noob question over compost

[jps]

i am talking shop bought compost, i always thought it was fine for filling pots, adding to beds etc but someone at work mentioned you shouldnt use it alone.

and it got me wondering, all my seeds are planted in just shop bought compost, is that wrong?

also, i want to grow trays of grass for the rabbits, is it ok to fill the trays with compost and then sow the grass seed into that?

thanks.

[rustylady]

I think your "friend" was having you on. Shop bought multi-purpose compost is fine for all the things you mentioned. What did they reckon you had to add to it?

[Bigmallly]

The only thing I add when potting on is a little vermiculite.

[Sanjo]

i am talking shop bought compost, i always thought it was fine for filling pots, adding to beds etc but someone at work mentioned you shouldnt use it alone.

and it got me wondering, all my seeds are planted in just shop bought compost, is that wrong?

also, i want to grow trays of grass for the rabbits, is it ok to fill the trays with compost and then sow the grass seed into that?

thanks.

Most Multipurpose compost has indications on the packaging as to its use and it will probably state sowing, potting on etc. It's possible I suppose for your friend to think that the compost could be too strong and rich for the sowing of seeds but it should be fine.
As far as the grass is concerned I would think that's OK. Bit of a chore though eh. Do you not have any long tufty grass (ie growing where it shouldn't be) that could be packed into a seed tray for them to nibble on.

[Two_Sheds]

i want to grow trays of grass for the rabbits, is it ok to fill the trays with compost and then sow the grass seed into that?

I do that in the autumn for my guineas, it gives them a couple of weeks extra greenery. Tbh though, I get more bang for my buck if I sow cheap bird food (oats/wheat etc). They're still grasses, but more vigorous and the GPs love it

[snohare]

Sowing and potting composts have a limited supply of nutrients; what you are paying for is a mix that encourages either germination, or root growth.
So longer term, if you leave your seedlings in those pots or modules, then they will start to run short of nutrients - especially if the bag of compost you bought has been sitting outside in the rain, with moisture leaching out goodness.
MPC however - multipurpose compost - is more suited to being used for the whole season, and will often mention that it contains slow release fertiliser.
So yes, your pal was right enough I suppose, although many folk forget to pot on and their plants survive - they maybe don't thrive though...sometimes it is literally pot luck.

[ann-the-nan]

Could your friend be a "save the planet" person. Lots of folk are concerned about what will happen when all the compost has gone.

[zazen999]

Could your friend be a "save the planet" person. Lots of folk are concerned about what will happen when all the compost has gone.

Peat. When all the Peat has gone. Compost and peat are different things. And what's a 'save the planet' person? Someone opposed to destroying the planet? That's a normal person, isn't it?

[jps]

ok thanks for the help.

i shall continue planting stuff in compost then, it is mpc.

i plan to plant most of it in the ground anyway once they are established.

what about for hanging baskets and filling a raised bed (6") tall?

[Helgalush]

Its fine to use ordinary multi-purpose compost for growing grasses for your rabbits. You can also grow plantain and dandelion from seed in a similar way, just sprinkle it over some MPC in shallow seed trays. You can get these and timothy grass seed from the Hay Experts website if you wanted to specifically grow these.

I use ordinary MPC in hanging baskets too, depending on what is growing in them I feed them in the summer with a liquid feed (I use mine for tumbling tomatoes and strawberry plants).

[Sanjo]

ok thanks for the help.

i shall continue planting stuff in compost then, it is mpc.

i plan to plant most of it in the ground anyway once they are established.

what about for hanging baskets and filling a raised bed (6") tall?

I use multipurpose too in my baskets and it would be fine in a 6" bed but if that is all that is in the bed then the veggies will take all the nutrients out in a matter of weeks and generally MPC wouldn't have the "Oomph" to hold any tall veg like sweetcorn for instance.
I would think it will also be expensive to fill. How big is the bed? If there is soil already available you could mix the MPC in with it to bulk it out.
What will you be growing in the raised bed?

[jps]

i have another unopened 125l bag of compost.

tbh we do have some daleks and i think one of them has some ready to use compost in it.

what else could i bulk it out with tho?

as for the raised beds, i think the plans are peas, onions, carrots

not planning too much as i am still new to all this.

the raised beds will be where the lawn is now, the relevant bit will be dug up and the beds placed there.

hanging baskets funnily enough are for strawberries and tomatos!

2 already have strawberry plants in, just waiting for the tomatos to grow a bit more as they were seeds and are still in the propogator atm.

[jps]

Its fine to use ordinary multi-purpose compost for growing grasses for your rabbits. You can also grow plantain and dandelion from seed in a similar way, just sprinkle it over some MPC in shallow seed trays. You can get these and timothy grass seed from the Hay Experts website if you wanted to specifically grow these.

I use ordinary MPC in hanging baskets too, depending on what is growing in them I feed them in the summer with a liquid feed (I use mine for tumbling tomatoes and strawberry plants).

i have some grass seed to use up but will look into these also, thank you.

we do have a lawn we can rip bit off also but wanted some nice fresh stuff as it seems easy to do anyway

[taff]

I'd imagine your friend thought that mpc wasn't enough by iteslf in a raised bed.
You need something with a bit of oomph to hold it all together, mpc needs to be kept moist otherwise it's awful tot ry and re-wet properly, and it's not sturdy enough for plants that need firm roots, or that are held up by their roots, like artichokes etc....

[jps]

oic, what could i add to it then to fill the beds, or would there be something better to fill the beds with?