Compost: Does price matter?

[Philthy]

The main compost brands around here appear to be either Westland or John Innes blends, and most garden retailers appear to favour one or the other.
I buy Levington seed compost (for seeds ), for no other reason than that was what I bought originally and its just part of the annual routine now.
I have a B+Q about 1/2 mile away from where I live, which is handy. Their budget growbags are a bargain at £1.98 each. I always get a few; they're a staple of my potting up mixes (personally I think they're a bit skinny for using as actual growbags). Anyway, I do 1/3 growbag, 1/3 fresh 'homemade' compost, 1/3 vermiculite. It does the job year on year The mix is light and open. I find the John Innes a bit too dense for what I like to grow, though for flowers it is ideal.
Marginally thicker growbags from names like Tomorite are usually twice if not three times the price. Is there ikely to be much difference in quality, and yield of crop, vs the budget brands? Just wondering..

[AllInContainers]

If anything, I'd imagine the more expensive brands will just mean you might not have to feed as soon as with the cheaper ones. All mixes on all brands seem to vary dramatically anyway, so I just use cheap stuff and water/feed accordingly

[batman]

I'm a cheapskate (or rather, quite poor), so I usually buy large bags of peat-free all-purpose compost. Peat-free is really important to both me and my partner, but apart from that we go for good offers. I usually cover my seeds with coconut coir fibre (which I buy in dehydrated blocks), and feed them as needed later on.

[Kristen]

I buy the cheapest ones when on offer in the Autumn. I find the "quality" is better in the Autumn, perhaps because the materials have been prepared in the dry season. In Spring I have often had severely compacted, soggy, compost - probably because it has been stacked all winter, or been outside. I mix MPC with 10% (by volume) of Perlite to keep it open.

I also have a trade account with a horticultural materials supplier and their price for "Professional" compost (e.g. from Sinclair) is significantly more expensive than the cheap and cheerful stuff I buy. I wonder if there is a Night-and-Day difference between the two? Clearly commercial growers will be expecting/wanting Best and Fastest results

[AllInContainers]

I wonder if there is a Night-and-Day difference between the two? Clearly commercial growers will be expecting/wanting Best and Fastest results

... or maybe just not wanting the extra labour expense for someone to tend and feed them. Plant it, put on auto watering system - done! Cheapo compost hand mixed with top soil or slow release granules etc, and then mixing and applying liquid feeds at regular intervals adds a lot of man hours I'd presume

[daviddevantnhisspiritwife]

My experience this year has been mixed.

I picked up Lidl Grandiol Seed/Potting compost: £1.49 for 20 L, found this to be very good. Buoyed by this I thought I'd give the Grandiol MPC ago £1.98 for 35L - got 3 bags and am extremely disappointed. Set like concrete and no 'fibrey' content to it at all. Virtually black. Seems plants are struggling in it and I am feverishly potting on into B&Q Verve MPC.

Aldi (20L) Seed compost is very similar to the Grandiol MPC (35L bags).

B&Q Verve. I get this at £5.98 for 125L compressed bale. It seems to be very good this year. I know that it varies though so your experience may differ. To ease my conscience I am mixing it with their peat free version of the same. I would urge you to check the quality of the peat free before you buy as to my mind the bale I have is not fit for purpose. It is literally shredded woody fibre, very wet, dark and I don't think it'd be any good for anything small. I am using it as a mulch and to bulk out my larger pottings.

Obviously, the above is completely unscientific and based upon my own experiences and prejudices as an overtly price sensitive gardener!

[Knight of Albion]

A good question!

On the face of it, you'd think there shouldn't be much difference.
Though the market leading brand names have a name and reputation to defend so will use more nutrient-rich sources to make their compost. That would get seedlings off to the best possible start.

I've had cheap compost in the past and frankly I wonder how anything manages to grow in it...

[Nannysally99]

I started with B & M mpc and regretted it very quickly. Have been repotting into B & Q Verve , much better stuff

[Methe]

The b&q stuff is really nice this year. Generally I just buy the cheapest but having bought some lidl peat free compost a couple of weeks ago which smelled like a sewer I've changed my mind.. Blurgh!

[gardening_gal]

I started with B & M mpc and regretted it very quickly. Have been repotting into B & Q Verve , much better stuff

I've just bought 70L of that B & M stuff today.

[Nannysally99]

I've just bought 70L of that B & M stuff today.

Hopefully for you, maybe I was just unlucky GG. It just stayed soooo wet, couldn't wait to get rid of it

[gardening_gal]

Hopefully for you, maybe I was just unlucky GG. It just stayed soooo wet, couldn't wait to get rid of it

I'm growing in containers and pots in the polytunnel. Maybe staying wet might be a good thing in these circumstances. *says she, hopefully*

[crannman]

i look for best offer BQ usualy win but local JTF has some good offers .the i riddle it the crap that comes out is un real but differs bag to bag then i mix in growmore 'fishblood and bone.

[starbug]

Is there any particular compost that's best for growing potatoes? I'm using MiracleGro's fruit and veg compost for my Duke of Yorks - has anyone else used this one?

[Potstubsdustbins]

More or less any compost for spuds, they are in the ground that long you have to feed anyway.

If I have not had a disease problem I actually reuse the compost year on year just add a dose of 7-7-7 fertiliser to start the season of then give extra feed as things progress.