus will row in things like standard composts and soil based mixes , but it is difficult to keep them alive, Citrus in pots in places like the UK dont die from viruses and all that they die from lack of air to the roots causing them to rot,
They need a very free draining plantpot with lots of holes and a very fast draining compost watered fully only when its very dry by lowering the pot into a container of slightly warmed water, leave till all the bubbles stop ( only a minute or two ) and then lift the pot and let it drain fully, never leave it so water can collect on the bottom of the pot, if in a saucer the pot must be lifted so nothing can touch the bottom of the pot

[kunino]

Citrus will row in things like standard composts and soil based mixes , but it is difficult to keep them alive, Citrus in pots in places like the UK dont die from viruses and all that they die from lack of air to the roots causing them to rot,
They need a very free draining plantpot with lots of holes and a very fast draining compost watered fully only when its very dry by lowering the pot into a container of slightly warmed water, leave till all the bubbles stop ( only a minute or two ) and then lift the pot and let it drain fully, never leave it so water can collect on the bottom of the pot, if in a saucer the pot must be lifted so nothing can touch the bottom of the pot

Really? Because at the moment the only concession I've really made towards giving it special treatment is growing it in special citrus compost (from a name-brand, although I forget which one). I leave it outside during the summer (I only water it in dry spells; it seems to get enough from the rain), I leave it in my conservatory during the winter (only watering very sparingly), and I occasionally feed it during the growing months with a general liquid feed (those special citrus feeds are too costly. And apparently winter feeding is only of benefit if yours stays active during the winter, which at the temperature of my conservatory it doesn't).
It hasn't flowered yet, but then I grew it from seed and it's only about five or six years old (the trunk is about 3/4 of an inch across, and it's about 3 ft tall). Maybe that's why it seems to be doing well despite my neglect. Maybe the seedling roots are stronger than the grafted ones they'd use for citrus bought from a nursery.

Anyway, I've decided it's safest to stick with a name-brand compost. Best not to risk it over a couple of pounds saving.

[starloc]

Rain water is different, it is unusual to overwater a plant with normal levels of rain as it contains dissolved oxygen - hydrogen peroxide , this stops the root rot by adding oxygen

It is always best to use fertillser for citrus during the winter as at normal home temperatures the plant will not go fully dormant, being an evergreen it will grow all year round, just much slower in the winter, this is especially if it is carrying fruit

Special citrus fertillisers are in general much better than general ones, citrus need very high levels of nutrients and many different micronutrients that are not in most fertilisers, chempak citrus fertilser is quite cheap on ebay , or the one from the citrus center isnt much more and goes a long way , i tend to use the citrus center one as I use a lot of it

With the compost, with citrus you need to be carefull with the pH of the compost,depending on the rootstock, with yours being on its own roots you would need to do a search to check the pH of what it prefers and test the compost, many composts are incorrect for citrus, a citrus compost should be correct...but not always as it does depend on the variety used for the roots

[kunino]

It is always best to use fertillser for citrus during the winter as at normal home temperatures the plant will not go fully dormant, being an evergreen it will grow all year round, just much slower in the winter, this is especially if it is carrying fruit

I doubt mine usually grows during the winter. That conservatory is unheated and poorly insulated. Most winters it frequently goes down to just 1 or 2 degrees Celsius at night (although never below zero). It may have grown a little this winter, but then it has been unseasonably warm. I haven't had a frost since December.