Growing without compost (MPC)

[veggiechicken]

Each year I buy compost for the tomatoes that I grow in the GH. Usually its Multi Purpose Compost (MPC), sometimes its growbags. Whatever I buy, it accounts for most of the money I spend on gardening each year.
Furthermore, the quality of the compost seems to be deteriorating and there are reports of weedkiller residues in some compost.

So, can one garden without buying MPC?

I make as much compost as I can but that is used in the garden, on the beds.
My thoughts are that I could fill my GH pots with garden soil, instead of MPC and save myself some cash. MPC needs to be "fed" after 6 weeks anyway so I'd do the same with soil.

Are there benefits to MPC I'm missing?
If so, are they worth paying for?

Do we buy MPC for convenience?
Is carrying a bag easier than shoveling soil?

I'd appreciate your views please

[roitelet]

I use a mix of soil, homemade compost and sand and it seems to work fine. The compost here is expensive and rubbish and I didn't buy any last year, not even seed compost. For that used leaf mould sand.

[veggiechicken]

Thanks roitelet That's encouraging.
I've been using sieved molehill soil in the seed compost to eke it out.

[Bren In Pots]

I buy just one bag of MPC mostly it gets used for small seeds and things I start of in my HP but thats just so I don't get slugs in the house. Otherwise I mix MPC with my own compost and soil/sand.
I think i buy that one bag out of habit. because I still get slugs in the kitchen

[Penellype]

I don't see any reason why you shouldn't use soil - tomatoes grow perfectly well in soil in the ground. I use fresh compost from tomato grow bags for my tomatoes, mainly because most of my used compost has been used for potatoes and I want to reduce the risk of blight as much as possible. I don't use soil because I find it too heavy and I'm always moving my pots about, or they live on the windowsill where excessive weight might break the self watering trays.

I have grown tomatoes successfully in 100% well rotted horse manure, which may or may not be easier to shift than soil.

[Potstubsdustbins]

Having to use many 100s of litres of compost each year I wouldn't be able to garden if I bought fresh MPC therefore I sieve, re-fertilize and reuse most of mine but I do by new for seed cutting purely because its sterile.

I see no reason at all that you could not use soil in your pots as someone as already said I would think more gardeners grow in soil than in MPC, maybe this year do an half and half experiment to see how you get on.

[Scoot]

I'll be growing my tomatoes this year in homemade compost out of my compost bins mixed with last years compost that i grew my carrots in which was the same compost i grew tomatoes in the year before. I'll add a bit BFB to the old MPC and then mix it 50/50 with my homemade garden compost. Hopefully it should be ok.

I bought some MPC this year to start all my seeds in and to grow my chillies in.

[rary]

Use sieved soil and course sand mix for seeds and if you can sterilize the soil all the better, if the soil from the mole Hills are not producing weeds use that with the course sand, before peat was used the compost for sale was John Innes but most folks made theirs own with leaf mould and course sand for seeds and loam for pots, the course sand that was used by my Dad was river sand from the near by river and we also collected mole hills and bags of leaves

[ESBkevin]

I grow my Toms in the soil in the greenhouse year on year. I dig in a goodly amount of own compost and some spent compost from flowerpots. Tomatos are heavy feeders and so need regular input in the form of nettle tea then comfry tea once the flowers set.

I am unlikely to buy much compost in the future, quality seems to be all over the place and price not always a good guide.

[Mr Bones]

I tried plain soil in pots but it settled into a rock hard lump, maybe it's our soil. 50/50 soil and home made compost is much better but it'd probably benefit from some sand too.

[Thelma Sanders]

I thought I had already answered this, when I looked it was a similar question/different thread - lot's of answers here (as well as mine) LOL

http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...ml#post1510326

[veggiechicken]

^^^ Similar but not quite. I want to find out if its possible to avoid using/buying MPC at all. Gardening on the cheap

[burnie]

My dad never bought compost, but I remember there was a lot of work involved making his own, I don't buy much compost, but I do buy for seeds and for plant pots. I have bought grow bags, but find the results hit and miss.

[fishpond]

veggiechicken
You & Charles D have got me thinking.
I have been buying MPC for many years and have noticed the price going up and the quality going down.
I keep (only 2 at the moment)chickens in a sheltered big run--25ft x 9ft, the soil in this run is like dust as it has been turned over and pooed on many many times over a number of years.
This soil is easily rewettable and will not contain any slug eggs etc.
Time to experiment

[veggiechicken]

Bob - its the deterioration in quality and cost that have made me question its worth too.
I scrape the soil/compost out of the chicken run every few weeks and add it to the compost bin. After a rest it goes straight on the beds.
As you say, time to experiment